Streaming services like Disney+ and Netflix did very well during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when many were confined to their homes. But that rise in 2020 gave way to a fall in growth for both services based on recent fourth quarter earnings reports by both companies.
Part of what has been cited as a reason to the slowdown in growth and shortfall in revenue for Netflix has been the lack of new original programming. Despite the widespread success of the series Squid Game, the streaming service increased prices as it couldn’t replicate that following with other movies and series.
Netflix also has a limited offering of sports programming, though the Drive to Survive series has resonated well with Formula 1 fans and has made way for a DTS-like series to be developed for Netflix featuring the PGA Tour.
On the latest edition of the Marchand and Ourand Sports Podcast, New York Post sports columnist Andrew Marchand said Netflix finding itself in a bit of a tailspin will have executives and shareholders at Disney thinking differently about ESPN and its streaming service ESPN+.
“Maybe the people thinking, ‘Hey, let’s just spend $30 billion and instead of on sports programming, let’s just try to make the next Ted Lasso or whatever,’ I do think it’s a little forward,” he said. “It does sound good to just throw $30 billion into shows and then you own that. But there’s no guarantee with that.”
There have been rumors swirling that Apple is planning to open its checkbook and bid on live sports to add to its streaming service Apple TV. Ted Lasso, which has become one of the top shows offered on the platform, didn’t become as popular as it is overnight.
But what ESPN and ESPN+ seem to have done right is offering plenty of original programming on top of the live sports offerings. And that’s something Marchand believes is a difference-maker.
“I don’t think anybody thought Ted Lasso would be what it is,” he said. “So I just think when you look at it, I think that might’ve helped ESPN in terms of how it’s looked at in the castle that is Disney.”