Posted in: Disney+, Hulu, TV | Tagged: disney plus, hulu, streaming, walt disney

Disney+, Hulu & ESPN+: One App to Stream Them All Later This Year

The Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Iger confirmed that Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu will all be under one streaming app by the end of the year.

The Walt Disney Company's plans for Hulu became a hot topic back in February when Disney CEO Bob Iger signaled that the company might be just as willing to sell the streamer than invest in full ownership of it with his "everything's on the table right now" remark during a CNBC interview (a look back to that in a minute). But based on what Iger had to share during today's earnings call, Hulu isn't going anywhere – but there's going to be a major change to the streamer as well as SPN+. By the end of the calendar year, Iger confirmed that Hulu & ESPN+ content will be combined with Disney+ content into a single app. That means the Hulu & ESPN banners of programming will remain, but they will no longer exist as their own streaming entities. "While we continue to offer Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ as standalone options, this is a logical progression of our DTC offerings that will provide greater opportunities for advertisers, while giving bundle subscribers access to more robust and streamlined content, resulting in greater audience engagement and ultimately leading to a more unified streaming experience," Iger said during the call (hopefully pausing to take a breath or two along the way).

During an interview from back in February with CNBC's David Faber, Iger got some eyebrows arching when it came to the topic of Hulu's future with "The Mouse." Up until now, the conventional wisdom was that Disney would buy out Comcast's ownership in Hulu and then fold the streaming into "The House of Mouse." Well, that might not exactly be the case based on what Iger had to share. While describing the streamer as "a very successful platform, and I think a good consumer proposition," Iger made it clear that "everything's on the table right now." So that assumption that Disney would be looking to take ownership of Hulu next year? "I'm suggesting that isn't necessarily the case," Iger responded. "I'm not gonna speculate about whether we're a buyer or seller of it. I obviously have suggested that I'm concerned about undifferentiated general entertainment, particularly given the competitive landscape that we're operating in, and we're going to look at it very objectively." Here's a look back at what Iger had to share about Hulu, followed by another interesting comment from Iger regarding the future of ESPN and the "inevitability" of it going to streaming:

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