Podcast Summary: "Why Fox Is Finally Entering the Streaming Wars"

The Town with Matthew Belloni – The Ringer
Date: August 20, 2025
Main Guest: Pete Distad – CEO, Direct to Consumer, Fox Corp.

Episode Overview

This episode delves into Fox Corporation’s strategic entry into the streaming landscape with its new offering, Fox One. Host Matt Belloni explores the reasoning, challenges, and ambitions behind Fox’s long-awaited streaming product, discussing with Pete Distad how Fox One is positioned in the evolving sports and news streaming world, pricing strategy, relationships with partners such as ESPN, the role of Tubi, and what this means for the future of bundled TV experiences.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Fox One: What Is It and Who Is It For? (00:46)

• Fox One is priced at $20/month, targeting customers who want Fox Broadcast Network, Fox News, and all of Fox Sports (including NFL Sunday games, World Series, college football).
• Unlike Fox Nation (the company’s niche conservative streaming), Fox One is their first major direct-to-consumer all-access offering.
• The target market: “cord-nevers” and “cord-cutters” who do not have pay TV but want access to premium live sports and news.

Notable Quote:

"We do not want to lose traditional cable subscribers to Fox One, Lachlan Murdoch said earlier this year. That's because unlike most of the legacy linear television companies, Fox is doing really well in TV."
— Matt Belloni (00:46)

Balancing Success and Cannibalization (04:15)

• Fox’s success in the TV ecosystem gives it a unique vantage point; they wish to grow their streaming user base without cannibalizing lucrative cable and TV affiliate revenue.
• Distad frames Fox One’s purpose as “holistic”: bringing in the unserved 65 million Americans outside the pay TV ecosystem, while preserving the legacy experience for those who still use cable.

"We don't want this to basically take away from that experience for consumers. ... We're sort of indifferent. We're going to create the best experience we can for Fox One for those digital customers. And then we're also totally fine with having the existing distributors sell the Fox product..."
— Pete Distad (04:15–06:23)

Understanding & Targeting the Audience (07:04)

• Fox One is designed to appeal equally to:
  • Sports fans who want every NFL game available via streaming for the first time.
  • Fox News superfans who want a complete, accessible digital package.
• The product is positioned to appeal to those outside the linear landscape; many younger consumers are not considering traditional pay TV but are subscribing to live TV streaming bundles via YouTube TV, Hulu Live, etc.

"I asked how many of [the college students] are thinking about getting paid TV and the number is really low. But then you ask them how are you getting your sports today or news today? They say I use YouTube TV or Hulu Live. ... They don't know that's pay TV, right."
— Pete Distad (05:58)

Strategic Modesty: Measuring Success (09:01)

• Fox is setting realistic expectations for Fox One’s initial growth: mid single digit millions of subscribers seen as success — partly to avoid damaging the current cable ecosystem.
• The launch is positioned as a way to be prepared as linear TV declines, giving Fox an on-ramp to future audiences.

"I personally would like to aim higher, but again, not at the cost of blowing up the ecosystem."
— Pete Distad (09:26)

The Pricing Puzzle (10:03)

• At $20/month, Fox One is intentionally priced to avoid undercutting traditional partners and to ensure sustainability, not just subscriber growth at a loss.
• The price is set to reflect the high cost and value of live sports and news content.

"Our goal here is to create something that allows us to continue to basically be able to continue to invest in content profitably, regardless of whether the customer is watching on YouTube, traditional cable, or digital."
— Pete Distad (10:32)

NFL Rights and The Death of the Linear Bundle (13:01)

• With Fox One, all NFL games are now accessible through streaming platforms — a historic shift.
• The NFL, while invested in the broad reach of traditional TV, is supportive of Fox’s move to reach new audiences.

"My sense is [the NFL is] supportive. They also recognize that they're going through the same challenges we are with the linear ecosystem."
— Pete Distad (13:41)

The ESPN Bundle: Partnerships & Fragmentation (14:36)

• Fox One is bundled with the new ESPN streaming service ($40 for both, a $10 discount).
• The bundle is meant to partially address the fragmentation problem sports fans face; it's seen as an experiment in building a better digital sports bundle.

"I think ultimately the problem that exists out there in sports is the fragmentation. So we're just hopefully bringing the customer slightly closer to a non-fragmented sports experience."
— Pete Distad (15:19)

• Past attempts (like the failed ‘Venue’ bundle with Disney & Warner Discovery) are contrasted with the current partnership, underscoring changes in the media landscape.

The NBA’s Impact and Ongoing Fragmentation (17:36)

• The arrival of the NBA on other streaming platforms (Amazon, Peacock) will further complicate the digital sports experience.
• The industry, including platforms and distributors, must work on simplifying the experience for users.

"It puts more pressure on figuring out how both the pay TV industry and the traditional distributors bundle their content in the digital content. ... How do we simplify the customer experience so they can quickly figure out whether it's on Peacock or whether it's on Prime."
— Pete Distad (18:01)

The Role of Tubi (20:28)

• Tubi, Fox’s free ad-supported streaming service, serves as a top-of-funnel to upsell high-potential users to Fox One.
• No paywall is introduced on Tubi to avoid alienating its broad audience, but technological infrastructure is shared.

"One of the magical things about the Tubi experience is that it's free and there's no paywalls jumping in front of customers. It's just content. ... I'm looking at it as 100 million people, 60 plus percent of them are cord cutters that I should be talking to at the right times..."
— Pete Distad (20:50)

Content Strategy: Original and Live Content (21:59)

• No originals on Fox One at launch — focus is on live content (sports, news, real-time entertainment).
• Current-season Fox broadcast content is included; some previous seasons may be available, but no full show libraries (e.g. not all 30 seasons of The Simpsons).

"I'm not going to build a huge content organization because it turns out we have a number of them — world-class content organizations at Fox already."
— Pete Distad (22:03) "Basically all of [the Fox broadcast content will go to Fox One], yeah."
— Pete Distad (22:43)

Local Affiliates and Limitations (23:23)

• Fox One will include local affiliate programming, but only for users in that designated market area.
• Plans are underway to create “FAST” (free ad-supported streaming TV) channels for out-of-market local content in the future.

The Road Ahead: Will Digital Rival the Cable Bundle? (24:22)

• Fox One’s launch is seen as a “step closer” to a unified digital experience, but full consolidation (i.e., one price for all sports) is a long way off.
• Industry jokes about re-inventing the cable bundle, but this time on digital platforms.

"What you really need to solve is how you get your friends at Max involved and Peacock and Paramount Plus and Amazon Prime and Netflix... so the NFL fan can pay one price for everything." — Matt Belloni (25:07)

"This is the exciting part... This is a massive problem that needs to get solved because it goes through the whole ecosystem..."
— Pete Distad (25:49)

UFC, Paramount, and Industry Trends (26:30)

• Brief discussion on Paramount's big UFC spend; consensus is that digital access increases value, but the investment is significant and carries risks.
• Parallel drawn to major talent deals in Hollywood (e.g., Duffer Brothers move from Netflix to Paramount).

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• "We don't want this to basically take away from that experience for consumers..."
  — Pete Distad (04:15)
• "If Paramount gets a Costco brand Spielberg, then they'll be very happy about that."
  — Matt Belloni (30:26, in discussion about creative talent deals)
• "Maybe we could call it cable with a capital K or something."
  — Matt Belloni (25:49)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Fox One Product Introduction & Rationale: 00:46–04:15
• Target Audience Analysis: 05:58–07:04
• Subscriber & Success Metrics: 09:01–09:41
• Pricing Discussion: 10:03–12:29
• NFL & Sports Rights: 13:01–14:18
• ESPN Partnership: 14:36–16:06
• Fragmentation & NBA Streaming Impact: 17:36–18:45
• Tubi Integration: 20:28–21:59
• Content Strategy: 21:59–23:23
• Local Fox Access: 23:23–24:22
• The Future of Bundling: 24:22–25:49
• Hollywood Talent Moves (Duffer Bros., Paramount): 27:06–32:34

Takeaways

• Fox’s streaming strategy is measured and defensive: Fox One isn’t out to disrupt, but rather to prepare for a post-linear future and capture underserved households.
• Pricing, partnership, and content focus aim to balance revenue and growth without harming Fox’s lucrative TV business.
• Bundling (with ESPN and possibly more in the future) and a robust live offering are central to the product’s pitch. Yet true “one-stop” digital bundles for sports remain elusive.
• The industry is still grappling with digital fragmentation — but each move like Fox One brings the ecosystem incrementally closer to a more consumer-friendly future.

Compiled and summarized by [AI Podcast Summarizer], preserving the original conversational spirit and industry insight.