ESPN and Fox team up for yet another sports bundle

Both the long-awaited, standalone streaming version of ESPN and Fox’s new streaming service are launching on the same day later this month. Which one should you choose? You might not have to. 

There’s long been chatter that ESPN and Fox could offer their new streaming wares in a bundle, and now it’s official: On October 2, you’ll be able to sign up for both the new streaming ESPN and Fox One together for $40 a month, a savings of $10/month versus getting them individually. The individual ESPN and Fox One services will each launch individually on August 21. 

The bundle includes the “ultimate” tier of ESPN, which offers all of ESPN’s linear networks (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS, and so on) along with all EPSN broadcasts on ABC, ESPN+, ESPN3, SECN+, and ACCNX. On its own, ESPN Ultimate costs $30 a month. 

Also in the package is Fox One, the new Fox streaming service that boasts all of Fox’s network brands, including a truckload of sports-oriented properties: Fox Sports, FS1, and FD2. Fox One is slated to cost $20 a month by itself. 

The new ESPN/Fox bundle brings to mind another sports package, albeit one that never got off the ground: Venu Sports, a venture that would have seen ESPN-parent Disney, Warner Bros., and Fox join forces for a $40-a-month sports streaming service.  

Venu Sports got ensnared by a federal injunction following a lawsuit filed by competing streamer Fubo, and the three parties behind Venu chose to scuttle the bundle back in January rather than face the legal headaches involved in getting the bundle over regulatory hurdles. 

As for the new ESPN/Fox bundle, the rival networks pitched it as a vehicle for “delivering premium experiences across platforms and meeting consumers where they are—anytime, anywhere.” 

Of course, the new bundle will offer more than just sports. Also in the package are such Fox networks as Fox News, Fox Business, Fox Weather, Fox Nation, Fox local stations, and the Fox Network. 

While ESPN plus Fox sports programming for $40 a month sounds a tad more enticing than $30 a month for ESPN on its lonesome, that’s still a stiff monthly tab, especially if you’re signed up for other streaming services on top of that.