Sports-focused streaming service Fubo said it reduced its red ink in the first quarter, despite losing 110,000 subscribers since the end of the year.
Fubo has been battling giants ESPN, Fox Sports and Warner Bros. Discovery, which are assembling their own sports streaming service. The virtual multichannel video programming distributor (vMVPD) filed an antitrust suit against the joint venture and also recently blacked out the WBD channels it had been carrying.
“Given the many unknowns related to the potential launch of the joint venture, including the outcome of the lawsuit and the DOJ’s reported investigation, our guidance and our planned path to profitability do not reflect any potential impact of the joint venture launch to our business,” CEO David Gandler and executive chairman Edgar Bronfman Jr. said in the company’s letter to shareholders.
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Fubo finished the quarter with 1.51 million subscribers in North America, down from 1.62 million at the end of the year but up 18% from a year ago.
The company said it expects to finish the second quarter with between 1.275 million and 1.295 million North American subscribers and end the year with 1.675 million to 1.695 million subscribers.
Fubo’s first-quarter net loss was $56 million, or 19 cents a share, compared to an $86.4 million loss (37 cents a share) a year ago. The company lost $66.2 million in the fourth quarter.
Revenue rose 24% to $402.3 million, with subscription revenue up 24% to $373.7 million and advertising revenue up 21% to $27.5 million
North American revenue rose 24% to $494 million.
The company said it expects North American revenue to be between $357.5 million and $367.5 million in Q2 and to finish the year at $1.525 billion to $1.545 billion.
“Fubo’s first-quarter 2024 performance builds upon the strong momentum achieved in the prior year, with double-digit paid subscribers, total revenue and ad revenue growth in North America,” Gandler said in a statement.
“Our results further underscore continued solid execution on our long-term strategy,“ he said. ”We continue to operate efficiently and effectively as we execute on our mission to delight consumers with an aggregated sports entertainment offering delivered through a personalized and intuitive streaming experience.
“We continue to believe in the merits of our antitrust lawsuit against the sports streaming JV partners and thank those who have publicly supported us,” Gandler added. “We are encouraged by reports of the Department of Justice’s investigation and look forward to our preliminary injunction hearing in August. Fubo believes if all distributors were offered fair terms, the consumer could have multiple and robust sports streaming options to choose from, access to just the channels they want and at a price that's right for them.”
