More than 850 independent U.S. cable companies will have the opportunity to offer a live streaming sports-first TV bundle to broadband subscribers, thanks to a new partnership between fuboTV and the National Cable Television Cooperative (NCTC).
The agreement was announced ahead of The Independent Show taking place in Indianapolis this week, and means NCTC members’ collective customer base of nine million subscribers can access fubuTV’s entry-level bundle of more than 60 live channels, including 34 sports channels. The virtual MVPD first appeared on the scene in January of 2015 as a streaming soccer service but now provides access to 80 percent of the country’s regional sports networks, and seven of the top eight broadcast networks.
“This partnership gives our members the ability to provide added value to their broadband customers, while also providing more content options for our members, who will now have access to a turnkey OTT video bundle that includes some of the most popular sports, news, and entertainment channels on TV,” John Childress, NCTC’s vice president of product management, reports. “There is a growing demand from certain consumer groups towards live streaming video services, and we feel these partnerships help provide members options to reach these different types of consumers.”
The OTT service is available on a variety of devices, including Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV stick, Android and iOS devices, Apple TV, Chromecast, Kindle Fire, and Roku. It can also be accessed on desktop or mobile web. Subscribers also have access to a video on demand library, and can use their fuboTV login to access dozens of networks’ TV Everywhere websites and apps.
“As the only independent live streaming TV service in the space, we are looking forward to partnering with hundreds of independent providers to help them level the playing field in an increasingly competitive marketplace,” David Gandler, fuboTV co-founder and CEO, comments. “I’m confident that this relationship will be mutually-beneficial, and am thrilled to be making this announcement in advance of fall TV premiers and the upcoming NFL, NBA, NHL, soccer, and college football seasons, and the MLP pennant race.”
Usually fuboTV’s entry level package, known as Fubo Premier, is offered at an introductory price of $34.99 per month, with a seven-day free trial. However, as part of the agreement, NCTC members can offer extended free 30-day trials twice per year on a company-by-company basis.
Those free trials may entice customers, as an April report from Parks Associates found nearly one-third of people who tried a free OTT trial converted to a paid subscription. More on that here.
