Apple has no real history with big ticket acquisitions, but it should make an exception for Disney’s ESPN as it hones its live sports focus on its Apple TV app and Apple TV+ service, according to Wedbush Securities analyst Daniel Ives.
Ryan Vlastelica for Bloomberg News:
An acquisition or strategic partnership with the sports channel would be “a no brainer,” wrote analyst Dan Ives. He said that buying ESPN would probably cost more than $50 billion, but would “make a ton of strategic sense” by giving Apple valuable sports content, major TV rights, and “change the cross-sell opportunities and attractiveness of Apple TV looking ahead… Apple recognizes that in this streaming arms race there is a ‘closing window’ for the stalwart to acquire content and cement its footing in the live sports content arena.”
Disney has signaled it’s considering selling or finding strategic partners for its broadcast and cable television assets. Executives have signaled they’re looking to sell a stake in ESPN to a partner that can help accelerate the network’s transition to streaming.
To Ives, this suggests ESPN “potentially may be on the table in one form or another.” Other analysts have advocated for Apple buying Disney outright.
MacDailyNews Take: If Apple wants to the Apple TV app / Apple TV+ service to be known as the home of sports, they could do worse than acquiring ESPN. That said, ESPN has myriad issues from straying from its mission (sports) to declining revenue, profits, and affiliate fees to exploding costs for broadcast rights to employee pay. An Apple acquisition or strategic partnership could solve several of these issues. It would literally be a game-changer for ESPN and, properly structured, for Apple’s SVOD services, too.
I think sports is still a great unifier. So it’s one thing that we can all rally around, and people put their other interests aside to either fight the other side or to hopefully join forces. – Apple CEO Tim Cook, calling into an ESPN sports talk show in April 2019
Whenever anybody says Apple doesn’t make any big acquisitions, there’s one very big exception: Apple has purchased $500 billion worth of Apple since 2012.
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Apple’s acquisition of ESPN is possibly a great high risk/high reward situation. ESPN is a mere shadow of its former self when it dominated sports entertainment. It requires a complete overhaul in both content and financial structuring. It needs to return to be nothing more than sporting news and games rather than a politically woke platform using sports as the backdrop. People love watching sports for entertainment and their love for their favorite team/sports hero, not for advancing a political ideology. This is something both Disney and ESPN have yet to learn. Returning ESPN to nothing but sports 24/7 is something that Apple is likely not capable, or willing to do given their present track record under Tim Cook. This would make the acquisition of ESPN, a big mistake. However, if Apple could return ESPN to a pure sports net work, it could be a real boon for them and for sports fans.
Excellent analysis. Could be great, but Tim Cook can’t even release a watch band without making it political.
And his presentations at Apple headquarters consistently display the (waste of shareholders money) gigantic LGBT etc. “rainbow” sculpture. Pestering viewers of the sexual/gender proclivities and confusions amongst the wokesters.
Well said and BIG NO to ESPN political agenda Get back to sports without the WOKE CRAP! No, don’t believer APPLE would benefit with ESPN. Buy Disney INSTEAD…
Two of the greatest sports announcers are Vin Scully and Jim Nantz. Why they are (were in Scully’s case) is so great? 1.They have a deep abiding love for and knowledge of the game they cover. 2. They attitude of respect for the sport and the players, treating them as more important than themselves. Listen to Scully’s calling Henry Aaron’s home run breaking Babe Ruth’s record. (Scully knew when to be quiet and allow the emotion of the moment to speak for itself). 3. They always conduct themselves as gentlemen. They don’t act like lounge lizards doing sleazy standup comedy or political activism. 4. Finally, you never know their personal views on anything beyond the sporting events they are calling.
If , or whoever runs ESPN, would staff it with people of the caliber of Scully and Nantz with coverage that has reverence for the glamour, the pageantry and traditions of the sports and their heroes, thy would have the proverbial golden goose that just keeps on giving.
I was going to comment, but everyone’s comments are on point. ESPN should return to its non-political, non-woke, non-liberal agenda! Apple has been too woke, but the business is still on target. Only purchase very qualified non-woke companies, and stop the stock buybacks. Return the money to investors, not the company.
Agreed. Today’s ESPN is not your father’s ESPN.
From child grooming woke to technowoke. Hard pass
Apple should buy T Mobile and ditch non iPhones. Create a true future facing high speed network with real VPN built in.