Disney acquires controlling stake in BAMTech, wants to launch Netflix competitor in 2019
Disney has announced that it will acquire a controlling stake in BAMtech and that it will launch its own video streaming service in 2019.
The Walt Disney Company has announced that it will pay US$1.58 billion to acquire an additional 42% stake in BAMTech.
BAMTech is a company that specializes in video streaming. It currently powers video streaming for Major League Baseball, National Hockey League, WWE, and HBO.
Disney had earlier invested US$1 billion in BAMTech, giving it a 33% large but still minority stake in the company.
In addition to this deal, Disney also announced that it will launch its ESPN-branded multi-sport video streaming service in early 2018, followed by a new Disney-branded direct-to-consumer streaming service in 2019.
Further to this, Disney also said that it will end its distribution deal with Netflix in 2019, a clear sign that it sees its own streaming service as a competitor to Netflix.
Disney is presently the world's second largest media conglomerate and has a huge catalog of content that it can count on.
The company's main holdings include Walt Disney Studio, The Muppets Studio, Pixar, Marvel, and Lucasfilm (Star Wars).
2019 looks like it is going to be an interesting year for entertainment junkies.
Source: The Walt Disney Company
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