Hulu Acquisition Of 21st Century Fox

With streaming services shaking up the industry and changing the way consumers get access to their favorite shows and movies, companies must continually seeks to outdo the others in order to gain more subscribers. The harsh competition among these streaming services forces each company to do whatever it can to make it to the top. Currently, the streaming giant Netflix dominates the industry, however the recently proposed acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney raises questions as to whether Hulu could become a major threat to Netflix’s success in the future. Although the proposed merger between Disney and 21st Century Fox will allow Disney to push Hulu forward in the streaming industry, Disney is not capable of accelerating Hulu to the point where it becomes a formidable threat to Netflix and pressures from the FTC call into question whether or not the merger will even pass.

Included in the $52.4 billion deal is FX, National Geographic, regional sports networks, and 21st Century’s 30% stake in Hulu (Spangler, 2018). Currently, the stakes in Hulu are split among four different companies: Disney with 30%, 21st Century with 30%, Comcast with 30%, and Time Warner with 10% (Faughnder, 2017). If the purchase were to go through, Disney would end up with 60% of the stakes in Hulu, a majority in the company. This increased power in the company raises questions as to what exactly Disney plans to do with Hulu and whether or not Hulu will ever become a major competitor to