The Disney Deal: So When Will DIRECTV Offer Those Sports-Only Packages?

By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man –Follow me on X.
Former editor of Satellite DIRECT magazine. Reported on DIRECTV for 30 years.

TV Answer Man, what is your prediction for when DIRECTV will offer packages with just sports channels now that they got their deal with Disney and ESPN? Will it be this fall? What will it cost? — Jamal, Sacramento, California.

Jamal, that’s a great question, one that has been asked by several readers since last Saturday when DIRECTV and Disney announced they have signed a new carriage agreement. The joint statement said:

“Through this first-of-its-kind collaboration, DIRECTV and Disney are giving customers the ability to tailor their video experience through more flexible options.”

The statement added: “(The agreement offers the) opportunity to offer multiple genre-specific options — sports, entertainment, kids & family — inclusive of Disney’s linear networks along with Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+.”

Combined with DIRECTV’s repeated statements prior to the agreement that it was seeking the flexibility to offer slimmer, cheaper and genre-specific packages, many subscribers have assumed that their TV provider will soon allow them to order plans with only sports channels or kids channels and so on. However, here’s the reality:

It won’t happen soon, if ever.

Say what?

DIRECTV just struck a ‘flexible’ packaging deal with Disney. And just Disney. Not Fox or any other company that owns sports channels. The satcaster doesn’t have the flexibility to offer plans with only sports channels because it doesn’t have the rights to do that with all, or even most, of the sports channels. The same goes for kids’ channels or any other genre. DIRECTV would need to get agreements with the owners of the other channels as well, or at least the most popular ones.

Also see: When Will DIRECTV Offer ESPN+ For Free?

Now you might say that DIRECTV at least could offer the ESPN channels in a separate package, right? Well, the problem with that is that we don’t know if DIRECTV has the rights to do that. All we know is that the companies say the new agreement permits ‘genre-specific’ plans, but it does not explain what that means. For example, does the agreement require DIRECTV to strike similar deals with other programmers? Does it mean that DIRECTV can bundle Disney’s sports channels with its entertainment and kids’ channels or some combination thereof? We don’t know because the companies did not reveal the details.

The DIRECTV-Disney statement may look promising to those who want to order channels based on specific interests, but I have strong doubts that we will see a DIRECTV package of only sports channels anytime soon. If ever.

Last note: Disney struck a similar deal with Charter’s Spectrum TV in September 2023 with the cable op saying afterwards that it would enable it to basically reinvent the programming bundle. However, a year later, Charter has been able to offer Disney’s premium plans, such as ESPN+, for free in select bundled packages. But the basic bundles? They have basically stayed the same.

Don’t expect a reinvention of the bundle from DIRECTV, either, despite the rhetoric.

Jamal, hope that helps. Happy viewing and stay safe!

The TV Answer Man is veteran journalist Phillip Swann who has covered the TV technology scene for more than three decades. He will report on the latest news and answer your questions regarding new devices and services that are changing the way you watch television. See the bio for Phillip Swann here.

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