A highly anticipated joint sports-streaming venture between Fox, ESPN, and Warner Bros. Discovery is facing opposition from FuboTV. In an antitrust lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, FuboTV alleges antitrust violations claiming the venture and associated companies, including Disney and Hulu, have suppressed competition in the sports-focused streaming market. FuboTV also claims that its attempts to create a sports-only streaming service were thwarted by broader bundling requirements in sports licensing agreements.
Constangy senior counsel Chris Deubert was recently quoted in a Front Office Sports article on the strength of FuboTV's claims. “Antitrust law protects competition. It does not protect competitors,” Chris states. “Fubo’s complaints here are sour grapes, potentially, because they stand to lose out, theoretically, on market share. That doesn’t mean there’s an antitrust violation."
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Chris is an attorney with more than twelve years of experience at law firms, in-house, and in academia, with an extensive background in sports, litigation, and labor and employment. He previously operated as a solo practitioner, representing mostly clients in the sports industry, including but not limited to professional sports teams and athletes, sports agents, a sports marketing agency, and an NFT-related sports start-up. In his practice, Chris manages employment litigation, including discrimination, wage and hour, and wrongful termination claims, transactional matters, corporate governance, corporate formation, intellectual property, sports betting, and more.