Pablo Torre Finds Out The Sporting Class: Inside Google's $200 Million War on ESPN
10 snips
Nov 13, 2025 John Skipper, former president of ESPN, and David Samson, ex-MLB executive, dive into the tensions between Disney and Google over ESPN’s availability. They explore the complexities of carriage disputes and the potential fallout of losing Monday Night Football. Insights on subscriber behavior and negotiation tactics unfold, while they debate whether a bespoke bundle could save the day. With a $20 subscriber credit and strategic positioning at stake, they ponder who has the upper hand in this high-stakes media showdown.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Carriage Disputes Reveal Bigger Power Struggle
- Carriage disputes are driven by a growing gap over how distributors and content owners value live sports and channels.
- The current Disney–YouTube TV blackout reveals a broader fight about who controls subscriber relationships and pricing power.
Iowa Students' Real-Time Reaction
- John Skipper asked University of Iowa students and found most blamed ESPN but planned to switch distributors to get games.
- Many students used YouTube TV as their carrier of choice and would change providers to regain ESPN access.
Disney Has Alternate Distribution Leverage
- ESPN still reaches viewers via Disney-owned platforms like Hulu Live and the ESPN app, softening blackout impact.
- Disney can push subscribers to its own services, making blackouts a strategic lever, not an absolute loss of audience.
