Fubo Sportsbook’s ownership company, the American live sports television service FuboTV, will be expanding its range through a new deal that will see it acquire the French broadcasting service Molotov.
FuboTV to Acquire Molotov for $189M
The agreement is scheduled to close in the first quarter of next year. It will have FuboTV pay a total of $189 million in both cash and equity. About 85% of this number will be paid in equity, with the remainder to be paid in cash.
Molotov is a leading French live-streaming company that offers a variety of channels and content, including movies, documentaries and animations. FuboTV will diversify things a little bit by providing the television with more sports content and sports-first product features.
Molotov will get to keep most of its leadership and workforce. Around 100 employees will continue to work in Molotov’s Paris headquarters. The company’s co-founder, Jean David Blanc, will be given a presidential position after the Fubo takeover. He said that he is happy to join FuboTV, as he believes that they share the same values as Molotov and the goal of providing “consumers with a best-in-class streaming experience with premium television content on a global scale.”
The acquisition will be an important step for FuboTV as it will mark a transition to a more global approach. Fubo will use Molotov to propagate its interactive sports and entertainment streaming platform in France.
Molotov’s platform offers viewers two ways to experience its content – a free option with advertisements or a paid subscription-based alternative that provides a greater variety of channels.
FuboTV Envisions Reaching a Global Audience
FuboTV’s co-founder and chief executive officer, David Gandler, spoke on the acquisition. According to him, Molotov has “set the benchmark for ad-supported and subscription streaming platforms in Europe.”
Gandler said that his team believes that Molotov will be an important “strategic asset” that will speed up FuboTV’s goal of achieving global scale and providing interactive streaming TV experience to sports fans and families across the whole world.
This year, FuboTV made its expansion into the world of sports betting by launching its own sportsbook brand. The broadcasting company used the Vigtory sportsbook as a foundation in order to jumpstart its entry into the sector.
Fubo Sportsbook recently joined the sports betting market in the United States by securing license in the state of Iowa. Fubo Sportsbook isn’t planning on stopping there. The sports betting brand is already working its launch in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Indiana and New Jersey through partnerships with The Cordish Companies, the Ak-Chin Indian Community and Caesars Entertainment.
FuboTV’s current strategy is to follow a slow and steady expansion plan that ensures long-term growth for the broadcasting company.