Acquisitions and Dispositions |
6 Months Ended |
|---|---|
Mar. 29, 2025 | |
| Business Combination [Abstract] | |
| Business Combinations and Dispositions | Acquisitions and Dispositions fuboTV Inc. On January 6, 2025, the Company and fuboTV Inc. (Fubo), a publicly traded virtual multichannel video distributor (vMVPD), entered into a definitive agreement to combine certain of Hulu Live TV’s assets, including its carriage agreements, subscription agreements and related data, advertising and sponsorship agreements and intellectual property exclusively related to the “Live TV” brand, with Fubo (the Fubo Transaction). As a result, the Company will have a 70% interest in Fubo and the right to appoint a majority of Fubo’s Board of Directors, with the remaining 30% interest retained by Fubo shareholders. The Fubo Transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals and approval by Fubo shareholders. If closing has not occurred by April 2026 (extended to October 2026 if all other closing conditions, except those relating to regulatory approvals, have been satisfied), the Company or Fubo may terminate the transaction. A $130 million termination fee will be payable by the Company to Fubo if the transaction is terminated under certain circumstances, including due to the Company’s breach of the definitive agreement or the failure to obtain certain regulatory approvals. A $50 million termination fee will be payable by Fubo to the Company if the transaction is terminated under certain other circumstances, including if Fubo shareholders do not approve the transaction under certain conditions. Upon completion of the Fubo Transaction, the Company will be the exclusive distributor of the Hulu Live TV service under a five year distribution agreement and will pay a wholesale fee to Fubo based on Fubo’s cost to program Hulu Live TV. In addition, the Company will sell advertising for the Hulu Live TV service and Fubo platform for a fee. In addition, the Company, Fox Corporation (Fox) and Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (WBD) reached a settlement with Fubo related to Fubo’s antitrust claims (see Note 13 for additional detail) and collectively paid $220 million to Fubo in January 2025. Fox and WBD have also agreed to reimburse a portion of the $130 million termination fee to the Company if it becomes payable. Further, the Company agreed to provide Fubo a senior unsecured term loan of up to $145 million (expected to be funded in January 2026) (the Fubo Term Loan). If the Company funds the Fubo Term Loan and the Fubo Transaction is not consummated, Fox and WBD will participate in a portion of the Fubo Term Loan by providing loans to the Company with substantially the same economic terms as the Fubo Term Loan. Star India On November 14, 2024, the Company and Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) completed the formation of a joint venture (India joint venture) that combines the Company’s Star-branded and other general entertainment and sports television channels and direct-to-consumer Disney+ Hotstar service in India (Star India) with certain media and entertainment businesses controlled by RIL (the Star India Transaction). RIL has an effective 56% controlling interest in the joint venture with 37% held by the Company and 7% by Bodhi Tree Systems, a third party investment company. The Company deconsolidated Star India’s assets and liabilities on November 14, 2024, and recognized the fair value of its interest in the India joint venture as an equity method investment. We recorded non-cash impairment charges of $0.1 billion and $1.3 billion in “Restructuring and impairment charges” in the first quarter of fiscal 2025 and in the second quarter of fiscal 2024, respectively, to reflect Star India’s assets and liabilities at fair value less costs to sell. In addition, we recognized a non-cash tax charge of $0.2 billion in the first quarter of fiscal 2025 in connection with the close of the transaction.
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