Two House Democratic Lawmakers Again Press Disney, Fox And Warner Bros. Discovery For Info On Sports Streaming Service Venu

deadline.com:

Two House Democrats again are expressing antitrust concerns about Venu, the upcoming sports streaming joint venture from Disney, Fox and Warner Bros.

Discovery, and are seeking more answers from the companies. Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, and Rep.

Joaquin Castro (D-TX) sent a new letter to the CEOs the three companies, following an earlier query in April. The media conglomerates responded to that letter, but Nadler and Castro wrote that the answers were “insufficient.” “Overall, we still have not received answers about the firewalls your companies may implement toprevent collusion; the precautions you may take to ensure consumer privacy; or the methods you may use to determine pricing of the new service,” they wrote.

They added, “Some of the vague assurances you have provided strike us as contradictory. For example, we find it difficult to understand how your companies can both promise not to share competitively sensitive information and also evaluate the success of the joint venture on a company-by-company basis.” They also pose a series of additional questions, and ask that answers be cc’d to the Justice Department, which reportedly plans to scrutinize the deal. “Your companies exert unmatched control over the entire sports media ecosystem,” they wrote. “Without care, your joint venture has the potential to reshape this already-concentrated space to the detriment of consumers, sports leagues, and third-party distributors.” Read Congress members’ Venu letter and companies previous response.