Media Executive Peter Distad Named CEO of New Disney, Fox, WBD Sports Streaming Joint Venture
March 15, 2024
Media, sports and technology executive Peter Distad has been named CEO of the pending sports streaming app joint venture formed by ESPN, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery. Distad, who most recently served as an executive at Apple for a decade following six years at Hulu, will assume oversight of all aspects of the JV, including overall strategy, distribution, marketing and sales.
“Pete is an accomplished innovator and leader who has extensive experience with launching and growing new video services. We are confident he and his team will build an extremely compelling, fan-focused product for our target market,” ESPN, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery said in a joint statement.
Distad worked at Apple from 2013 to 2023, where he was responsible for the business, operations and global distribution for video, sports and Apple TV+. While there, he launched the new Apple TV in 2015, and later led teams that launched and scaled the Apple TV app, Apple TV+ and MLS Season Pass. He originally joined the company to lead product marketing for the Apple TV hardware product.
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At Hulu (2007-2013), Distad served as SVP of marketing and distribution on the executive team. He was part of the original Hulu launch team, overseeing customer acquisition and retention, distribution and marketing.
Upon establishment of the JV, Distad will report to its board of directors, which will include representatives selected by each of the three companies. He will be based at the to-be-established offices of the joint venture in Los Angeles, along with the independent management team he will assemble.
The new platform, announced in February, will bring together the companies’ portfolios of sports networks and certain of their direct-to-consumer (DTC) sports services — including content from all the major professional sports leagues and college sports. The formation of the pay service is subject to the negotiation of definitive agreements amongst the parties.
The sports streaming offering, scheduled to launch in the fall 2024, will be made available directly to consumers via a new app. Subscribers would also have the ability to bundle the product, including with Disney+, Hulu and/or Max.
The platform is designed to aggregate content to offer fans an extensive, dynamic lineup of sports content, aiming to provide a new and differentiated experience to serve sports fans, particularly those outside of the traditional pay-TV bundle, according to the JV.