By Andy Fry
Fox Entertainment CEO Lachlan Murdoch has been turning down offers of more than $2bn for
the company’s AVOD platform Tubi, according to a report from business news provider
Bloomberg. Would-be buyers haven’t been named, but the report claims there have been
multiple offers for the platform, which Fox acquired for US$440m in 2020.
While a five-fold increase looks like good business for Fox, Murdoch’s reluctance to part
company with the platform is not surprising given the speed of growth at Tubi in particular and
AVOD/FAST more generally. Just last week, Fox reported that total viewing time on Tubi grew
41 per cent year on year for the three months ending 31 December, 2022 – with ad revenue up
by 25 per cent for the same period.
Speaking during Fox Corp’s earnings call, Murdoch said: “Revenue and engagement KPI for Tubi
have far exceeded our expectations and are consistently growing. The results at Tubi are proof
that our strategy is working and we will continue growing this platform.”
Tubi, which is currently available across the Americas, Australia and New Zealand, has 50,000
hours of AVOD content and around 200 FAST channels. It recently did a deal to Warner Bros.
Discovery to carry 14 Warner-branded FAST channels.
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