Disney-owned FX is shutting down its fledgling add-on streaming service FX+, apparently in preparation for a closer collaboration between the US pay TV network and streaming service Hulu, now also controlled by Disney.
Launched in 2017, FX+ allows pay TV customers with access to the ad-supported FX linear channel to pay an additional $6 (£5) a month to watch the network’s original series without ads through an app. Among the 1,400 episodes available through the service are past and current FX originals such as The Shield, American Horror Story and Atlanta (pictured). FX has never revealed a subscriber tally for the add-on service.
A statement on the FX+ website this week said the service will stop being available on August 21 but that current seasons of the network’s original series with be available “for limited time on-demand viewing” through the FX Now app and the network’s website.
Disney took over FX and sister channel FXX earlier this year through its acquisition of most of the assets of 21st Century Fox. That deal also gave Disney a controlling interest in Hulu and FX Networks chairman John Landgraf has since suggested that feeding FX original programming through the established ad-free streaming service has more potential than a stand-alone FX service.
Disney’s own streaming service, Disney+, is set to launch on November 12 with a $7 (£6) monthly subscription fee. The ad-free service will focus on family-friendly content while Hulu and FX continue to focus on more adult programming.
No comments yet