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Roberts was asked to respond to Walt Disney Co
Chief Executive Bob Chapek's comments to the Financial Times
published on Monday in which he said he would like to accelerate
the timetable for acquiring Comcast's one-third stake in Hulu.
Chapek said he would love to settle the matter of Hulu sooner
than January 2024 but he told the publication that Comcast has
seemed reluctant. It’s a sentiment the executive repeated
Wednesday, in remarks at the Goldman Sachs conference.
The deal, reached in 2019, established a minimum valuation of
$27.5 billion for Hulu, in a transaction that would give Disney
complete ownership of the service. Chapek noted that market
sentiment has cooled significantly since the original agreement
was struck and investors have grown more skeptical about
streaming, suggesting a more modest payout.
In his response to Chapek’s remarks, Roberts touted the value of
Hulu, suggesting that the streaming service, with its 46 million
subscribers and established brand, would command a premium. He
said the agreement with Disney anticipates that Hulu’s valuation
would reflect the price it could command if it were sold on the
market.
"Hulu's a phenomenal business," Roberts said, adding that it
would attract multiple bidders if it were up for sale in its
entirety.
Comcast launched its Peacock streaming service two years ago,
but growth has stalled at 13 million paid subscribers. Disney
edged past Netflix Inc in the third quarter, with 221.1 million
total streaming subscribers – including Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+
– and added 14.4 million Disney+ customers during that period.
(Reporting by Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles, Helen Coster in
New York. Editing by Sam Holmes)
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