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Fox News Plans to Launch ‘Fox News International’ Streaming Service

Fox Corp. is joining the parade of big U.S. media companies seeking to stream their best-known content abroad.

The company’s Fox News Media unit plans to launch Fox News International, a live-streaming outlet that will make programming available from Fox News Channel and Fox Business Network in various countries. The company said the new direct-to-consumer service will cost $6.99 per month and debut August 20 in Mexico, followed by Spain, Germany and the United Kingdom on September 17. The service should be available in 20 countries by the end of 2020.

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“We are excited to debut Fox News International, enabling our devoted audience overseas access to their trusted source for news and insightful analysis,” said Suzanne Scott, Fox News Media’s CEO, in a prepared statement. “With a catalog of more than 20 signature programs on-demand and live streams of our linear networks, this new digital streaming service will ensure our viewers around the world never miss out on the latest from America’s leading news channel.”

Fox News has had a smaller presence overseas since 2017, when its parent company pulled the flagship news channel from the United Kingdom, citing a less-than-robust audience. At the time, the company, then known as 21st Century Fox, was working to secure control of the Sky satellite business, and was under intense scrutiny from British regulators. Comcast eventually won oversight of the company.

But Fox makes its play as rivals are facing headwinds in their overseas efforts. Comcast recently decided to shelve plans for an international news service focused on English speaking audiences overseas, and CNN has scaled back some of the original programming it shows on its international outlets.

Other big media outlets have recently discussed plans to launch in foreign markets. Walt Disney Co., in a call with investors last week, described plans to launch “Star,” a general-entertainment subscription-video outlet in various parts around the globe. ViacomCBS is also at work on a similar project, targeting 2021 for the debut of a service slated to roll out in Australia, Latin America and the Nordics.

Fox News Media already operates a subscription-based streaming service in the U.S. Fox Nation is largely composed of lifestyle content featuring Fox News hosts as well as a growing number of documentary series, along with some content featuring Fox News anchors and hosts.

Fox News International is slated to be available on iPhone, Android, Apple TV and Android TV, according to the company, with Amazon Fire TV and Roku expected shortly thereafter.

A subscription will offer access to live linear streams of Fox News Channel and Fox Business Network, along with an on-demand catalog of past broadcasts of top programs. Among the programs slated for inclusion are:”Tucker Carlson Tonight,” “Hannity,” “The Ingraham Angle,” “FOX News @ Night with Shannon Bream,” “The Five,” “Outnumbered,” “Special Report with Bret Baier,” “The Story with Martha MacCallum,” “Watters’ World,” “The Greg Gutfeld Show,” “Justice with Judge Jeanine,” “The Journal Editorial Report,” “MediaBuzz,” “Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo,”Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace,” “The Next Revolution with Steve Hilton,” “Life Liberty and Levin,” “Maria Bartiromo’s Wall Street” and “Lou Dobbs Tonight.”

 

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