Planned Venu Sports streamer will be shut down

Driving the news: On Thursday, DirecTV and EchoStar hinted they may bring their own lawsuits against the service, arguing that the antitrust issues at the heart of Fubo's lawsuit were not resolved. In a joint statement Friday, the three companies said:

• "After careful consideration, we have collectively agreed to discontinue the Venu Sports joint venture and not launch the streaming service. In an ever-changing marketplace, we determined that it was best to meet the evolving demands of sports fans by focusing on existing products and distribution channels. We are proud of the work that has been done on Venu to date and grateful to the Venu staff, whom we will support through this transition period."
• In its own statement on Friday, DirecTV said "we look forward to working with our programming partners — including Disney, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery — to compete on a level playing field to deliver sports fans more choice, control, and value all-in-one experience."

Catch up quick: Venu was first announced nearly a year ago and was supposed to launch last fall, before a judge blocked the launch after Fubo sued on antitrust grounds.

• Venu would have include content from linear TV networks housed by the three companies, which include ESPN, ABC, TNT and Fox, among others, at a cost of $42.99 a month.
• The company had hired former Apple executive Pete Distad as CEO.

What we're watching: Disney is on track to launch its ESPN streaming service (for now dubbed "ESPN Flagship") towards the end of the summer.

• There has been some analyst speculation that Fox will eventually license its sports content for Flagship.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with more information.