ESPN has officially entered the sports betting realm, announcing an agreement with Penn Entertainment to launch ESPN BET. 

Penn will be rebranding its current sportsbook and will relaunch as ESPN BET, which will be effective this fall in the 16 legal betting states Penn is licensed.

ESPN’s deal with Penn is reportedly worth $2 billion, according to multiple reports. 

Penn agreed to pay ESPN $1.5 billion in cash over a 10-year period, while ESPN will be granted $500 million of warrants to purchase around 31.8 million common shares of Penn stock in exchange for media, marketing services, brand and other rights provided by the sports media giant. 

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“Our primary focus is always to serve sports fans, and we know they want both betting content and the ability to place bets with less friction from within our products,” ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a statement. “The strategy here is simple: to give fans what they’ve been requesting and expecting from ESPN. PENN Entertainment is the perfect partner to build an unmatched user experience for sports betting with ESPN BET.”

CEO and President Jay Snowden added, “This agreement with ESPN and collaboration on ESPN BET allows us to take another step forward as an industry leader. 

PENN PURCHASES REMAINDER OF BARSTOOL SPORTS FOR $387 MILLION

“Together, we can utilize each other’s strengths to create the type of experience that existing and new bettors will expect from both companies, and we can’t wait to get started.”

As part of this deal, Penn sold Barstool Sports back to founder Dave Portnoy.

“Penn Entertainment and Barstool Sports have gone our separate ways,” Portnoy said in a video on X, formerly known as Twitter. “As of this moment, while you are watching this video, I have purchased back Barstool Sports from Penn. That is right: For the first time in a decade, I own 100% of Barstool Sports.”

Portnoy said he has “nothing but the most respect” for the Penn team. However, Portnoy admitted being associated with Penn didn’t allow for the content the platform was used to making. 

“The regulated industry probably not the best place for Barstool Sports and the type of content we make,” Portnoy said. “Penn was able to broker an unbelievable deal with ESPN. We wish them nothing but the best in their endeavors. It’s truly a win-win.

“For the first time in forever, we don’t have to watch what we say, how we talk, what we do. It’s back to the pirate ship. By the way, I’m never going to sell Barstool Sports. Ever.”

ESPN adds that it has “greatly increased multi-platform sports betting content” over recent years, which includes digital programming, radio segments and more to appeal to the everyday sports fan. 

ESPN says it is committed to educate sports fans on “responsible gaming” by keeping its “high standard of journalistic integrity” intact when covering betting, developing its own “committee of responsible gaming” and “implementing responsible marketing policies and guidelines to safeguard fans.”

Penn paid an estimated $388 million for total control of Barstool Sports in February after initially buying a 36% stake in the company in February 2020, per Fortune. Penn and Barstool Sports announced their sports betting partnership in early 2020. 

Penn stock moved 23% after hours following the announcement of the new partnership with ESPN. 

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Disney is exploring opportunities for artificial intelligence (AI) with a newly launched task force, including cost savings for making movies. 

Unnamed sources told Reuters that Disney recently the group and tasked it with determining how Disney and its segments can utilize the technology. It is also looking into collaborating startups, they said.

The entertainment giant apparently set the task force up before May. 

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FOX Business reached out to Disney for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication. 

One of Reuters’ sources argued AI could serve as one tool to help control the soaring costs of movie and television production. Meanwhile, another said that for its park business, AI could enhance customer support or create novel interactions. 

CEO Bob Iger briefly talked about AI in May, voicing an overall bullishness. 

“It’s pretty clear that AI developments represent some pretty interesting opportunities for us and some substantial benefits,” he told analysts and investors during the company’s second-quarter earnings call. “In fact, we’re already starting to use AI to create some efficiencies and ultimately to better serve consumers. Getting closer to the customer is something that is a real goal of ours, and we think that AI will provide some great opportunities to do that.”

The CEO, whose contract recently received a two-year extension, also said the technology was “going to be highly disruptive” and potentially “extremely difficult to manage,” particularly pertaining to intellectual property rights.

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Disney has recently been looking to hire people for roles that involve AI or machine learning experience, with those job listings spanning many of its business segments. Some of the areas of the business they touch include Walt Disney Studios, its theme parks and engineering group, Walt Disney Imagineering, Disney-branded television and advertising. 

In one listing for a R&D Imagineer Senior position, the company the person hired for the role would “generate concepts and build prototypes for new AI tools that will enhance Imagineers’ ability to create, design and deliver a variety of projects around the world.” 

Other companies in the entertainment industry, such as Netflix and Sony, also have AI or machine learning-related job postings currently looking for applicants.

ENTERTAINMENT COMPANIES HIRING AI SPECIALISTS AMID HOLLYWOOD STRIKE

The increasingly hot field of AI has prompted some actors and writers to voice concerns about how it could affect their futures and the wider industry. Both groups have done so while engaging in recent strikes in Hollywood. 

The Writers Guild of America has been striking for nearly 100 days. 

Disney has its third-quarter financial results slated for release on Wednesday afternoon. The company’s stock, at roughly $88, has experienced an 18.5% drop in 12 months.

Reuters and Eric Revell contributed to this report.

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Amazon Inc. said Tuesday it will launch another sale exclusively for Prime members after having a record-breaking Prime Day event earlier this summer. 

It’s called “Prime Big Deal Days” and it’s coming this October. 

The sale, like Prime Day, will benefit Amazon’s Prime members around the world. 

The event will offer exclusive deals for members across 19 countries, including the U.S., just as the 2023 holiday shopping season gets underway. 

AMAZON’S 2023 PRIME DAY SETS NEW SALES RECORD

The event is just one way the company is trying to entice more people to become Prime members despite higher fees. In 2022, Amazon increased the cost of monthly memberships from $12.99 to $14.99 and annual memberships from $119 to $139.

The company didn’t offer any additional details about the event, including the exact days it will take place. However, Amazon told FOX Business the event will follow the same format as last year’s Prime Early Access Sale, a deal event that kicked off Oct. 11-12 to give Prime members exclusive deals ahead of the holidays.

The Seattle-based e-commerce giant said it would share more details as it gets closer to the event. 

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In July, Amazon touted that the first day of its 48-hour shopping bonanza was the “single largest sales day in company history.” 

This year’s event was also the biggest Prime Day in history for independent sellers, most of which are small- and medium-sized businesses. Their sales growth in Amazon’s store during the event outpaced Amazon’s retail business, the company said. 

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The buzz around Prime Day also helped boost overall online sales. 

During the two-day event, consumers spent $12.7 billion across all online marketplaces, which marked a 6.1% increase year over year and set “a new record” for the demand driven by Prime Day, according to the latest data from Adobe Analytics.

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