Living dead: Foxtel CEO says Hubbl in ‘maintenance mode’
Hamish and Andy were tapped to be the faces of Hubbl
Foxtel’s CEO Patrick Delany has confirmed to Mumbrella that its one-stop streaming shop Hubbl is in “maintenance mode”, and won’t be receiving further marketing support.
Delany told Tim Burrowes in an extended Unmade interview he was no longer marketing the device, and could not confirm whether it would exist in a year’s time.
Launched in March 2024, Hubbl is a streaming service aggregator that allows viewers to bundle various subscriptions onto the one device and menu system, simplifying the fractured streaming landscape and effectively making Foxtel the middleman between video services and the audience.
“I think the DNA for Hubbl just comes out of our insights into what consumers are telling us: they’re frustrated with how many apps are in Australia,” Les Wigan, Hubbl’s managing director at the time, told Mumbrella last April, some three weeks after launch.
“Consumers have gone somewhat full circle. They want their flexibility, but they also want aggregation, and it to be easy. One remote, one experience.”
Hubbl is both a service and a physical product, with the Hubble hockey-puck-style system retailing for $99 on launch.
“Consumers that are using it, that have bought it, are engaging pretty heavily with it,” Wigan said last April. “The hours of consumption we’re seeing is quite quite good. People are activating it, using it – and seem to be sticking with it. We’re pretty happy so far.”
This early confidence quickly soured.
In September 2024, it emerged that Wigan had left Foxtel quietly in the same month he spoke to Mumbrella, relocating to the US to join Venu – a sports streaming app. Binge managing director, Amanda Laing followed Wigan out the door a few weeks later, ending up at Nine, where she leads its streaming and broadcast division.
18 months after launch, and Delany seems willing to admit defeat.
Patrick Delany, selling the Hubbl dream, at Foxtel’s 2024 Upfront
“Look, it’s a difficult market, there’s no doubt about it,” he tells Mumbrella.
Delany won’t commit to a customer base number, but when given the options of “tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands”, he agrees to “more than tens of thousands”, implying a number above 100,000.
“I think, when it comes to TVs, people buy TVs on the quality of the screen. That seems to be the single thing. And there are a lot of competitors in that area. And there are a lot of competitors in devices that aggregate — so Hubbl’s in maintenance mode.
“We’re happy with the way in which it’s going, but it’s in maintenance.”
The Hubbl hardware currently costs $99
Delany confirmed this means there will be no further marketing for the product or the brand – but stopped short of confirming that this likely means Hubbl won’t exist a year from now.
“I don’t know,” Delany admitted. He pointed to the existing customer base as a reason to keep maintaining.
“The interesting thing about Hubbl is that it wasn’t given away by a telco, or as an add-on. Everyone that’s got a Hubbl paid for it. It’s got quite an engaged group. So we’ll see.”
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Imagine buying a Hubbl Glass TV yesterday for $1400, only to hear that there may be no Hubbl in 12 months from now.
ACCC? Refund for everyone?
Everyone who is Hubbling may soon have to stop.
I got my Hubbl for free – not sure what he’s talking about.
They sent emails and texts for months with free offers for former customers.
Hubbl devices were certainly given away or sold heavily discounted. I don’t mind it and use it (although a little buggy at times) but certainly would of never of paid for it which were lays the problem. I can totally understand on cutting back on the promotion
Brilliant example of house of brands egomania.
What was Foxtel supposed to be if not an aggregator of the best professionally-made content from home and abroad, on a premium UX. Agnostic of screen manufacturer.
Streaming era didn’t threaten that proposition, it gave it new opportunity for delivery and revitalised relevance.
It’s giving TiVo vibes. Had a strong user base but then was killed off and those who invested had their devices rendered bricked and obsolete
I got 2 Hubbl’s for free, due to having 2 different email addresses for 2 different foxtel app accounts on whatever foxtel database they were using to send out free Hubbl devices soon after launch.
Was a crap product – even on-line. Got a taste of that when forced to use it to get Kayo. Was harder to unsubscribe – strange tick system that didn’t easily turn off what you didn’t want. Had Apple TV box from get go so no need for an inferior product annoying promoted by the two most over-hyped ‘talents’ on Australian TV. It was also a victim of greed – subscriptions got too expensive to have them all – not enough quality content – so consumers switch apps regularly and cut the number they have to get best options. No need for Hubbl. Apple does it all and better. Lemon.