I think the idea that some start ups are going to overtake established players is pretty fanciful. SKY in NZ made $80mn profit, they have income of close to half a billion kiwi.
Just because barriers to entry are lower doesn't mean that a load of new players can afford to flood the market - huge outlay ina acquiring sporting rights.
You've missed the point. New players are coming in because rights owners have high value sporting rights that people want to watch. Going direct allows them to clip a bigger overall ticket, because they can set the market value of their sport/rights with the public, and not be bundled as part of an offering.
It's especially relevant for sports where multiple events happen simultaneously i.e 3pm kickoffs in the Premier League, where internet delivery can ensure customer choice.
I imagine the 'bigger' sports are very interested in the success (or not) of PLP, and it will be how Premier League rights end up being distributed more widely.