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NBA Securing Deals with The Walt Disney Company, NBCUniversal, Amazon as TNT Set to Lose Out on Broadcasting Rights
NBA and TNT's deal is not going to be renewed as there are talks of a new deal are on with various other broadcasters who are willing to pay up huge fees.
A settlement is allegedly close to being reached in the National Basketball Association's (NBA) media rights negotiations for national television broadcasts for the 2025–2026 season and beyond. According to reports, the league is ending its relationship with Warner Bros. Discovery and finalizing contracts with The Walt Disney Company, NBCUniversal, and Amazon that would nearly triple its current rights fee.
The league will allegedly file a lawsuit against Warner Bros. Discovery regarding the scope of its matching rights clause to force the company to match NBCUniversal's deal in terms of "total value." The news of these contracts being finalized was first reported by Tom Friend of Sports Business Journal.
What Will Be the New Package That the NBA Will Get From Walt Disney Company?
The Walt Disney Company (ESPN/ABC) would ultimately pay $2.8 billion annually for the "A" package of games, according to sources cited in the report. This represents an increase of $200 million over earlier estimates. The NBA Finals, a conference final, and weekly primetime games would reportedly be included in this package, along with the likely shared WNBA and international rights. After the network briefly broadcast games from 1982 to 1984, Disney has been the NBA's broadcast home since the 2002–03 season.
This season, play-by-play announcer Mike Breen, analysts Doris Burke and JJ Redick, and sideline reporter Lisa Salters make up the network's new lead broadcast booth. Throughout the 2023–24 regular season—which also featured simulcasts and alternate broadcasts—the company averaged 1.7 million viewers.
It was initially reported that Comcast's NBCUniversal was offering $2.5 billion to win the league's rights for the first time since the 2001–02 campaign. A conference final, conference semifinals, and two prime-time windows each week are reportedly included in the "B" package, which is currently estimated to be worth $2.6 billion annually. Furthermore, after the NFL season ended, there would probably be a Basketball Night in America on Sunday nights.
How Much Money Will Amazon Pay?
The NBA is reportedly getting a $1.8 billion to $2 billion deal from Amazon for the rights, which is the first time the league has partnered with a streaming service. According to reports, the package would include the WNBA, international rights, first-round playoff games, and the Emirates In-Season and So-Fi Play-In tournaments.
The final alterations are anticipated to occur within the next few days or this week, after which the deals must be approved by the relevant boards. According to sources, Warner Bros. Discovery would have to pay more than $2.6 billion to match NBCUniversal's offer; however, the package's specifications make matching "virtually impossible."
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