A funny thing happened on the way to the forum: The NBA’s much-anticipated new TV rights deal that was expected to reflect the financial muscle of streaming platforms wound up cementing the primacy of broadcast networks in sports contracts.
The big moves in the 11-year agreement, valued at a whopping $76 billion, are the return of NBCUniversal, the entry of Amazon Prime Video and the exit of Warner Bros. Discovery’s TNT. ESPN and ABC remain the league’s cornerstone partner with rights to the NBA finals. There’s likely to be some legal tussling over whether WBD had the ability to match Amazon’s bid for a package of 66 games plus
→ Continue reading at Variety
