What's Next for the Winners—and Big Loser—of the New NBA Media Rights

What’s Next for the Winners—and Big Loser—of the New NBA Media Rights

Posted by author July 25, 2024 NBA

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Key Takeaways

The NBA on Wednesday announced the winners of its new 11-year, reportedly $77 billion media rights deal.
Rights have been granted to The Walt Disney Co.’s ABC and ESPN; Comcast unit NBCUniversal’s NBC and Peacock streaming service; and Amazon’s Prime Video to televise NBA games through the 2035-36 season.
On the outside looking in is Warner Bros. Discovery, whose TNT Sports unit has held NBA rights since the late 1980s. TNT said it would “take appropriate action” in response.

After a monthslong process rife with twists and turns, the NBA on Wednesday announced the winners of its new 11-year media rights deal, reportedly worth $77 billion: The Walt Disney Co.’s (DIS) ABC and ESPN; Comcast (CMCSA) unit NBCUniversal’s NBC—which is regaining rights its last held in 2002—and Peacock streaming service; and Amazon’s (AMZN) Prime Video.

The news was the latest development in the ongoing evolution of the live-sports landscape in the streaming era. It left Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), whose TNT Sports unit has held NBA rights since the late 1980s, on the outside looking in.

WBD had a contractual right to match Amazon’s reported bid of $1.8 billion a year and did so, but the NBA accepted the tech giant’s offer instead. “We have matched the Amazon offer, as we have a contractual right to do, and do not believe the NBA can reject it,” TNT Sports said Wednesday, adding it “will take appropriate action.”

Details of the New Deal

Beginning with the 2025-26 season and running through the 2035-36 campaign, the media and tech giants will telecast about 75 regular-season games on broadcast TV each season, up from the minimum of 15 games under the current agreement, which expires after next season. All national games will be available on streaming services: Prime Video, Peacock, and ESPN’s future direct-to-consumer service. The rights deal also includes WNBA games, worth a reported $2.2 billion of the total.

“Our new global media agreements with Disney, NBCUniversal and Amazon will maximize the reach and accessibility of NBA games for fans in the United States and around the world,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said. “These partners will distribute our content across a wide range of platforms and help transform the fan experience over the next decade.”

“Warner Bros. Discovery’s most recent proposal did not match the terms of Amazon Prime Video’s offer and, therefore, we have entered into a long-term arrangement with Amazon,” the NBA said.

At the moment, it appears as though the forthcoming 2024-25 NBA season with be TNT’s last, meaning it will be the end for its beloved, award-winning “Inside the NBA” show, which features host Ernie Johnson and analysts Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kenny Smith. The 61-year-old Barkley last month said he would retire after next season.