Walt Disney’s ESPN, Comcast-owned NBCUniversal and Amazon.com have clinched the rights to carry National Basketball Association games in an 11-year deal valued at USD 77 billion, the league said on Wednesday.
The NBA said it rejected a last-minute offer from Warner Bros Discovery’s TNT Sports division, ending a four-decade relationship with the media company after next season.
A spokesman for TNT Sports could not immediately be reached for comment.
Analysts have said winning telecast rights requires a huge financial commitment considering the cost as well as the fees associated with production.
About 75 regular-season games will be on broadcast TV each season, up from the minimum of 15 games under the current agreement, NBA said.
“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,” said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver.
“These partners will distribute our content across a wide range of platforms and help transform the fan experience over the next decade.”
Disney will carry a total of 80 regular-season NBA games, including 20 contests on the ABC Network. During the playoffs, ESPN and ABC will telecast about 18 games in the first two rounds each year of the agreement, and one of the two Conference Finals series in 10 of the 11 years of the agreement.
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ABC will remain exclusive home of the NBA Finals, which it has broadcast since 2003.
NBCUniversal will pick up 100 regular-season NBA games, with more than half airing on NBC. Its sister service Peacock will stream a doubleheader each Monday night of the season.
During the playoffs, NBC and/or Peacock will telecast around 28 games in the first two rounds, with at least half of those games airing on NBC. The network also will telecast one of the two Conference Finals series in six of the 11 years of the contract, which it will carry on a rotating basis with Amazon, beginning with the 2025-26 season.
Amazon will carry 66 regular-season NBA games on Prime Video each season, including at least one game on Black Friday, and the quarter-finals and semi-finals in the knockout round of the Emirates NBA Cup. It also will stream the Championship Game of the Emirates NBA Cup.
Prime Video will carry approximately one third of the first- and second-round playoff games each year.
