The NBA announced new 11-year TV deals with incumbent ESPN and newcomers NBC and Amazon Prime Video, rejecting TNT Sports’ right to match, which could lead to a legal battle between the network and the league, according to sources briefed on the deal.
The forthcoming agreements with ESPN, NBC and Amazon are not set to begin until the 2025-26 season, meaning TNT could go into this season, its final under its current contract, with the specter of suing the league it is covering.
The agreements, announced Wednesday, also include the WNBA, which is expected to receive a total of $2.2 billion over 11 years.
TNT Sports, according to sources briefed on the matter, has honed its sights on Amazon’s streaming-only agreement, which includes the playoffs, six conference finals, the In-Season Tournament and regular season action. Amazon’s deal is for around $1.93 billion per year, according to sources briefed on the precise numbers. Amazon will also continue to air the WNBA.
“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 in a statement.
all good things come to an end and it sounds like Chuck and Ernie were close to retiring anyway. Without those guys Kenny and Shaq are easily replaceable. Honestly Kenny has been insufferable for years now, not sad to be moving on from him.
If there’s one good thing that comes from amazon entering the fray, I hope it’s video quality. Probably not 4k but hopefully higher bitrate 1080p and maybe HDR like I think they do for football.