The NBA is moving ever closer to clinching a set of media rights deals worth a total of $76 billion, even as uncertainty continues to swirl around the league’s future with longtime partner Turner Sports . NBCUniversal, Amazon Prime Video and Disney / ESPN have all finalized their packages, a person familiar with the negotiations told Deadline. The 11-year deals will start after the 2024-25 season.
A series of press reports have linked the media and tech firms to the NBA for several weeks. The holdup in a formal announcement from the league or media partners has stemmed from Turner and parent Warner Bros. Discovery looking for ways to retain rights after nearly four decades.
While Turner has appeared to be on the outside looking in, it reportedly has matching rights and is looking to match Amazon’s offer, which is for a thinner slice of games. Prime Video, as it did with the NFL’s Thursday Night Football package, is aiming to introduce itself in a somewhat limited fashion as an exclusive streaming destination. Related Stories Casting Emilia Clarke Joins Ed Brubaker's Amazon Series 'Criminal' News Bette Midler Calls On Disney For 'Hocus Pocus 3' Script: "Get Us While We're Still Breathing" The Athletic first reported the NBCU/Amazon/Disney news, saying contracts with those three will be ratified by the NBA board of governors and then forwarded to WBD for their review.
Since taking the helm of the company as CEO in 2022, David Zaslav has systematically cut billions in cost.
