Big technology ruins big sports

After years of traditional media dominating live sports, the tech giants have decided it’s time to get in the game by paying for live sports rights.

Why is it important? The value of sports rights was in the stratosphere and the inclusion of trillion dollar tech giants would make those numbers even higher.

Game Mode: According to data from Moffett Nathanson, Disney, Comcast, Paramount and Fox will pay a combined $24.2 billion for sports rights in 2024 alone.

• Apple has quickly established itself as a major player in sports rights, with deals for Major League Baseball and Major League Soccer potentially worth more than $3 billion.
• Amazon has its own sports empire with regional deals for US teams, including the New York Yankees in a $3.47 billion deal for a minority stake in New York’s RSN YES Network.
• Overseas, Amazon holds the regional rights for the Premier League, the French Ligue 1 and 2 and the UEFA Champions League, the latter of which also owns the rights in Italy and Germany, and will hold the English rights from 2024. The total value of those deals is not known, but Amazon UK’s European Football Association is worth $1.8 billion a year.
• Amazon has bought the rights to the NFL’s “Thursday Night Football” franchise for $1 billion a year through 2023.

Yes and: Apple and Amazon are battling for the NFL’s Sunday ticket package — a deal expected to include a stake in the league’s media business — with Apple seen as the heavy favorite.

Yes, but: Most sports rights still reside with established media giants who have their own streaming services.

Between the lines; Traditional media companies love sports because of their ability to drive large audiences that translate into big advertising dollars. Big tech has a different goal.

• Apple and Amazon are more concerned about their ability to attract new subscribers who will convert them into high-margin businesses.
• “I’m sure [Amazon has] LHB Sports CEO Lee Burke told Axios that algorithms that show how many people who subscribe to the NFL will turn up and buy music or merchandise.

What’s next: The NBA’s upcoming franchise renewal will be closely watched next year.

• The NBA’s current deal runs through the 2024-25 season, but compared to other sports, it has a younger audience and a reputation for being forward-thinking under commissioner Adam Silver.
• “When it comes to the NBA … they’re not going to ignore broadcast or cable, but there’s going to be content delivered across multiple platforms,” ​​Burke says.