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TNT Sports and Amazon Prime Video are locked in a battle for the final chunk of NBA media rights.
In the last minute before the NBA signed on its partners for the next media cycle, TNT Sports exercised its right to match one of the networks’ offers.
TNT Sports is making a last-minute push to retain its NBA rights[/caption]
TNT matched the offer that Amazon presented to the NBA[/caption]
TNT matched the offer of Amazon, reported to be about $1.8 billion, which they claim gives them the rights to the media package, but sources at Amazon say “It’s not over.”
“It’s tough, but it’s business. It’s not over, but it was a bit expected and now, we know that we aren’t in control of the situation,” the source told The U.S. Sun.
“That is something that has been scaring us, but we know the rules of the game and the negotiation, and we will see how it goes.
“The dynamic has changed, and now, we just have to wait and see, but TNT seems to have many support in the league, not only by the current deal and its clauses, but also in the board and people who decide about the important topics, like the TV rights.
“It’s a punch in the face, we are a bit shaken up, but we know how it works.”
The source shared that Amazon had innovative ideas in the works to bring to their coverage of the NBA.
They already brought loads of new features to NFL coverage when they took over Thursday night football, and could have done the same in the NBA.
“TNT has historically been doing NBA for a while now, and we have been showing all the guarantees and some of the most incredible ideas and plans for the more than a decade to come to help keep the NBA viewership growing and the experience getting better and better,” the source continued.
“We have been working for a while on this, and we have a very, very solid plan and ideas that would definitely change the game.
“But now, we are just going to wait, and see how the NBA decides on who gets this package to seal all the deals.
“Those are going to be very tense days ahead, and we feel a lof of pressure as it has been one of the biggest tasks and project we have been working on lately.”
With such prominent networks coming forward for a slice of NBA coverage, people at TNT knew it was no longer an option to lose their coverage of basketball.
A source close to the negotiation at TNT shared that they felt they would look “like idiots” if NBA rights slipped away.
“We had to match the offer, that was the most important thing to do and only option for us,” the source told The U.S. Sun.
“We can’t lose the NBA, I mean, that would have been a huge blow and we would have looked like idiots in that whole process.
“Nothing is granted, and we sent a matching offer, but the dynamic has changed and there is confidence now on our side. The NBA has showed that they love TNT, and Adam Silver has been having good words in that sense, but it doesn’t mean that it’s 100% a lock as there is a lot of challenges still to face and negotiate.
“It has been some very, very tense weeks, and the tensions were very high, as there was a lot of pressure and some words said publicly from some important guys, like Charles Barkley, that did put us even more pressure.”
What the new TV deal means for the NBA?
By The U.S. Sun's Assistant Sports Editor Damian Burchardt.
THE new TV rights deal is promising to be a humongous win for NBA players.
The league is set to more than double the revenue coming from its media partners, pocketing about $6.9 billion per year, which will inevitably lead to a huge salary cap spike in 2025-26.
That is going to send the value of player contracts skyrocketing.
Projected figures suggest we might see the first $100 million-per-year deal being signed soon.
Currently, Boston Celtics All-Star Jayson Tatum is projected to earn the highest single-season salary in NBA history, collecting $71.5 million in 2029-30.
If TNT Sports successfully matches one of the offers to maintain its decades-long partnership with the league, hoops fans will be on the winning side too.
The network’s flagship, Inside the NBA, is a one-of-a-kind sports entertainment show, as evidenced by ESPN’s ongoing failure to come up with its own version of the program in recent years.
The NBA wouldn’t be the same without Kenny and Ernie trying to make sense of Shaq and Chuck’s never-ending bickering every Tuesday night.
Like the sources at Amazon said, it isn’t over yet, but those at TNT feel more confident in retaining the NBA now that they have matched an offer.
“It’s in the leagues hands now, but there is confidence now, and TNT is central, in my opinion, for the NBA, as we are seen as a major factor of its development and growth of viewers, as we did, in my opinion, a very good job for many years now,” the source continued.
“From Inside the NBA, which is a premium product, one of the best TV shows of all-time, a show that is a pillar of American TV, to the other things we do, we need to keep the NBA and keep showing what we have done since we got into the NBA: giving the fans the best experience ever.
“TNT has to keep being a strong part of the NBA and its broadcast, and not only, even if we know that our package would be less massive and important in terms of games and content than it will be until the end of the current deal.
“We face reality, and we are ready to adjust and keep providing fans a fantastic experience.”
The NBA is reviewing TNT’s offer and could decide by the end of the week, while signs point towards ESPN and NBC Sports splitting the remainder of the coverage.
Either TNT Sports or Amazon will get the final piece, unless a deal is worked out to give both companies some coverage of the NBA.
TNT claims their matching offer contractually gives them NBA rights[/caption]
