After Apple reportedly gave up its quest, the National Football League is in advanced talks to grant YouTube exclusive rights to NFL Sunday Ticket, a subscription-only package that allows viewers to watch all out-of-market Sunday afternoon NFL games, The Wall Street Journal reports citing “people familiar with the matter.”
An agreement could be reached as early as Wednesday, following a meeting of NFL owners, who approve rights deals.
A potential move of Sunday Ticket to YouTube is further evidence of major sports migrating from traditional TV, which has been hit by cord-cutting, to streaming, and tech companies that are willing to spend heavily on content. Amazon.com Inc. has its own NFL deal, while Apple Inc. streams some Major League Baseball games and has a new deal for Major League Soccer. Amazon and Apple also kicked the tires on Sunday Ticket.
Under the scenario being discussed, NFL games would be available to be streamed on two subscription services, YouTube TV and YouTube Primetime Channels, next season. Google is a unit of Alphabet Inc.
YouTube TV, a $64.99-a-month online bundle of cable channels, crossed more than 5 million subscriptions and trial accounts in June, according to the company. Primetime Channels, which launched in November, allows viewers to individually subscribe to more than 30 streaming services.
Sunday Ticket would be offered as an add-on to both services, the people familiar with the potential agreement said.
Via: The Wall Street Journal
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