Is there a scenario in which the NBA is really popular, but can't get big TV contracts because it's not consumed in that format?
I'm the exact target audience for a TV contracts: older millenial, significant disposable income that I spend on entertainment, really into the NBA....and I refuse to shell out for a cable or streaming package. I have League Pass, but I absolutely will wait 3 hours until a game is done to watch it on LP or via highlights.
I can only imagine what the consumption habits of zoomers are in this regard...
I strongly suspect that this new TV contract is the last time the NBA’s games broadcast rights contracts will be correctly described as “TV contracts”.
it seems like the NBA made a very careful flip in how they thought about game delivery with this negotiation, prioritizing and likely insisting on two things:
1. Starting next season when the new right deal starts, essentially every national game will be available to stream without needing a full cable-style TV provider to access them live.
I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Disney has announced a stand-alone ESPN streaming subscription that will allow watching all of the “cable” broadcast content directly without also paying for non-ESPN channels, to launch right around when the 2025 NBA season starts. It might be expensive, but it will be much less than the cheapest option to watch live ESPN games now (SlingTV, YouTube or Hulu live TV, etc.)
Eveything broadcast by NBC will supposedly be in Peacock, and Prime is obviously stand-alone.
2. MANY more games available on free OTA channels, with more of Disney’s package on ABC compared to the current deal, and NBC adding significant freely available OTA games in additional nights.
That feels like both:
A) an acknowledgment that a big part of the NFL’s dominance is that everyone has been able watch most of the games on a free antennea for decades, because there are still significant numbers of households that don’t have cable, OR all of the streaming services (or even good broadband) AND
B) A way to combat the reality of piracy in a “games are all streaming” world, with two of the national rights holders shifting more of their thinking about monetizing their game rights to focus on ad sales (because the ads still broadcast on pirated streams).
The next time around, the NBA’s right seem likely to shift even further in those two directions, and we’ll be talking about “streaming rights” more than “TV rights” and live-broadcast ratings will stop being nearly as relevant (because the games WILL be available live, but will also be available on-demand more immediately, and consumed that way a LOT more by younger demos, likely via highlight/recap packages and condensed games, as much as full games, but those shorter formats offered on ESPN/Peacock/Prime/etc. might be monetized with ads, and are also viewership-track able, outside of Nielsen ratings…)
With an ongoing push to get NBA games in front of the broadest audiences (lowest-income households (seniors), free broadcast in bars, etc.) via OTA network TV.