San Francisco 49ers’ No. 13 Brock Purdy prepares during the first quarter against the Kansas City Chiefs during Super Bowl 58 on February 11, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada Team.
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Netflix Working hard to get ready for football games.
The streaming giant has been in contact with broadcasters this week, hoping to find partners to produce NFL games that will air this Christmas, people familiar with the matter said. Netflix announced last month that it would stream two games this Christmas, followed by at least one game in 2025 and 2026.
It’s Netflix’s first real foray into traditional live sports, and it’s driven by the company’s ambitions to expand its advertising business. The company signed a deal with WWE earlier this year to host its live “Raw” events, but Netflix calls the deal “sports entertainment.” Unlike WWE, Netflix’s Christmas NFL games do not come with a full production team. This makes it necessary for streamers to seek assistance.
Netflix has been in contact with broadcasters currently airing NFL games, including disney ESPN, Comcast NBCUniversal and Paramount Universal A person familiar with the matter spoke to CBS Sports on condition of anonymity because the discussions were private. Disney will not produce the games because it already has college football obligations on the same date, two people familiar with the matter said.
In-depth discussions with other broadcasters have not yet begun, but Netflix’s options may be somewhat limited.
Fox and CBS Sports already produce a variety of games in different territories each week, which could burden Netflix with additional games, some people familiar with the matter said.
There’s also competition to consider.
Amazon Signs agreement with NBCUniversal Producing NFL games The first season of “Thursday Night Football” will air in 2022, but current NFL partners may be more resistant to helping Netflix, according to people familiar with the matter. That’s because Netflix may be auditioning to replace traditional media companies like Paramount as the future long-term media rights partner for NFL games. fox Or NBC.
The NFL has a out clause Its current media contract allows it to choose a new media partner after the 2029-30 season.
Representatives for Netflix, NFL, NBCUniversal, CBS, ESPN and Fox declined to comment.
Welcome to Netflix
Netflix announced its entry into the NFL in mid-May Ahead of its Upfront demo, the company is trying to attract advertisers for its emerging ad-supported platform. Netflix said last month it has been reached Its ad tier, which has 40 million active users worldwide, will cost $6.99 per month in the U.S. and launch in November 2022.
In May, co-CEO Ted Sarandos told CNBC that the NFL was a good fit for Netflix because it fit the streamer’s game strategy — effectively giving Netflix control of the day. According to previous reports by CNBC, Netflix will pay the NFL approximately $75 million per game.
For the NFL, Netflix represents an opportunity to reach young audiences around the world. This could also potentially set the stage for Netflix to become a bidder for larger game packages in the future.
The NFL signed long-term deals in 2021 for five major game packages with Disney, Paramount, NBCUniversal, Fox and Amazon.
While the current media partners are somewhat uneasy about making games for potential rivals, pressure from the league and a hefty paycheck from Netflix could convince the broadcasters to strike a deal, people familiar with the matter said.
“When you create a new partnership with a league as important as the NBA or the NFL, there aren’t a lot of players who can do that,” Shirin said. Adding that the production side “could be a big hole for streaming partners.”
Netflix and the league are looking to emulate Amazon Prime Video’s partnership with Comcast NBC Sports for “Thursday Night Football” games.
While NBC Sports’ Fred Gaudelli produces the 2022 season of “Thursday Night Football,” Amazon names Mark TeitmanOne of its employees will serve as lead game producer in 2023.
Amazon produces all pregame, halftime and postgame coverage, but NBC Sports handles much of the production of NFL games and employs the vast majority of workers there.
Netflix is interested in finding a similar partner, people familiar with the matter said.
If it can’t reach a deal with one of the existing companies, Netflix could explore other options with third-party producers. IMG, part of Endeavor Group Holdings, is the production partner of Major League Soccer through apple.
“It’s not easy to produce an NFL game at the level that people are used to watching,” said Jonathan Miller, CEO of Integrated Media, which specializes in digital media investments. “This is a very high-level and well-produced game.” “But there are a lot of options to put it together without (Netflix) having a fully staffed sports department.”
Shift to streaming
Amazon Prime Video is the first streamer to secure exclusive rights to NFL games as the league works to expand its media partners and offer more streaming products to expand its audience.
Amazon strikes deal to broadcast “Thursday Night Football” through 2021, joining other NFL media rights deals in an 11-year deal The media rights agreement is worth more than $100 billion and includes a seven-year opt-out clause.
Given that recent NBA media rights negotiations have attracted huge sums of money from various media companies, insiders and insiders expect the NFL to enforce the terms and find new partners.
Since the NFL signed the deal, streaming services from Comcast, ESPN and Paramount have begun simulcasting games and in some cases even hosting them exclusively. alphabetical YouTube TV is also the new home of the Sunday Ticket gaming package.
Sports, especially the NFL, have been the glue that binds traditional television together and have proven to be a driving force for streaming. NBCUniversal said in April that its NFL Wild Card game exclusively on Peacock helped add and retain more customers than expected.
The alliance has been pushing hard to add more streaming partners to expand its audience.
That’s the thinking behind a deal with Netflix to stream these Christmas games.
As negotiations for Sunday Ticket rights were underway, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told CNBC that the long-term package, offered only by DirecTV, would move to streaming.
“I think this is the best thing for consumers at this stage,” Goodell said at the time.
Revealed: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.
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