- Bally Sports has local rights to 40 major league sports teams
- Amazon seeks more sports rights for Prime Video
- DSG has been under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection since March.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon is actively pursuing an investment in Diamond Sports Group (DSG) with the aim of making Prime Video the home of local broadcasts for 40 major league sports teams in the United States. It is said that negotiations are underway.
DSG’s Bally Sports branded Regional Sports Network (RSN) serves multiple teams in Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the National Hockey League (NHL).
Amazon’s flagship sports venue in the US is the National Football League’s (NFL) Thursday Night Football, thanks to a US$1.2 billion per season deal that runs through 2032.
But partnering with DSG would help the tech giant retain subscribers, compete more effectively with the likes of Disney and Netflix, and give it access to a treasure trove of live sports content.
Amazon already has a stake in YES Network, which owns the rights to MLB’s New York Yankees and NBA’s Brooklyn Nets, and also produces local broadcasts of the WNBA’s Seattle Storm.
According to WSJ, it’s unclear what financial terms are being discussed, and there are no specifics about how the game will be distributed. However, Bally Sports Networks will still be available via cable.
The deal with Amazon could allow DSG to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in more than eight months. It applied for protection in March with the aim of restructuring its massive debt of up to US$8 billion by renegotiating “unsustainable” territorial rights agreements with a team of partners.
DSG must present a viable business plan to emerge from Chapter 11, but has been unable to do so despite repeated deadline extensions. However, it has recently been reported that they have reached a deal with the NBA to continue streaming games for the remainder of the 2023/24 season, and are close to signing deals with the NHL and MLB.