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ESPN may have made its best deal ever.
In case you have not heard, ESPN is purchasing most of the NFL’s programming outside of the actual games on CBS, Fox and NBC, once certain contracts lapse by 2033.
The NFL Network, the 24/7 station of mostly studio shows and features that also carries midweek games, and the Red Zone that shows multiple cut-ins on split screens are the major carrots. Plus the NFL’s fantasy football business, NFL.com and other media. Not mentioned was Season Ticket, which airs all Sunday games and is now bought through YouTubeTV.
The deal is projected to be worth billions of dollars once it matures and will remake ESPN as the “worldwide leader” it was dubbed in the 1990s when the now-Disney owned enterprise dominated live sports on ESPN, ESPN2 and eventually its other stations.
When ESPN acquired rights to the first Carolina-Duke basketball game of the season, it launched ESPN2 by making the blueblood rivalry available only on “the Deuce.” That boosted ESPN toward other stations such as ESPNU, ESPN News and eventually ownership of the SEC Network, the ACC Network and the now defunct Texas Longhorn Network.
ESPN had the dynamic duo of paid subscriptions and advertising that could charge the highest rates because it continued to accumulate viewers and eyeballs. Alternatives, some legal and some not, began whittling down its subscribers and in turn forced them to lower ad rates.
The mega deal won’t take full effect until approved by various broadcast and government agencies, but ESPN will recapture some of the viewers it has lost due to cord cutting over the last 20 years, when it was in almost 200 million homes.
In return, the NFL will reportedly secure as much as a 10 percent of equity stake while it gets out of the ancillary media business. How the owners and franchises will benefit remains to be seen, but they will somehow profit from the multi-millions saved on talent and production costs.
ESPN, which airs Monday Night Football and a playoff game each season with partner ABC, wants the deal done before they carry the 2027 Super Bowl. Consumers will be encouraged to cut cable costs further in favor of DTC (Director to Customer) streaming over the new and improved ESPN app to access almost all NFL programming.
The talks began after Disney chief executive Bob Iger told the media two years ago that his company wanted to keep ESPN as an asset and would seek strategic partners to form a joint venture around ESPN or buy a stake in it. They did both.
Soon, sports viewers will be able to purchase the new ESPN app for about $30, so we can choose to scrap our cable contracts or streaming services and be left to decide between the dozens of other apps out there to binge on all other games and shows.
Featured image via Associated Press/David J. Phillip
Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including best-sellers “Game Changers,” “Blue Bloods,” and “The Dean’s List.” He has contributed to WCHL for decades, having made his first appearance as a student in 1971. His “Sports Notebook” commentary airs daily on the 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his “Art’s Angle” opinion column runs weekly on Chapelboro.Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
