NBA rejects Warner Bros. Discovery’s matching offer to retain games, setting up potential legal showdown
CNN
The NBA on Wednesday rejected Warner Bros. Discovery’s offer to match a bid from Amazon Prime Video to broadcast the games, setting up a potential legal showdown between TNT’s parent company and the league.
The NBA on Wednesday rejected Warner Bros. Discovery’s offer to match a $1.8 billion per year bid from Amazon Prime Video to broadcast the league’s games, setting up a potential legal showdown between the media company and its longtime sports partner. “Warner Bros. Discovery’s most recent proposal did not match the terms of Amazon Prime Video’s offer and, therefore, we have entered into a long-term arrangement with Amazon,” the NBA said in a statement. The league said that its new 11-year media deal with Amazon will complement its latest slate of broadcast, cable, and streaming agreements, which were also inked with NBCUniversal and Disney, worth a combined $77 billion. “All three partners have also committed substantial resources to promote the league and enhance the fan experience,” the NBA said. “We are grateful to Turner Sports for its award-winning coverage of the NBA and look forward to another season of the NBA on TNT.” The announcement comes less than 48 hours after WBD, CNN’s parent company, notified the league of its intention to match Amazon’s bid in order to retain the right to broadcast the games, a deal that threatens the media company’s cable and streaming ambitions. In a statement Wednesday, WBD criticized the league’s decision, saying it had “grossly misinterpreted” its contractual rights and vowed to take “appropriate action.”