All articles tagged with #sports programming
NBC and YouTube TV have reached a short-term agreement to keep NBCUniversal channels, including sports content like Sunday Night Football, on YouTube TV while negotiating a long-term deal, with the duration of the short-term agreement undisclosed.
Paramount has launched a new division, Paramount Sports Entertainment, led by Jesse Sisgold, to expand its sports media presence by producing sports-related programming, interactive games, and experiences, complementing its existing CBS Sports division and leveraging its partnerships with leagues and athletes.
Disney plans to increase its content spending to $24 billion in fiscal 2025, up from $23.4 billion in 2024, primarily due to rising costs in sports programming, including new contracts with the NFL and NBA. Despite the increase, Disney's entertainment spending may decrease as the company focuses on strategic investments, particularly in international markets, and aims to reduce content costs. CEO Bob Iger highlighted a cautious approach to investing outside the U.S. while prioritizing global content applications.
Netflix is venturing into the world of sports programming with a "boxing mega event" featuring Jake Paul and Mike Tyson, signaling the streaming giant's continued investment in sports-adjacent content. Additionally, Freeform's future direction and a preview of the Oscars are discussed in the latest episode of TV's Top 5 podcast.
Warner Bros. Discovery is adding a weeknight sports block to TruTV, featuring live sports, original programming, and ancillary content starting March 11 under the banner "TNT Sports on TruTV." The move comes ahead of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship. Impractical Jokers, a long-standing TruTV show, will transition to TBS with new episodes this summer, while the series continues to simulcast on both networks until early April. The new sports block will also include alternative presentations of live TNT Sports games, a news and highlight show, a betting show, and more, aiming to expand the reach of premium TNT Sports programming.
Warner Bros. Discovery's TruTV is undergoing a major overhaul, shifting its primetime lineup to focus on sports programming, including live games, alternative telecasts, and sports studio shows, while its hit series Impractical Jokers will move to TBS. This move reflects a larger trend in cable TV as smaller channels face challenges amid cord-cutting, and follows the network's previous focus on comedy and reality shows.
Warner Bros. Discovery plans to revitalize TruTV by introducing a nightly sports block featuring new programs and big games, aiming to attract broader viewership and ad revenue. The new schedule will include "alterna-casts" targeting different audiences, a live "TNT Sports Update," and a weekly program based on "House of Highlights." The move comes ahead of the NCAA March Madness basketball championship and is part of Warner's efforts to expand its sports offerings and compete with rivals like Fox Sports and ESPN. The company hopes the new programming will also bolster its joint venture with Fox and Disney in the sports streaming video space.
ESPN has announced a partnership with FOX and Warner Bros. Discovery for a new sports-specific streaming service that will launch in fall 2024, with a standalone ESPN streaming service likely to follow in late August 2025. As the UFC prepares to negotiate a new TV deal, analysts anticipate the promotion seeking a much larger package than its current contract, potentially doubling or tripling in value. The landscape of sports broadcasting is set to undergo significant changes, with the potential for the UFC to seek multiple partners for a split broadcast deal across various networks and streaming channels.
Fox Sports drove higher consumption for Fox Corporation in the first quarter, with viewing of all Fox brands up 2%. However, the costs of sports programming, including the Women's World Cup and NFL rights, weighed on profit, resulting in a 33% decrease in net income compared to the previous year. Fox's ad-supported streaming service Tubi saw favorable results, surpassing 70 million monthly active users. Despite the rise of cord-cutting, Fox remains committed to the cable bundle, particularly with its successful Fox News channel. Overall ad revenue slid 2% due to a softened advertising market.
Charter Communications is introducing a new two-tier structure for its Spectrum pay-TV subscription offerings, aiming to address the long-standing issue of rising costs of regional sports networks (RSNs) and the decline in pay-TV subscribers. The revamped structure includes Spectrum Select Plus, which includes RSNs and other sports programming, and Spectrum Select Signature, a reduced-rate option without certain sports programming. The move comes as cord-cutting continues to rise and the traditional pay-TV model faces disruption. Charter will also offer local RSN streaming apps to Spectrum Select Plus subscribers and may market them to non-video subscribers as well.
The CW has partnered with the NFL to become the new home for Inside the NFL, a weekly highlight and interview show that recaps the previous weekend’s action using footage from NFL Films. The show will make its CW debut on September 5 and run throughout the NFL season. The move is part of The CW's push into sports programming under new owners Nexstar.