Warner Bros. Discovery stock on Tuesday fell nearly to depths not seen since the Great Recessionary abyss of 2009 following a Wall Street Journal report that Comcast and NBCUniversal are preparing an aggressive bid to poach TNT’s NBA television rights.
Warner stock cratered nearly 9% as word came that Comcast is willing to pay the NBA $2.5 billion a season to broadcast games on NBC and stream them on Peacock in primetime two nights a week during the pro-hoops season.
Incumbent NBA national TV rights holders Disney and WBD’s TNT Sports had an exclusive negotiating window with the league that ended last week. It was reported last week that Disney and its ESPN unit carved out the framework for a 10-year renewal that will start in the 2025-26 season.
It was also reported that Amazon had negotiated its own ability to become a third national TV partner for the NBA.
The erstwhile Time Warner Inc. acquired its NBA TV rights package back in 2007 and is currently presenting the NBA Playoffs on TNT and Max through a legacy deal that calls for it to pay the league an average of $1.2 billion a season.
Also read: Are Kenny, Chuckster and 'Inside the NBA' Moving to Amazon?
NBC held NBA rights from 1990 - 2002, and it seems fairly serious about getting them back.
CNBC reported on Tuesday that NBCU has already spoken to composer John Tesh about repurchasing the rights to “Roundball Rock,” the iconic jingle that punctuated NBC broadcasts of pro hoops games all through the Michael Jordan-dominated 1990s.
