Warner Bros’ recent ownership and Amazon’s dominance of NFL broadcasting have sparked a multi-billion dollar battle in Hollywood that Premier League bosses will be watching closely.
Netflix and Paramount Skydance compete for Warner Bros. to take over Discovery.
However, a possible acquisition of TNT Sports within Warner Bros Discovery provides a compelling subplot in a rancorous battle for some of the world’s most prominent TV shows and films.
How does team dominance affect fan and viewer engagement?
TNT Sports has been a proactive player in the rights market since 2012. However, recent developments show that although the broadcaster has helped increase the value of the Champions League television rights, it will lose them to Paramount from 2027.
The channel is a joint partnership between Warner Bros Discovery and BT, launching in 2022, the broadcaster also owns the rights to the Olympic Games.
Although BT Groups still retains a 50% stake, it is reportedly negotiating a deal to sell the remaining stake to Warner Bros Discovery.
Netflix deal will transform global sports broadcasting
The coming years will see a dramatic transformation of the British television landscape.
Intense competition from global streaming giants like Netflix and Disney+ has forced traditional broadcasters like ITV and Sky to aggressively adapt to this new market reality.
While the current demonstration would indicate that a major shift is underway, questions remain about the true extent of the platform’s ambitions.
However, by securing the US rights to the 2027 and 2031 Women’s World Cups, the country has gone beyond one-off events and become a serious player in international sports broadcasting.
According to Pescatore, TNT Sports could provide “fast access” to the highly competitive realm of premium sports rights.
He said: “Entertainment has served a purpose for Netflix so far, but they realize that the whole idea of live programming makes viewers want to tune in at that moment.”
While recent revelations don’t provide specific details about TNT Sports, they suggest a future where sports exist as a hybrid ecosystem.
This shift means that audiences no longer function simply as viewers, but as users within a vast, data-driven entertainment ecosystem.
