Live sports should be the new holy grail for streaming companies to attract subscribers. Amazon seems to have realized this would be critical and is working on a standalone sports content app.
information from the site the information, citing sources familiar with Amazon CEO Andy Jassy’s plan. The CEO is doubling his stakes in live broadcasting and recently highlighted that he will continue to spend money buying the rights to the live game, even if he has to further cut costs in other areas.
Today, Amazon broadcasts many sporting events live. But it’s included in the standard subscription to Prime, the service from the company founded by Jeff Bezos, which includes everything from videos to music to free delivery.
Amazon has exclusive rights to Thursday Night Football games in the NFL (American Football League), as well as some Premier League soccer games in the UK and baseball games for the Yankees, a team from the New York area.
It also recently launched several sports talk shows in the US, a schedule in November that generated 60 hours of content per week.
In Brazil, the online retailer will broadcast some matches of the Sao Paulo Football Championship, has already played matches in the Brazilian Cup and has a partnership with Premiere Channel, from the Globo Group, which broadcasts the matches of the Brazilian championship. When contacted, Amazon declined to comment.
Amazon’s strategy remains unclear. If it continues with the project, the company has not specified whether it will charge subscribers additional fees, given the high costs paid to obtain transmission rights. Thursday Night Football, for example, costs $1 billion a year for 10 years.
In addition, the company will face strong competition. Apple struck a deal in March to exclusively stream some MLB games. The Tim Cook-led company will also pay $250 million a year over the next decade for the rights to Major League Soccer games, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Meanwhile, Google struck a deal with the NFL in early December that gives YouTube exclusive rights to stream Sunday Ticket games. The company will pay the NFL between $2.1 billion and $2.2 billion annually over the next seven years, according to a person familiar with the deal.
But CEO Jassy seems determined to invest heavily in streaming. at the conference DealBookLast month, he signaled his commitment to his predecessor Jeff Bezos’ vision of making video a central pillar for Amazon to drive its retail business.
But he also hinted at the opportunity to start an independent video company. “Sport is a unique asset. If you look at the most-watched shows each year, sports tend to occupy 75% of those spots,” Jassy said. “And, you know, they drive live engagement and drive Prime subscriptions.”
