The regional sports operator for 37 teams across MLB, the NHL, and the NBA has made a huge announcement that may not sit well with sports fans.
Diamond Sports Group is looking to partner with Amazon in an effort to help them come out of bankruptcy. The deal still has to be approved in court.
If it passes, certain MLB, NHL, and NBA games will air exclusively on Amazon Prime Video, meaning fans will have to pay for a Prime Video membership to stream the games. Right now, that membership costs $14.99 a month.
According to ESPN, Diamond has secured $450 million from creditors to fund a reorganization plan, plus an additional $115 million provided by a new minority investor in Amazon. In exchange, Amazon would have the streaming rights in nearly two dozen markets.
The MLB teams involved in the agreement include the Miami Marlins, Tampa Bay Rays, Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee Brewers, and the Kansas City Royals.
The 15 NBA teams include the Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, New Orleans Pelicans, Oklahoma City Thunder, Orlando Magic, and San Antonio Spurs.
The 11 NHL teams include the Anaheim Ducks, Carolina Hurricanes, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blue, and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Amazon already exclusively airs some NFL games and a handful of MLB games but hasn’t entered the regional sports network business where it becomes the home of a local team for an entire season.
This comes on the heels of last weekend’s streaming-only NFL playoff game between the Chiefs and Dolphins.
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