Amazon is reportedly in late-stage talks with Diamond Sports Group that would grant it the rights to livestream broadcasts of select teams within the NBA, NHL and Major League Baseball on its Prime streaming service through Bally Sports local direct-to-consumer applications. Diamond, a subsidiary of Sinclair, currently has 26 teams across the three leagues within its portfolio that it televises across an array of Bally Sports-branded regional sports networks.
If an agreement between the two entities is reached, the streams would reportedly be non-exclusive and potentially include outlets such as Roku or YouTube with access to the applications as well. The linear broadcasts of the game would be simulcast on the Bally Sports regional sports networks if Diamond is able to exit Ch. 11 bankruptcy, which it has been in for over a year since filing for such status last March.
Earlier in the year, Amazon agreed to provide Diamond with $115 million in financing, a cash infusion contingent on Diamond being able to exit Ch. 11 bankruptcy. That offer was reportedly pulled last week, with sources cited by Tom Friend of Sports Business Journal indicating that the broadcast landscape had changed and altered the value of such a deal for Amazon.
The new streaming service, should it be created, would charge approximately $20 a month for access to local games for home teams through the Prime service, according to Josh Kosman of the New York Post. This would allow fans to access games without a cable subscription, something that could cause a further decline in the pay TV penetration rate amid hastened cord cutting.
Diamond is in the midst of trying to finalize a restructuring plan to exit Ch. 11 bankruptcy and is in the process of modifying its restructuring support agreement through finalizing a new naming rights agreement and raising additional capital. The company reached deals with the NBA and NHL to televise teams within its portfolio through at least the 2024-25 seasons, after which its status will be determined based on the state of the bankruptcy.
Diamond is also looking to gain authority to use cash received in its $495 million settlement with Sinclair to make an Additional First Lien Paydown that was agreed upon after an extended timeline within the Ch. 11 case and differing projections from Debtors as compared to “what formed the basis of the RSA and the first lien lenders’ agreement to accept take back debt.”
These negotiations are reportedly taking place as Major League Baseball objected to the deals with the NBA and NHL and requested both agreements to be unsealed. U.S. bankruptcy judge Christopher Lopez declined and approved both contracts, allowing for Diamond to continue its discussions with Amazon and other streaming services. Robert D. Manfred Jr., the commissioner of Major League Baseball, indicated that the league is looking for a national streaming regional sports network in the future. Jimmy Pitaro, chairman of ESPN, recently stated that the company is interested in expanding its local sports coverage on its forthcoming Flagship direct-to-consumer product, which is set to launch in the second half of 2025.
Diamond currently has streaming rights to the Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Miami Marlins, Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays. The company broadcasts regional games for the aforementioned teams, along with the Cleveland Guardians, Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers, all of whom have contracts that expire after the end of the season. If Diamond is able to emerge from Ch. 11 bankruptcy, junior creditors are expected to assume operations of the company.
