Analyst: Amazon “very likely” to bid for Premier League
January 5, 2018
Amazon looks increasing likely to bid for Premier League streaming rights in the UK, according to Richard Broughton, Research Director at Ampere Analysis.
Broughton said the online giant is “very likely” to bid for one of the smaller packages in the upcoming auction for Premier League live broadcast rights in the UK.
The auction for live Premier League rights hit a record £5.1bn (€5.73bn) in 2015 after broadcasters Sky and BT bid against each for the for three seasons and divided up all available games between them. Ahead of this year’s auction there has been increased speculation that one or more of the digital giants, such as Netflix, Facebook or indeed Amazon would take on the broadcasters.
The seven packages being offered by the Premier League in the upcoming auction, due to take place in February, vary from 32 matches to 20 matches each – and, for the first time, includes prime-time Saturday night kick-offs.
Amazon added live NFL and ATP tennis to Prime Video last year as it seeks to add more sports content to its streaming service.