The National Football league is said to be in talks with tech companies, including Apple and Google, as they search for a streaming partner for three London-based games the league plans to stream next season.
Reuters reports that Apple has expressed an interest in the deal, perhaps as plan to secure the rights for the games for their Apple TV set top streaming device.
A December report indicated Apple was also involved in talks with the league to obtain streaming rights to NFL Thursday Night Football on a non-exclusive basis. The league was also reported to be in talks with Google, Amazon, and Yahoo about the rights. No announcement has been made as to who may have secured the package for next season.
Live streaming is becoming an important part of the plans technology companies and sports leagues have to remain relevant and create revenue streams in an increasingly digital world. Yahoo live streamed an NFL game from London during the 2015 season. The game was available online free to viewers. The experiment was considered a success, as the NFL reported over 15 million viewers watched some part of the game.
London games scheduled for the 2016 season are: the Indianapolis Colts vs. the Jacksonville Jaguars on October 2, the New York Giants vs. the St. Louis Rams on October 23, and the Washington Redskins vs. the Cincinnati Bengals on October 30.
Details of the financial package for the three London games has not been announced, nor has it been learned whether the three games will be offered as a package deal, or split up among participants. Yahoo is said to have paid $15 million for the rights to last year’s single game.
(Via MacRumors)
