Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) CEO David Zaslav is leaning on the company’s other sports assets as it remains at risk of losing a key media rights deal with the National Basketball Association (NBA).
We continue to talk to the NBA,
Zaslav said while speaking at a Bernstein conference on Thursday. We love our experience with the NBA. But in general, we’re a leader in sports… [with] a full buffet of content around the world.
The executive touted the company’s Olympics coverage win in Europe, along with recent additions of NHL games, Nascar races and college football in the US. This is what we do for a living,
he said. We’re in the business of sport, and in sport, the deals come up [and] you make a decision about the overall quality of the full menu of content you have for each of your platforms.
The NBA’s current contract with Warner Bros.‘ TNT Network and Disney’s ESPN (DIS) expires at the end of next season, and rumors have swirled in recent weeks that WBD could lose media rights to Comcast’s NBCUniversal (CMCSA). Amazon (AMZN) is also in talks for an exclusive streaming deal through its Prime Video service.
Last week, NBA commissioner Adam Silver took to the stage for a press conference at the NBA Board of Governors meeting this afternoon
(TWITTER, 3/29), touching on a number of topics pertinent to the league. Silver noted there have been things discussed from player health to finances and other areas
, but that there’s still a gap between here and a deal getting done. Silver added if there is no agreement by Friday, the league will opt out of the current CBA that ends at end of June, giving three months to negotiate with NBPA.
Wall Street analysts predict that losing NBA rights would have lasting consequences for WBD. Macquarie analyst Tim Nollen noted,Losing NBA rights would be a big negative for WBD,
because sports content is considered essential for linear TV ad sales and carriage fees and crucial for Max streaming service’s growth in an increasingly competitive direct-to-consumer market.
Zaslav remains optimistic about retaining NBA rights but emphasizes diversifying WBD’s sports portfolio.
Traditional media companies are finding it harder to compete with tech giants in striking expensive sports streaming deals. Currently, Warner Bros. pays an annual $1.2 billion for NBA rights. Meanwhile, Disney has increased its payment from $1.5 billion to reportedly $2.8 billion.
This puts WBD at a crucial juncture: Will it secure pivotal NBA rights or lean into other sports ventures?
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