The multibillion-dollar market for sports broadcasting rights is wreaking havoc in Europe, where soccer teams are suffering heavy losses due to pandemic-shuttered stadiums as new media players enter the field. In Italy, billionaire Leonard Blavatnik’s live sports streaming service DAZN, with backing from local telco streamer Telecom Italia, plunked down more than $1 billion per season for a three-year contract for the bulk of Italian Serie A soccer rights, displacing Comcast-owned pay TV operator Sky. The deal marked the first time a streamer has nabbed exclusive rights to a major domestic league in its native territory.
DAZN, the online sports service that this year snatched the rights to screen Italy’s top-flight soccer league from Sky, is considering the possibility of going public as it chases further growth, its joint chief executive says.
Kevin Mayer, whose long tenure at Disney culminated in the successful launch of Disney+, is joining sports streaming outfit DAZN as chairman. He replaces former colleague John Skipper, the longtime former ESPN executive who steered DAZN through launches in the U.S. and other global territories. Backed by billionaire Len Blavatnik, DAZN specializes in boxing and soccer, but also controls rights to several other sports in various territories.
An IPO using a special purpose acquisition company is reportedly one of the options being considered by the sports streaming service.
The DAZN streaming network won’t air its “MLB ChangeUp” show this season, according to multiple people familiar with the decision. The people spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Wednesday because they weren’t authorized to comment publicly on the matter. The show debuted at the start of baseball season last year and was […]
Media and communications company Comcast Corp. has agreed to a distribution deal with digital global sports provider DAZN Group, further blurring the line between traditional television operators and the streaming services that have disrupted them.
Exclusives
After an abrupt departure, former ESPN president John Skipper is trying to beat his former employer at its own game with DAZN (pronounced “da zone”), a subscription streaming service with an odd name and big plans to disrupt sports broadcasting.
