Potential NFL Sunday Ticket move could be game-changer for fans
Reports indicate that the NFL Sunday Ticket streaming service could find a new home, perhaps with Disney or Amazon. Those moves would be huge for fans.
The NFL has had a partnership with AT&T regarding their Sunday Ticket package since 1994. However, things could be changing in that regard, at least in some way in the near future. According to a recent report from NBC News, commissioner Roger Goodell has been in talks with parties such as Disney and Amazon regarding the package that allows fans to watch every out-of-market game.
As noted by NBC News, this report comes after AT&T, who has offered NFL Sunday Ticket through DirecTV, dropped NFL Network from their DirecTV Now and Uverse subscription packages. Thus, it would stand to reason that these talks with other carriers could be in retaliation to that decision by AT&T.
Perhaps the most interesting off-shoot of this report, though, comes via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Florio notes that a logical solution to his could be Goodell and the league choosing to keep the cable package with AT&T on DirecTV, but then take the streaming rights to out-of-market games to a service such as ESPN+ (Disney) or Prime Video (Amazon).
The scenario described by Florio on PFT would be a huge win for football fans if things were to play out that way or in a similar manner. Disney or Amazon receiving the streaming rights to NFL games would be a huge positive for consumers in that it would likely not be as costly of a measure for fans to purchase the service moving forward, especially if they already have purchased to subscriptions to services like ESPN+ or Prime Video.
Instead of having to purchase Sunday Ticket through either DirecTV or AT&T directly, fans could have easier access by being able to purchase an add-on to an already existing service that they have. The consolidation of the services is absolutely key to this, as is the potential for a cheaper, more manageable price point for the service.
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As of right now, this is just speculation and reports. Having said that, this is something to keep an eye on. There is no escaping that NFL Sunday Ticket is a fantastic tool for fans to utilize during the season. However, if the ways it can be purchased and/or accessed change for the better, that’s something that benefits football fans as a collective whole.