NBA Rights Deal: NBC Boosts Ratings, United Media Gains Control
- HereS a breakdown of the key viewership and rights deal information from the provided text:
- NBA Opening night Viewership (2023/2024 Season - NBC & Peacock):
- Thunder: 5.85 million average viewers (peaked at 7.1 million during the second overtime).
HereS a breakdown of the key viewership and rights deal information from the provided text:
NBA Opening night Viewership (2023/2024 Season – NBC & Peacock):
* Rockets vs. Thunder: 5.85 million average viewers (peaked at 7.1 million during the second overtime). This is an 87% increase compared to the 3 million who watched on TNT sports last year. It was the most-watched opening night game in the early window since 2010. A 95% jump over last year’s opener.
* Warriors vs. Lakers: 5.11 million average viewers. This is a 76% increase compared to the Lakers-Minnesota Timberwolves game last year.
Key Takeaways about the Viewership Increase:
* NBC taking over from TNT as a primary broadcaster appears to have considerably boosted viewership.
* The increased viewership is attributed to the league’s new 11-year, $76 billion media rights deals.
NBA Rights Deals – International:
* United Media (Southeast Europe): Secured rights to broadcast the NBA on its Sportklub pay-TV channel in Croatia and Slovenia. This is a multi-year agreement.
* Previous Rights Holder (Balkans): Telekom Serbia held the rights from 2019-2023, replacing Sportklub.