Warner Bros. Discovery Says NBA Can’t Reject Matching Offer: ‘We Will Take Appropriate Action’

As a long-time fan of both the NBA and Warner Bros. Discovery‘s coverage of the league, I’m dismayed by this turn of events. For decades, Warner has been a trusted partner to the NBA, delivering top-notch coverage through TNT and other platforms. The thought of them going to court against each other is not only disappointing but also unsettling.


Warner Bros. Discovery thinks it’s entitled to keep some of its hoop dreams.

The company disagreed with the NBA’s idea that it wouldn’t be involved in the upcoming rights agreements, which were announced on Wednesday with fresh 11-year deals secured with Disney, Amazon, and NBCUniversal. The company asserted its authority to remain active in basketball.

I want to clarify that we’ve met the Amazon deal terms as stated in our contract. We strongly believe the NBA can’t turn us down. By doing so, they’re disregarding the millions of fans who remain dedicated to our top-notch NBA coverage. This is available across all WBD platforms – TNT, our longtime league partner, and Max, our popular streaming service. We’re confident there’s been a misunderstanding regarding our rights for the 2025-26 season and beyond. We’ll take necessary steps to rectify this situation. Regardless, we’re excited about another fantastic NBA season on TNT and Max featuring our fan-favorite “Inside the NBA” program.

It’s widely anticipated that Warner Bros. Discovery may file a lawsuit against the NBA to protect what they believe are their rights to retain the assigned NBA package currently held by Amazon. According to sources privy to internal conversations, David Zaslav, CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, has indicated to his team that legal action is imminent.

Warner faces challenging public perception as he attempts to regain some sports rights from the NBA, whom he had been closely aligned with for over three decades. Not only did Warner assist in managing the NBA’s digital platforms and cable network, but he was also a valued partner. However, in order to secure these rights again, Warner must now engage in a legal battle against an organization that appears eager to form new partnerships.

Warner execs aimed to create a modest collection of games separate from those allocated to ESPN, ABC, Amazon, and NBC/Peacock.

More to come….

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2024-07-25 01:16