NFL executive Brian Rolapp has told CNBC that the league’s new media deal offers a chance to enhance the viewing experience for fans.
NFL executive Brian Rolapp told CNBC Friday the league’s new high-profile media deal offers a chance to enhance the viewing experience for fans because of the opportunities presented by digital streaming.
The new deal features Amazon Prime Video as the exclusive provider of Thursday Night Football games beginning in 2023, the first all-digital package in the league’s history. Four other media giants—ViacomCBS, Fox, Comcast, and Disney (which owns ESPN)—all have the ability to broadcast games on their various streaming platforms.
“I think the [streaming] experiences will be different,” Rolapp, the NFL’s chief media and business officer, told CNBC. “What they will be, I think, remains to be seen, but the underlying rights of these deals provide for that type of innovation, which I think we’re excited to see and was really part of these discussions. Nobody just wanted to put television on the internet.”
Rolapp said the new agreement—estimated to be worth more than $100 billion—does not spell the end of traditional TV broadcasts of games. “If you look at this contract, I think we’ve allocated all of our games to television distribution in some shape or form,” he said, noting Amazon’s Thursday contests will still air on TV in the local markets of the teams playing.
