Disney, Apple, and Amazon have submitted bids to become the new owners of the rights to broadcast off-market National Football League Sunday ticket packages. They are just waiting to see who will win.
Three companies made bids last week, insiders said. The NFL continues to talk with all three candidates while deciding which pair to choose, said the people who questioned not to be named because the words are private.
Three people said that the NFL wants each buyer to pay more than $2 billion for NFL Media rights and interest packaged with Sunday tickets. NFL cell phone rights could also be part of the package, as the previous cell phone deal with Verizon expired.
DirecTV pays $1.5 billion yearly for existing rights for Sunday tickets that expire after the upcoming 2022-23 season. Sources said that the NFL pushed for a 100 percent increase in its main game package last year, but it's unlikely the league will get $3 billion in Sunday tickets, historically losing money on DirecTV.
Many observers, including some participants, were surprised that the deal had yet to materialize. They two people said that the two people said the delay stems from a combination of assets and related partnership talks that were finalized in deal negotiations. However, one man said that a deal is likely to be reached if discussions focus solely on Sunday's tickets.
There is no urgency to announce it as DirecTV will now be offering Sunday tickets for next season. Bidders prefer to close deals sooner rather than later because they want enough time to remind consumers that Sunday ticket rights holders are about to change.
DirecTV encourages all Sunday ticket package owners to become DirecTV subscribers as well. However, that condition no longer applies to this new offer, opening the pack up, so many new subscribers are no longer deterred from spending hundreds of dollars on plans because they don't want DirecTV.
Two people said that DirecTV is not bidding on a rights package at this time but is willing to bash a deal with a successful buyer. The agreement, if passed, could ease the financial burden on the lucrative streaming platform.
