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The National Football League (NFL) and RedBird Capital Partners have launched EverPass Media, a new platform that will distribute the Sunday Ticket out-of-market package to commercial establishments in the US from the start of the 2023 season.
Confirmed:
- EverPass Media will deliver live games to bars, restaurants and hotels
- Platform has a multiyear license to carry out-of-market Sunday NFL games
- RedBird will provide funding to setup new venture
- Media executives Alex Kaplan and Derek Chang will lead the new entity in the respective roles of chief executive and executive chairman
- Service will be available on a non-exclusive basis for pay-TV distributors
Context:
In December last year, the NFL and Google inked a domestic broadcast partnership for the consumer rights to Sunday Ticket with Google, with distribution coming via the YouTube TV subscription product. That deal is said to be worth between US$2 billion per year and US$2.5 billion annually.
The launch of EverPass Media marks the latest collaboration between the NFL and RedBird, after the two parties and the league’s 32 Equity funding vehicle launched On Location Experiences. The live event hospitality company was later sold to Endeavor in 2020 for a reported US$660 million.
Comment:
“Our goal is to create a new model for commercial sports rights distribution around the globe, and we believe that this is just the beginning of an exciting journey,” Chang said. “Creating a platform that allows commercial establishments to deliver the content that their customers desire is a significant opportunity and technology allows us to aggregate this content to a platform that can scale and evolve the viewing experience.”
Coming next:
The new platform will ensure that the league retains the reach of its broadcast product by providing the maximum live game options for commercial premises, replacing the role of DirecTV.
