Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) -) is the latest company to bring live sports to streaming.
Warner Bros. is going to offer live sports on its streaming service Max for no additional cost, according to a report by Bloomberg News.
The report also said that live sports will eventually come with an additional fee on Max, but that will likely be included in February or March next year.
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The company currently has the broadcasting rights to leagues like the NBA, MLB, and NHL, and has been airing games for those leagues on TNT and TBS. It also airs the men’s March Madness college basketball tournament.
The foray into live sports is the company’s latest way of trying to push its streaming service after it announced that it lost nearly two million subscribers across all its media services last quarter.
Other streaming competitors have invested heavily in live sports to drive customers into streaming platforms. Amazon and Apple both acquired media rights deals in order to drive consumers onto their streaming platforms.
ESPN is quickly trying to move into streaming, and like Warner Bros., it already has a slew of sports media rights deals to carry onto its streaming platforms.
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But it’s no surprise that Warner Bros. is moving quickly because its deal with its most valuable sports asset, the NBA, expires after the 2024-25 NBA season. Amazon and Apple are expected to make a bid.
TheStreet reached out to WBD for comment but did not receive a response as of publishing.
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