The world of sports viewing just got even more complicated.
Diamond Sports, the parent company of Bally Sports, which currently airs Detroit Tigers, Red Wings and Pistons games, has been working through bankruptcy for the last year. A deal reported a few months ago set some terms -- the Tigers would be broadcast on Bally in 2024, and the other leagues would be free to pursue new broadcast deals at the end of their current seasons.
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That’s until news broke just this week at Amazon would be partnering with Diamond as a minority investor in a restructuring deal that will likely make regional sports available on Amazon Prime, in some cases.
Under the terms of the restructuring agreement, Amazon will make a minority investment in Diamond — expected to be initially $115 million — and enter into a commercial arrangement to provide access to Diamond’s content via Prime Video.
The agreement with Diamond Sports’ largest creditors allows it to emerge from bankruptcy and continue operations and prevents a total collapse of the regional sports network system where the NBA, NHL and MLB would have to step in to take over production and distribution of most of their teams.
The deal hasn’t been approved, and there is a lot of details to be worked out with the leagues, but here’s what we know so far.
Will Detroit sports teams be streaming on Prime?
We know one thing -- in the deal, reported by The Associated Press, the 2024 Detroit Tigers season will be available on Amazon Prime, but it probably won’t be part of a standard Prime package. It might be available as an add-on premium feature.
Again, those details are not available yet.
But we don’t know if the Red Wings and Pistons will be on Prime anytime soon. The NBA and NHL told the AP on Wednesday that they’re still reviewing documents.
Regional sports content will also remain available on cable and satellite providers. Due to the complexity of this bankruptcy case, though, it could take a while before games become available on Prime Video.
Plenty still needs to be sorted out with the NHL and NBA, and for the future of MLB games after 2024, but as of right now, you can expect the Tigers on Prime this year.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.