A television camera above the basket is adjusted before the Milwaukee Bucks game Wednesday, April 5, 2023 at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

A television camera above the basket is adjusted before the Milwaukee Bucks game Wednesday, April 5, 2023 at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Just when it seemed like Amazon was out of the regional sports business, things have changed. So what does this mean for the Brewers and Roe deer emissions?

According to the New York Post, Amazon in ‘advanced negotiations’ for live streaming deal Bally Sports streams 12 NBA franchises (including the Bucks) and five MLB teams (including the Brewers), as well as nine NHL teams. The new streaming offering could launch next month with the start of the NHL and NBA seasons, and fans would likely pay around $20 per month to watch via Amazon’s streaming service.

It is comparable to what Milwaukee Fans now pay for the Bally Sports+ app, which is the only place fans without a cable or satellite package can watch Brewers and Bucks games. The app is constantly criticized by local consumers frustrated with its features.

It’s not a radical change for Milwaukee sports fans, with Bally continuing to stream games on cable networks, though it could eventually create a more user-friendly app experience with Amazon backing the project.

In August, Amazon withdrew from an investment deal in Diamond Sportsthe company that manages Bally Sports broadcasts, suggesting that the e-commerce giant would play no role in Diamond’s ongoing attempt to emerge from bankruptcy. Diamond has been in bankruptcy since March 2023.

To successfully complete this bankruptcy exit maneuver, the company must demonstrate its financial viability in the future, and this would be a step towards achieving that, with the possibility of increasing its subscriber base thanks to Amazon’s reach.

This agreement would not be exclusive.which means Diamond could sign deals with other platforms in the future (maybe ESPN?). This also means that the Bally Sports app could still exist in its current form; the deal would apparently simply give fans a second alternative at the same price.

Bucks games that aren’t already nationally televised will be streamed on Amazon, as they currently do with the Bally app. Diamond only has digital rights to five Major League Baseball teams, including the Brewers, Tigers, Royals, Marlins and Rays.

NBA teams covered include the Hawks, Hornets, Cavaliers, Pistons, Pacers, LawnmowersGrizzlies, Heat, The TimberwolvesThunder, Spurs and Bucks. In August, the NBA and NHL Both have reached an agreement with Diamond to broadcast matches from the entire 2024-25 season.

The New York Post also reported that a Bally’s name change could happen in the near future, perhaps with FanDuel interested in a naming rights deal.

Wisconsin fans will not be able to watch out-of-market games featuring the other included teams; they will still be able to access those games through the MLB.TV app or NBA League Pass.

It’s not a done deal yet, and Major League Baseball has the option to objectalthough it is not certain that a demonstration will be enough to prevent a pact.

MLB has expressed concern about the length of time it will take for Diamond to emerge from bankruptcy. The new target date for a judge to rule on Diamond’s viability is November 2018. according to The StreamableMLB indicating it is too late in the game to know how it should proceed for the 2025 season, whether to maintain the status quo or pursue alternative broadcast options.

Regaining the streaming rights would allow MLB to put every game on its own service, available in the marketplace and without interruption.

This article was originally published in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: How would a move to Amazon impact Bucks and Brewers broadcasts?

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