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Bloomberg: Fox RSNs Could Fetch $20 Billion

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A report at Bloomberg.com says that the Fox regional sports networks are drawing a lot of interest from potential bidders. While they are part of the package 21st Century Fox has agreed to sell to Disney for $71.3 billion, the Department of Justice has said Disney will have to sell those assets before a deal can become official.

According to Nabila Ahmed and Gerry Smith at Bloomberg several companies have thrown their hat in the ring hoping to get a deal done with Disney. They include traditional broadcasters like Sinclair, digital streaming giants like YouTube and Amazon, and investment firms outside of the television industry like Blackstone, Global Partners, and Apollo Global Management.

The Fox RSNs hold the exclusive television rights for 44 Major League Baseball, NHL, and NBA teams and the price is expected to reach well into the double digit billions, if the networks are sold as a single unit, according to industry analysts.

A sale process for the networks could kick off within weeks, the people said, even though Disney has at least three months after it completes its Fox asset acquisition to offload them. An auction could value the properties at about $20 billion thanks to high profitability and strong cash generation, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private.

John Malone, who co-founded Fox’s RSN business with Rupert Murdoch is said tone interested in buying the networks as well.

Media mogul John Malone, who teamed up with Fox founder Rupert Murdoch in the mid-1990s in a regional sports venture in a bid to shake ESPN’s hold on sports, has also expressed an interest in getting back into regional sports networks. The package of networks Disney is selling include some that were owned by the Fox/Liberty Networks back then.

The Disney/21st Century Fox merger has been approved by shareholders of both companies, but still has hurdles to jump through around the world. It does appear though that once the deal becomes official Disney will look to move fast on either selling or auctioning off the RSNs.

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ACC Network Adds Chelsea Gray as Women’s Basketball Analyst

“I’m honored to be coming back home to the ACC. This conference proves its greatness year after year and I’m thrilled to be a part of it again.”

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ACC Network just added another talent to its growing roster, this time adding three-time WNBA champion and former Duke Blue Devil Chelsea Gray as a women’s college basketball analyst.

Gray will make her ACC Network debut on Sunday, Dec. 10 when her alma mater takes on the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles live at Cameron Indoor Stadium at noon E.T.

“I’m honored to be coming back home to the ACC,” Gray said. “This conference proves its greatness year after year and I’m thrilled to be a part of it again.”

This won’t be Gray’s first rodeo when it comes to live game analysis. During the 2021-22 season, Gray was a key member of ACCN’s Nothing But Net studio coverage. She also called seven regular season games and three NCAA Tournament games throughout the year.

Along with her on-screen duties, Gray still plays as a member of the Las Vegas Aces, where she helped guide the team to back-to-back WNBA Championships in 2022 and 2023.

“We are very excited to welcome Chelsea back to the ACC Network as a game analyst. She’s competed and won championships at the highest level so her experience and knowledge of the game will be such an asset to our already strong women’s basketball coverage,” said Sara Gaiero, vice president of production at ESPN.

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Prime Video, Premier Boxing Champions Agree to Multiyear Rights Deal

“With live coverage of PBC action throughout the calendar year, Prime Video continues to bring viewers in the U.S. and around the world the best in sports.”

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Amazon Prime Video and Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) just announced a multiyear rights agreement, which will deliver year-round boxing championship matchups featuring some of the sport’s biggest stars.

Prime Video will distribute PBC’s industry-leading pay-per-view (PPV) events in the U.S., with the first event anticipated for March 2024. PBC PPV fights will be available for all viewers to purchase, regardless of Prime membership. Additionally, in the U.S. and select countries, Prime Video will exclusively stream a PBC Championship Boxing series of events, showcasing top matchups among boxing’s current and rising stars.

“We are thrilled to join with Premier Boxing Champions to bring the best boxers in the world to Prime Video, and to give more fans than ever the chance to experience these must-see events,” said Marie Donoghue, VP of U.S. sports content & partnerships, Amazon. “With live coverage of PBC action throughout the calendar year, Prime Video continues to bring viewers in the U.S. and around the world the best in sports.”

Some past matchups hosted by PBC include David Benavidez vs. Caleb Plant, Gervonta “Tank” Davis vs. Ryan Garcia, Errol Spence vs. Terence Crawford, and Canelo Alvarez vs. Jermell Charlo. Details on specific cards, dates, and locations will be announced at a later date.

In addition to the live PBC events, Prime Video will continue to grow its Original sports content offerings, with behind-the-scenes PBC docuseries, live weigh-ins, and on-demand access to previous events, highlights, archival footage, and more.

“Premier Boxing Champions is very proud to partner with Prime Video to showcase our world-class boxers and events. With Prime’s incredible reach and unprecedented marketing power, we’re very excited to reach new audiences for our sport as we continue to present the most exciting, competitive and biggest fights in Boxing,” said Bruce Binkow, CEO, Integrated Sports, exclusive agency for PBC.

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ESPN, TNT NBA Collaboration ‘First Step’ in Bigger Partnership, Execs Say

The two companies will cross promote the NBA In-Season Tournament during Thursday’s programming.

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The inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament concludes in Las Vegas this weekend, and one of the unique elements of the semifinals tonight will be the crossover coverage between TNT and ESPN.

ESPN will have the first semifinal of the evening. The game tips off at 5 PM Eastern. Mike Breen and Doris Burke will be joined by Reggie Miller on the broadcast. Lisa Salters will be the sideline reporter for the game.

For TNT’s game at 9 PM Eastern, Kevin Harlan and Candace Parker will be joined by Doc Rivers. Allie LaForce will handle sideline reporting.

Additionally, both networks are going to collaborate for extended segments in their respective pregame show windows. Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal will join ESPN NBA Countdown with Malika Andrews, Stephen A. Smith, Michael Wilbon, Bob Myers and Adrian Wojnarowski before the early game. Everyone will get together again when Inside the NBA gets viewers ready for the late game.

Font Office Sports reported that as the NBA prepares to negotiate a new media rights deal with both ESPN and Warner Bros. Discovery, network leaders see other chances for crossovers down the road.

“This is the first step in something that potentially could create other opportunities [in] the future,” TNT Sports executive vice president and chief content officer Craig Barry said.

ESPN head of event and studio production David Roberts said something similar.

“This is just a starting point,” he said.

The NBA’s current media rights contract concludes at the end of the 2024-25 season.

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