The NBA recently filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit lodged against it by Warner Bros. Discovery. This lawsuit centers around allegations that the NBA breached its contract by rejecting Warner Bros. Discovery’s matching offer for a new media rights deal. This saga comes on the heels of the NBA signing an unprecedented 11-year media rights agreement valued at nearly $76 billion, encompassing partnerships with Disney, NBC, and Amazon Prime Video, covering the seasons from 2025-26 through 2035-36.
The Dissolution of a Long-standing Partnership
This new contract earmarks the end of a nearly 40-year longstanding relationship between the NBA and Turner. In its legal response, the NBA has submitted a 28-page motion, accompanied by several documents, requesting that the lawsuit be dismissed with prejudice. Central to this dispute is the claim that Warner Bros. Discovery made significant amendments to Amazon's offer, which resulted in the proposal being fundamentally altered.
Specifically, Warner Bros. Discovery made substantive revisions to eight of Amazon's 27 sections, redefined 11 terms, struck out nearly 300 words, and added over 270 new words. One of the most contentious points is Amazon’s condition of an upfront payment requirement of approximately $5.4 billion held in an escrow account, which Warner Bros. Discovery suggested replacing with syndicated letters of credit.
Contentious Negotiations
The timeline reveals that Amazon's offer was presented to Warner Bros. Discovery on July 17, and five days later, Warner Bros. Discovery responded, claiming they had successfully matched the offer. However, on July 24, the NBA declared that Warner Bros. Discovery’s response did not align with the original terms and thus rejected it, citing multiple discrepancies in the attempt to match Amazon’s offer.
Amazon Prime Video's new deal includes plans to broadcast games on Friday nights, select Saturday afternoons, and Thursday night doubleheaders following "Thursday Night Football." Additionally, the agreement offers exclusive coverage of crucial stages of the NBA Cup and the NBA League Pass package. Bill Koenig, the president of NBA global content and media distribution, has played a pivotal role in these negotiations.
Reactions and Statements
Commenting on this development, a representative from the NBA stated, "TBS chose not to match NBCUniversal's offer, which would have enabled TBS to continue distributing games via its TNT linear cable network. Instead, TBS purported to match the less-expensive Amazon offer, but only after revising it to include traditional distribution rights and making numerous other substantive changes." The NBA argued that, "Far from accepting each term of Amazon's offer, TBS's revisions constituted a counteroffer that the NBA was free to reject." Continuing, the spokesperson added, "If TBS wanted linear TV distribution rights, it could have matched a separate more expensive third-party offer from NBC, but TBS elected not to do so, attempting instead to save billions of dollars by combining Amazon's lower price with the linear television rights granted to NBC."
Bill Koenig underscored the NBA's position by plainly stating, "The response made by TBS does not qualify as a match." On the other hand, representatives from Warner Bros. Discovery and TNT Sports stand by their actions, asserting, "Not only is it our contractual right, but it is in the best interest of the fans who want to continue to enjoy our industry-leading NBA content with the choice and flexibility we offer them through our widely distributed platforms including TNT and Max."
With Warner Bros. Discovery having until September 20 to file its response, the clock is ticking on how this legal skirmish will unfold. This emerging legal battle highlights the complexities of multi-billion-dollar media rights negotiations and indicates that the outcome will shape the landscape of sports broadcasting in the years to come.