(Bloomberg) -- Amazon.com Inc. is planning to bid for Italy’s Serie A TV rights, putting it in competition with Comcast Corp.’s Sky to broadcast one of world’s biggest soccer tournaments, according to people familiar with the matter.
The Seattle-based e-commerce giant plans to bid for streaming rights that would be used by its Prime Video unit, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the deliberations aren’t public. The league set a Jan. 26 deadline to sell rights to the next three seasons, seeking at least 1.15 billion euros ($1.4 billion) apiece, according to the people.
Representatives for Amazon and Serie A declined to comment.
Amazon has been expanding the lineup of European soccer matches it offers to its Prime subscribers, including select matches of the U.K.’s Premier League, the world’s most popular league. It’s also pushed deeper into sports coverage in the U.S., acquiring rights to NFL games.
Serie A, meanwhile, has been seeking new sources of revenue. Last year, CVC Capital Partners and Advent International agreed to acquire a stake in a new media unit that’s being created by the soccer league. They’re paying 1.7 billion euros for 10% of the new company, which will manage the league’s TV rights. Italy’s FSI fund is also part of the consortium.
Serie A, home to players such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, is in need of a cash injection after decades of underinvestment. The league and its teams have seen their finances further hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, which has caused match-day sales to evaporate and diminished broadcast revenue.
Últimas Noticias
Debanhi Escobar: they secured the motel where she was found lifeless in a cistern
Members of the Specialized Prosecutor's Office in Nuevo León secured the Nueva Castilla Motel as part of the investigations into the case
The oldest person in the world died at the age of 119
Kane Tanaka lived in Japan. She was born six months earlier than George Orwell, the same year that the Wright brothers first flew, and Marie Curie became the first woman to win a Nobel Prize
Macabre find in CDMX: they left a body bagged and tied in a taxi
The body was left in the back seats of the car. It was covered with black bags and tied with industrial tape
The eagles of America will face Manchester City in a duel of legends. Here are the details
The top Mexican football champion will play a match with Pep Guardiola's squad in the Lone Star Cup
Why is it good to bring dogs out to know the world when they are puppies
A so-called protection against the spread of diseases threatens the integral development of dogs
