NBC Sports and Turner added some competition to the over-the-top live streaming and VOD space, announcing an expanded partnership that will soon see content delivered for sports leagues, broadcasting networks, the Olympics and other major rights holders.
Playmaker Media and iStreamPlanet, owned by NBC and Turner, respectively, have collectively streamed the NFL, NHL, NASCAR, English Premier League, NBA LEAGUE PASS, ELEAGUE and other sports events. The two media companies recently streamed the 2016 Rio Olympics when over 100 million unique users consumed 3.5 billion minutes of video during the three-week stretch.
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“This partnership announcement represents another step in Turner’s strategy for iStreamPlanet to commercialize solutions and bring them to market in ways that are valuable for consumers and customers,” Turner chief technology officer Jeremy Legg said in a statement. “We’re excited iStreamPlanet’s industry-leading cloud video streaming platform joined with NBC Sports Digital’s capabilities and success in digital sports streaming business – this will bring a new level of excellence to the market.”
Added Eric Black, Chief Technology Officer of NBC Sports Group Digital, in a statement: “We have a long history of working with iStreamPlanet and have collaborated with them to successfully stream some of the biggest events in sports, including multiple Olympics and Super Bowls, to massive audiences. This is a natural fit as the assets of each company complement the other, providing the most robust offering for customers. We look forward to better serving the growing marketplace through this partnership.”
Through the expanded collaboration, BAMTech — which is the sports technology provider for OTT platforms such as MLB, WatchESPN, WWE, HBO and eSports following a new deal with Riot Games — will now have some competition on its hands after holding much of the streaming market for over the last decade.