According to Bloomberg, the streaming company has been talking to the MLB about airing the annual home run competition and may be interested in additional baseball programming as well.
Netflix (NFLX) is reportedly eyeing rights to stream Major League Baseball’s Home Run Derby, signaling a deeper push into live sports.
Netflix’s stock rose 2.6% in afternoon trade, but retail sentiment on Stocktwits remained in ‘bearish’ territory over the past day.
Talks with MLB are ongoing after ESPN opted not to renew its deal for the event, sources told Bloomberg. The streaming company has been talking to the MLB about airing the annual home run competition and may be interested in additional baseball programming as well.
The addition of the Home Run Derby to Netflix’s portfolio would add to its growing list of live sports streaming. It already shows National Football League (NFL) games on Christmas and the WWE Monday Night Raw series.
The news comes after Walt Disney (DIS) subsidiary ESPN pulled out early from a seven-year contract with the MLB to save on programming costs. The report said ESPN had been paying the baseball league $550 million per year in exchange for airing 30 regular-season games. This included the Home Run Derby.
However, Netflix is not the only company throwing its hat into the ring. Since ESPN’s Exit, other networks are now looking to capitalize on the opportunity. The report noted Apple’s (AAPL) Apple TV+, Fox (FOX/FOXA), and Comcast’s (CMCSA) NBC have also shown interest. It said that the package would most likely be divided among multiple bidders.
The shares of all three companies were in the green during afternoon trade. Apple’s stock climbed more than 4.5%, while Fox’s stock edged 0.66% higher, followed by Comcast’s 0.44% gain.
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