When looking at the evolution of the media industry, January 13th, 2024, may emerge as a landmark date. That was the day that NBC aired an exclusive NFL playoff game on Peacock, with the Miami Dolphins visiting the Kansas City Chiefs.
Initially, the decision was met with skepticism and criticism, if not outright outrage. How could a media company put something as sacred as an NFL playoff game behind a paywall and restrict it to a streaming platform that wouldn’t be easily accessible to everyone?
But over time, the decision seems to have paid off in a big way for Comcast and NBC. The game drew huge ratings, and the whole intent was to see subscribers stick around to explore content both in and out of sports and keep their monthly subscription fee. To that extent, it was a successful mission.
And according to CNBC sports media reporter Alex Sherman, who spoke with NBC Sports President Rick Cordella, it was a pivotal moment that inspired NBC to pursue a massive rights deal for the NBA, where Peacock will once again play a major role.
Via CNBC:
Research firm Antenna estimates Peacock added 3 million new subscribers from getting the rights to that one NFL game, which cost $110 million. More than 70% of those subscribers stayed with Peacock about two months later, Antenna said in March.
That gave Cordella confidence NBA fans would stick with Peacock even after the season concluded. But it wasn’t just the lack of churn that convinced him of the value of popular sports. It was what those new subscribers watched once they signed up.
“Our highest video-on-demand usage was the week after the Wild Card game,” Cordella said in an interview. “Churn rates among those new subscribers have been lower than the average. Sports fans are not monolithic. You’re getting a whole household to watch other entertainment around what NBCU has.”
[…]
“The NBA is a must-have for the sports fan,” Cordella said. “We need to build Peacock for the future. Having exclusive NBA games is really important for that mission.”
Peacock can make a serious argument for being the best value sports streamer on the market thanks to NBC’s wide array of sports properties and their emphasis on streaming. That was evidenced by the platform’s recent coverage of the 2024 Paris Olympics, which may have been the best example of what the streaming era is capable of in serving sports fans thanks to live coverage of every event and Gold Zone. Add in the odd NFL game, the Big Ten, the Premier League, and the entire WWE library, and it’s a great lineup.
The NBA is going to add to that value only with a ton of regular season and postseason inventory. And it’s fair to say from Cordella’s comments that it all started in January. Without the success of the Peacock NFL playoff game, NBC may not have been so committed to the billion-dollar NBA deal because they would have seen that sports fans weren’t ready. However, as 2024 has shown, more and more events go to streaming, and the NBA will feature heavily on Amazon and Peacock; perhaps now they are.
[CNBC]
