Peacock won't stop expanding sports coverage despite losses

NBCUniversal/Comcast has claimed that they will continue to expand their sports coverage through Peacock into the near future. Peacock is the massive media conglomerate’s streaming service. The decision comes as the streaming service recorded an increase in deficit during quarter two of this year. For Premier League fans, it’s good news that Peacock won’t stop expanding.

Comcast chief executive Mike Cavanagh recently explained to investors that despite the losses, sports is still a focal point of the streaming service. “One of the great drivers of Peacock subscriber growth has been sports,” proclaimed Cavanagh. “When I think about our own sports business, I think we’ve got one of the best portfolios in sports [including] Sunday Night Football, Big Ten, Premier League, Nascar, WWE, the Olympics next year, and PGA.

“We’ve got a very acclaimed group of people in terms of producing excellent content around those sports… we are going to continue to be in sports and that’s the game.”

Since ending their free tier and the incentive for Xfinity customers, Peacock has doubled their total subscribers to 24 million. According to SportsPro Media, the streaming service saw an increase in revenue by 85% over the last year. Nevertheless, the aforementioned increase in overall deficit in 2023 is somewhat worrying for the company. Part of this deficit comes down to further investment in sports programming.

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Peacock could be future home of NBA basketball

Comcast, however, still believes that obtaining sports media rights is good for their long-term goals. In fact, the company is currently pondering a deal with the National Basketball Association (NBA). ESPN and TNT currently hold the rights to broadcast NBA games here in the United States. The duo reportedly paid billions of dollars for the deal, which will expire in 2025.

Jason Armstrong, Comcast’s chief financial officer, also informed investors of the possibility of grabbing NBA’s broadcasting rights. “Obviously the NBA [rights are] coming up,” stated Armstrong. “That’s a fantastic property. We don’t necessarily need it, given the portfolio we have, but given its strength and our historical involvement in the sport [it’s] something I would like to take a look at. But we will see where that goes.”

Company fully committed to live sports streaming

Comcast has essentially made the decision to double down on streaming live sports. After shocking many sports fans around the United States by shutting down cable network NBCSN, the company shifted focus to Peacock. Since then, the streaming service keeps adding new sports leagues to their portfolio. This comes as FOX has basically ignored a serious streaming service and ESPN keeps their attention on their traditional cable networks.

Photo: IMAGO / NurPhoto