SINGAPORE: Streaming services from Netflix to China’s Tencent Holdings now pay half of all fees to broadcast sports across Asia, underlining how digital services are upending traditional media around the world.
Online platforms such as India’s JioHotStar will pay 50% of regional sports rights fees this year, estimated at around US$5.7 billion, Media Partners Asia projected. That’s up from about 36% in 2021, the consultancy wrote in its latest report.
Streaming apps are taking over fan screens across the globe as they race to ink deals with top professional leagues. That means viewers - particularly those watching from outside their home markets - need to pay for a growing number of subscription-based services instead of relying on a handful of cable channels like before.
