Amazon Prime Secures Rights to Show 20 Premier League Football Matches a Season in the U.K. From 2019-2022

[MacRumors]

Amazon Prime Video has secured the rights to stream live Premier League football matches for three years from 2019, at no extra cost to Prime members who live in the U.K.

The exclusive deal, announced on Thursday, means that from next year Amazon Prime will show every game from the first round of midweek matches in December and all 10 games on Boxing Day, with weekly highlights of all Premier League matches throughout the season.

The Premier League is the most-watched sports league in the world, and from the 2019/20 season UK Prime members will have exclusive access to watch 20 matches per season, comprising two full fixture rounds - the first December midweek round and the festive Bank Holiday round - featuring live coverage of every Premier League team.

The deal marks the first time a full round of matches will be shown live in the U.K., and while it leaves out the more lucrative weekend games, it shows a big statement from the company, which already broadcasts tennis events like the U.S. Open and ATP World Tour, and NFL games on Amazon Prime Video.

Previously, Sky and BT Sport have shared the rights to the EPL, following an auction in 2015 that saw the broadcasters splash £5.1 billion ($6.9 billion) between them for three seasons. Earlier this year, the Premier League announced that it had sold five out of seven of its U.K. TV packages. BT Sport bought one bundle amounting to 32 games and Sky acquired four bundles, securing 128 matches. BT Sport also secured the last other 20-game TV package, the Premier League confirmed today.

The Premier League remains Europe's most prized live sports broadcast asset and with a growing audience in the U.S., fits in perfectly with Amazon's broader strategy to bring more sports content to its global customers, draw more people to its U.K. Prime membership service, and convert occasional customers into more loyal shoppers. An Amazon Prime membership in the U.K. costs £79 a year or £7.99 a month.

Article Link: Amazon Prime Secures Rights to Show 20 Premier League Football Matches a Season in the U.K. From 2019-2022

 

[M.PaulCezanne]

Thank god this appears not to impact US coverage.

 

[peterh988]

So now you need three subscriptions to watch football instead of one, because the government wanted to reduce costs by splitting them into packages, resulting in increasing costs for avid viewers.

 

[AdeFowler]

So now you need three subscriptions to watch football instead of one, because the government wanted to reduce costs by splitting them into packages, resulting in increasing costs for avid viewers.

True. A better deal for customers I think they said. Absolutely clueless. Thankfully I can normally find decent streams.

 

[Keane16]

So now you need three subscriptions to watch football instead of one, because the government wanted to reduce costs by splitting them into packages, resulting in increasing costs for avid viewers.

To play devils advocate, what do you think Sky would've done to the price of the Sports subscription had they been allowed to buy the entire coverage? I pay £7 a month for BT and I could easily have seen that kind of hike on Sky Sports had they won exclusive PL rights.

Overall I agree with you, it's annoying having to sign up to various services for 1 league. It's even more annoying how wide the coverage is abroad - all the 15:00 Saturday kick offs for example.

I don't have and won't be getting Prime, I'll be borrowing a friends account to watch during these 2 rounds of games.

 

[827538]

It’s not free, it’ll be exactly like BT Sports on Virgin.

They gave it free to customers - followed by a hefty price rise. So those consumers like myself who have no interest in watching a dull sport played by overpaid princesses subsidise the cost for attracting sports fans from Sky. I have zero interest in funding this. Also one of the reasons I quit Virgin TV and saved a fortune.

Cut the TV and landline, kept the awesome internet and saved £63/m then just hooked the TV’s up to an old Sky dish to recieve the channels we actually watch for free.

Can’t they keep this as an add on rather than the inevitable price rise of Prime?

You’re a fool if you think this is free.

 

[Keane16]

You’re a fool if you think this is free.

Has anyone even said it's free?

 

[benlukes]

I couldn’t care less. Let us know when European (not British) soccer is available to view in the US via Prime.
[doublepost=1528379058][/doublepost]

Has anyone even said it's free?

The article did.

 

[Jimmy James]

Maybe Apple can get exclusive right to Robot Wars.

 

[evoga]

The subscribers will have to pay for it with a price increase.

Thank god I just keep setting up new accounts so I can have two months of prime for free as I would never pay for it.

 

[blacktape242]

Thank god this appears not to impact US coverage.

I was thinking the same thing!!!!

 

[827538]

Has anyone even said it's free?

"at no extra cost to Prime members who live in the U.K."

It's implied.

 

[jimthing]

So the seven rights packages have garnered around £6B. Who pays for these constant increases: loyal fans.

While it’s our national game, there’s a reason many can’t be bothered with following the PL anymore, either preferring to follow the often more interesting to watch lower leagues, or none at all quite frankly. On top of that, there’s simply too much football on every week to keep up with it all.

I’ll watch the World Cup this month, and likely other big competitions like the Euros. But further than that, not really. There’s more to life, than the (not quite as) beautiful game.

 

[GadgetBen]

Now everyone needs to find a third mate to share logins with

 

[Whathappened]

It’s not free, it’ll be exactly like BT Sports on Virgin.

They gave it free to customers - followed by a hefty price rise. So those consumers like myself who have no interest in watching a dull sport played by overpaid princesses subsidise the cost for attracting sports fans from Sky. I have zero interest in funding this. Also one of the reasons I quit Virgin TV and saved a fortune.

Cut the TV and landline, kept the awesome internet and saved £63/m then just hooked the TV’s up to an old Sky dish to recieve the channels we actually watch for free.

Can’t they keep this as an add on rather than the inevitable price rise of Prime?

You’re a fool if you think this is free.

Well „overpaid princesses” is a little harsh. There is such an incredible amount of money in football, wouldn’t be fairer if the players accepted less since that money would directly go into the pockets of the club owners and functionaries.
As always accumulation/capitalism/the_money_system ruins it all.

Still have hope for at least a counter development in a couple of years so we’ll have only one subscription for one league again.

 

[69650]

Thankfully all the games are still free at my local pub.

 

[827538]

Well „overpaid princesses” is a little harsh. There is such an incredible amount of money in football, wouldn’t be fairer if the players accepted less since that money would directly go into the pockets of the club owners and functionaries.
As always accumulation/capitalism/the_money_system ruins it all.

Still have hope for at least a counter development in a couple of years so we’ll have only one subscription for one league again.

Just stop paying obscene prices to watch it and that money will quickly disappear. People really should be boycotting the premier league.

Plenty of more interesting and less ruined sports like rugby to watch. There's nothing I need to watch so badly I'll pay stupid money to see. Stopped watching F1 when it went to Sky.

 

[AdeFowler]

Do Amazon still do a free one month trial for Prime? If so, December 2019 could be busy.

 

[WWPD]

Did you see that ludicrous display last night?

 

[checker2010]

So now you need three subscriptions to watch football instead of one, because the government wanted to reduce costs by splitting them into packages, resulting in increasing costs for avid viewers.

Incorrect. You know have 3 different broadcasters because the EU force the Premier League to sell their packages to more than one broadcaster or be sued for monopolistic practices. Nothing to do with the UK government.
[doublepost=1528407247][/doublepost]

Did you see that ludicrous display last night?

Arsenal always try to walk it in.

 

[whiteonline]

What was Wenger thinking, sending Walcott on that early?

 

[Moonjumper]

Just stop paying obscene prices to watch it and that money will quickly disappear. People really should be boycotting the premier league.

Plenty of more interesting and less ruined sports like rugby to watch. There's nothing I need to watch so badly I'll pay stupid money to see. Stopped watching F1 when it went to Sky.

All this TV coverage has had another negative effect, the animated advertising hoardings. It is like a really bad website that needs an ad blocker. I've done the same as I do to those website, don't use.

As for less ruined sports, I've only been watching motor sport recently. Formula 1 has now introduced the animated advertising hoardings, but it has also been ruined in other ways. So that leaves MotoGP, which also has the hoardings (thankfully rare), but is otherwise great.

 

[BuffaloTF]

Thank god this appears not to impact US coverage.

Thank what god? Amazon picking it up would've been a massive improvement. You have to pay $50 now for the NBC Sports "Gold Premier League Pass" to get everything outside of the 3 games they show across NBC and NBC Sports. It's a plan that screws over cable subscribers and cord-cutters alike, forcing you into subscribing to both to get what was once all-in-one... they have good studio and booth coverage, but their subscription plans suck.

 

[Keane16]

"at no extra cost to Prime members who live in the U.K."

It's implied.

At the moment it's at no extra cost. You already pay for Prime - it is not free. But for the time being you'll be getting it on top of the things you subscribed to Prime for.

When/if the Prime sub rises you can push the theories.

 

[M.PaulCezanne]

Thank what god? Amazon picking it up would've been a massive improvement. You have to pay $50 now for the NBC Sports "Gold Premier League Pass" to get everything outside of the 3 games they show across NBC and NBC Sports. It's a plan that screws over cable subscribers and cord-cutters alike, forcing you into subscribing to both to get what was once all-in-one... they have good studio and booth coverage, but their subscription plans suck.

I’m sorry you need to get that crap gold plan. Yes - that was a terrible development. However, I absolutely love NBC’s coverage of the Prem here and don’t want anything to do with Amazon’s desire to own and then neglect or degrade every product and service on earth.