Telecom Italia Strikes €43-46 Million Annual Deal with DAZN to Secure Serie A Broadcast Rights Until 2029
Telecom Italia (TIM) has recently renewed its contract with DAZN, a leading sports streaming service, to broadcast the upcoming five seasons of Italy’s Lega Serie A football league. It has been disclosed that the Italian telecommunications company will pay between €43 million and €46 million annually for the rights to stream Serie A matches on its TimVision platform through DAZN.
In Italy, DAZN’s exclusive arrangement with TIM, initiated in 2021, encompasses Serie A TIM, UEFA Europa League, and select UEFA Conference League football games. This exclusive distribution agreement for Serie A was valued at €340 million annually. This arrangement, set to expire in June, was modified in 2022 to a non-exclusive format following financial challenges faced by TIM, partly attributed to the costs of the DAZN contract.
DAZN has extended its agreement to broadcast Serie A matches in Italy until 2029. Additionally, in October 2023, DAZN acquired broadcasting rights for Italy’s Serie A Femminile women’s football league in several countries, including Spain, Italy, the US, the UK, Germany, Canada, Portugal, Belgium, Japan, and Austria.
It is to be noted that in July 2023, both TIM and DAZN were fined over €8 million due to concerns about the potential negative impact of their partnership on the telecommunications and pay-TV service markets. This was the outcome of an investigation into their Serie A broadcasting rights. The Italian Competition Authority imposed a fine of €7,240,250.84 on DAZN, while TIM was ordered to pay €760,776.82.
Previously, Italy’s premier football league, Serie A, was considering launching its broadcasting service to deliver live football match coverage directly to fans. This move is a response to the hesitation of major broadcasters to agree to the league’s proposed valuation for broadcasting rights. Serie A’s top executives, including Chief Executive Luigi De Siervo, have stated that they have the necessary infrastructure to broadcast live matches directly to their audience.
Furthermore, DAZN has collaborated with YouTube to launch the NFL’s Game Pass International as a Primetime channel in the UK and Germany. This service provides comprehensive live coverage of all NFL games, subject to blackout rules, and features a mix of highlights, exclusive content, and the popular RedZone stream.
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