US telecommunications company Verizon is set to seal an extended and amended rights deal with American football league the NFL, according to Bloomberg.
The news agency, citing people familiar with the matter, said the telco is close to an agreement for digital streaming rights that would grant it the ability to deliver game broadcasts to internet-connected televisions, tablets and phones. However, Verizon will reportedly lose exclusive rights to stream NFL games on mobile devices in the US.
The NFL agreed a four-year extension, from 2014-15 to 2017-18, to its partnership with Verizon in June 2013. The deal was said to be worth a total of $1bn (€863.2m) and expanded Verizon’s existing sponsorship and content deal to include enhanced live streaming rights to NFL games from the 2014 season.
Bloomberg noted that Verizon’s current contract limits the telco to streaming on screens seven inches or smaller. Through the new agreement, Verizon will reportedly be able to give subscribers access to games on all devices, including big-screen televisions.
Verizon currently has mobile streaming rights to Sunday day games in a team’s home market, along with games on Thursday, Sunday and Monday evenings.