The league last week sent formal RFPs to the usual TV partners and outlets -- CBS, ESPN, Fox, NBC and Turner -- that outlined the NFL’s plan to sell a one-year deal with a league option for a second year. The league also sent RFPs to several digital companies, like Google, Yahoo, Apple and Amazon, to stream the entire Thursday night schedule on a non-exclusive basis, sources said.
The league’s initial plan would have the digital streams serve as a simulcast of the television production -- with the same ads and in-game production features.
The league expects bidding to start in the low $300M for the television package, with a nominal escalator in year two, sources said. CBS currently is paying around $300M per season for the Thursday night package.
Yahoo paid around $15M for the streaming rights to one game this season, but that was on an exclusive basis. In a recent interview with Re/Code, NFL Exec VP/Media & NFL Network CEO Brian Rolapp said, “We are talking to numerous people -- both traditional media companies and some of the Internet guys -- and I think there will be a heavy digital component [for Thursday]. It is just a question of what the model will be and how we will do it.”
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