Co-CEO Ted Sarandos did not rule out sports rights in the future
Netflix co-CEO and chief content officer Ted Sarandos claims the streaming giant doesn’t see a profitable way to invest in “big sports”.
Speaking at the UBS Global TMT Conference in New York, as reported by Variety, Sarandos said: “We’ve not seen a profit path to renting big sports.”
However, he added, “never say never” to that, commenting: “We’re not anti-sports, we’re just pro-profit,” and claiming that Netflix “can get twice as big without sports,” pointing to the success of Squid Game without it appearing alongside any sport.
Reports surfaced last month that Netflix had been bidding on sports rights over the past year, but was yet to be successful - with sports rights continuing to grow in value. Named competitions in the report included the ATP and WTA Tours in the UK, with Amazon set to end its deal in 2023, as well as the World Surf League, perhaps pointing to interest in rights outside the “big sports” that Sarandos refers to.
Netflix’s competitors have already made moves into sport, notably Prime Video with the Champions League and Premier League, and Apple TV with the global rights to MLS. Netflix hosts a number of high-profile sport documentaries and series, such as Drive To Survive.
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