Facebook offered $600M for a "five-year-deal to stream Indian Premier League cricket game," and while the company did not win the auction, the fact that Facebook was "willing to put up that kind of money is a big, bold declaration that the company will write real checks in order to get its hands on must-see sports content," according to Peter Kafka of RECODE. The question now is "what's next." While most people have "assumed the NFL would look to re-up with Verizon, or another wireless carrier, people familiar with the league note that mobile rights don’t necessarily have to go to traditional phone company -- they could go to someone who wants to distribute media on a phone" (RECODE.net, 9/4). The FINANCIAL TIMES' Stacey & Garrahan noted Star India, a subsidiary of 21st Century Fox, won the auction for the IPL rights yesterday. Sony paid about $1B for its 10-year contract, "meaning the value of the competition has quintupled in a decade." The IPL "lasts for just two months of the year, but its popularity among cricket-mad Indians means it has become one of the most lucrative sports tournaments in the world." A range of U.S. players, from Amazon to Yahoo, "expressed interest in the IPL package," but Facebook was the only one to make an offer for the digital rights (FT.com, 9/4)
BALL IS LIFE: In L.A., Tania Ganguli noted while Lakers G Lonzo Ball "dives into his first season," the camera crew for the Facebook Watch docu-series "Ball in the Family" that is "following him during the summer won’t go with him to camp." LaVar Ball said, "I don’t think they’ll let him film at camp and all that stuff. I don’t think that’s a big deal. Most of the stuff they’ll film when he comes back home." The Lakers "have their own behind-the-scenes show, 'Backstage Lakers,' produced by Spectrum SportsNet, which is a partner with the team and its official broadcaster" (L.A. TIMES, 9/4).
