Sky Sports, ESPN In Talks With NBA For U.K. TV Rights

The NBA is "locked in talks with Sky Sports and ESPN" over U.K. TV rights, according to Matt Lawless of the London DAILY MAIL. ESPN held the rights last season, but the deal expired ahead of this season, resulting in a "block out of basketball on British screens." NBA Commissioner David Stern addressed concerns that "less than two months" before the Knicks-Pistons game at O2 Arena, "there is not an existing agreement in place." Stern: "We are in discussions with BSkyB about more regular scheduling of our games." He acknowledged that the NBA "is missing out on an opportune moment to capitalise on appealing to a new generation of fans following the enormous popularity of basketball" at the London Olympics. Currently, fans in the U.K. are restricted to streaming games online via the league's annual subscription pass that costs £141.87 ($227.20) to watch every match for the year (DAILY MAIL, 11/28).