The full market value of Premier League football rights "has been predicted to surpass" the barrier of £10B ($14B) for the first time, "signaling that the allure of top flight TV" has not lost its luster in "the age of digital streaming," according to John Glenday of THE DRUM. Valuations "have been pushed northwards to ever more eye-popping extremes" courtesy of the arrival of new entrants to an "increasingly competitive market which have been steadily driving up the price." The latest calculations by Ampere Analysis show that the league can expect to earn between £5.3B ($7.4B) and £5.9B ($8.3B) for domestic three-year "live" rights, up from £5.13B ($7.2B) at the last time of asking. Such a result "would easily allow top tier clubs to generate" over £10B between them, with Ampere suggesting that the final figure could be £10.9B ($15.3B) once int'l rights "are thrown into the mix." One factor "which could skew the results even more" in favor of the Premier League is the "long-heralded arrival of Amazon" (THE DRUM, 1/23). BLOOMBERG's David Hellier reported Sky and BT "will need to shell out billions of pounds" to keep broadcasting English football. Sky "is likely to take four or five of the seven packages," with BT taking two or three and another bidder -- most likely Amazon or Liberty Global -- "taking one or two," Ampere’s Guy Bisson said. The Premier League is increasing the number of live games available "as it seeks to attract a wider pool of bidders" (BLOOMBERG, 1/23).
