Apple may want more Sunday Ticket flexibility than NFL will give

Sunday Ticket talks between Apple TV+ and the NFL are said to have been slowed down by complex rights issues, with Apple looking for fewer restrictions.

The long-rumored deal for Apple TV+ to stream NFL Sunday Ticket was once even reported to have been concluded, but now it's in doubt.

According to CNBC, complex existing rights restrictions are limiting what the NFL is offering Apple — and Apple wants more. Unspecified sources have said that talks are continuing, but separate deals such as those with Fox and CBS to air local games are proving a problem.

Just as it does with one-off Apple TV+ fare such as the Oscar-winning "CODA," Apple prefers to have exclusive, worldwide rights, even if it has to pay a great deal for them.

"We weren't interested in [just] buying sports rights," Apple's Eddy Cue said in a talk at the Paley Center for Media. ""There's all kinds of capabilities that we're going to be able to do together because we have everything together."

"And so if I have a great idea," he continued, "I don't have to think about, OK, well, my contract or the deal of interest will allow this."

Apple's aim is to follow how it has transformed Friday Night Baseball, as compared to the sport's previous regular broadcasts. It's likely to want the rights to show local games which are subject to blackout, and may also be seeking global rights where the NFL has previously sold US-only ones.

CNBC says that the NFL hopes to choose in the next ten weeks which streaming service will get Sunday Ticket. It's believed that the League is asking for between $2 billion and $3 billion annually.

13 Comments

rob53 3307 comments · 13 Years

About 2 years ago

Good luck on getting any concessions from the NFL, NBA or even MLB. If Congress really wanted something to do that would help people they would go after professional sports, forcing them to provide TV access to everyone instead of just specific cable/satellite channels. Professional sports are the same as auto dealerships, pharmaceuticals and the UAW, they are all corrupt and have bought politicians.

mike1 3431 comments · 10 Years

rob53 said:

Good luck on getting any concessions from the NFL, NBA or even MLB. If Congress really wanted something to do that would help people they would go after professional sports, forcing them to provide TV access to everyone instead of just specific cable/satellite channels. Professional sports are the same as auto dealerships, pharmaceuticals and the UAW, they are all corrupt and have bought politicians.

Why should they be forced to do anything? Why is everyone entitled to access? If you want it, pay for it.

mike1 said:

rob53 said:

Good luck on getting any concessions from the NFL, NBA or even MLB. If Congress really wanted something to do that would help people they would go after professional sports, forcing them to provide TV access to everyone instead of just specific cable/satellite channels. Professional sports are the same as auto dealerships, pharmaceuticals and the UAW, they are all corrupt and have bought politicians.

Why should they be forced to do anything? Why is everyone entitled to access? If you want it, pay for it.

These are considered "legal" monopolies. There's no real competition.

chadbag 2026 comments · 13 Years

mike1 said:

rob53 said:

Good luck on getting any concessions from the NFL, NBA or even MLB. If Congress really wanted something to do that would help people they would go after professional sports, forcing them to provide TV access to everyone instead of just specific cable/satellite channels. Professional sports are the same as auto dealerships, pharmaceuticals and the UAW, they are all corrupt and have bought politicians.

Why should they be forced to do anything? Why is everyone entitled to access? If you want it, pay for it.

When they start paying for their own stadiums and everything else instead is sucking at the government teat I’ll be there right behind you supporting that argument. As it stands they are protected monopolies sucking at the government teat taking all sorts of tax payer money and enjoying government protection and exemptions from laws. The tax payer ought to get something in return. Android not just high ticket prices and concession prices.

Generally I am against government regulation and agree in principle with “why should they be forced to do anything “. But if such things as government teats have to exist and they want that largesse they’ve put themselves into the position to be regulated and told what to do.

One of this affects me personally (above paying taxes) as I don’t watch sports and couldn’t care less about pro sports.

StrangeDays 12959 comments · 8 Years

mike1 said:

rob53 said:

Good luck on getting any concessions from the NFL, NBA or even MLB. If Congress really wanted something to do that would help people they would go after professional sports, forcing them to provide TV access to everyone instead of just specific cable/satellite channels. Professional sports are the same as auto dealerships, pharmaceuticals and the UAW, they are all corrupt and have bought politicians.

Why should they be forced to do anything? Why is everyone entitled to access? If you want it, pay for it.

Why should the public continue to pay for massively expensive stadiums for billionaires to host games played by millionaires? The NFL and other leagues all expect and demand public subsides (corporate welfare), and routinely threaten if they do not get it.

Thus, if they want public money, they can expect public regulation.

Because I don’t see a single league offering to pay for their expensive stadiums out of their own pockets. They don’t want the “free market” when it comes to paying expenses — but they want the free market when it comes to profiting. This is called “subsidizing the risk, privatizing the profit”. It’s a con.

No need to defend the billionaire-class and their games.