Yesterday it was reported that Sinclair would be buying most of the Fox Regional Sports Networks from Disney. Today that deal was made official as Sinclair spent $10.6 billion to buy the networks. It had been reported that Disney wanted $20 billion for the networks but Sinclair won with a bid of $10.6 billion showing how cord cutting has reduced the value of networks like the Fox RSNs.
As part of the deal to get Department of Justice approval for the Disney-Fox merger, there was a requirement that the Fox regional sports networks would be sold off. When Disney closes on the sale of most of 21st Century Fox, they need to sell off the regional sports networks currently running under the Fox Sports name. There was a fear that Disney owning ESPN, ABC, and the Fox regional sports networks would give them too much power in the world of sports.
According to reports, final bids came in last week and now Disney has confirmed that Sinclair is the owner of the Fox Regional Sports Networks. FOX regional sports networks and Yes Network air 44 professional teams including teams from the MLB, NBA, and NHL. The company that buys FOX’s regional sports networks will have great power over the future of streaming sports.
There had been reports that Amazon would partner with Sinclair on this deal but so far no word on what if any involvement Amazon would have.
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