Streaming Giants Unite: Amazon, Netflix, YouTube Form Live Sports Advocacy Coalition
Three of the country's largest streamers have joined forces in Washington to advance their shared interests. Amazon, Netflix, and YouTube launched The Streaming Access and Choice Alliance, a group dedicated to advocating for 'technology-neutral policies that encourage innovation in entertainment, enabling streaming services to invest in a wide range of programming, including live sports.'
The alliance is led by the trade association TechNet, which represents Big Tech companies. This move comes after a summer of federal attention to the shift of live sports from traditional television platforms to streaming services.
Several members of Congress have introduced legislation on sports streaming or encouraged the federal government to act. The Department of Justice launched an investigation into whether the NFL's broadcast practices represent anticompetitive behavior that harms consumers, and the FCC opened an inquiry into whether the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 applies to games sold to streamers.
The Streaming Access and Choice Alliance appears to be an effort by streamers to change hearts and minds in Washington. The trio of streamers are serious about investing in live sports; Prime Video has major packages with the NFL and NBA, Netflix expanded its NFL package to five games this season, and YouTube secured NFL Sunday Ticket.