There's no doubt that the TV industry is in flux. Traditional cable companies are losing customers to web streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime and even Hulu. The announcement this week of a new streaming TV service from Apple will no doubt shake up the industry, but now television might be losing its golden goose - the NFL.
For the first time ever, the National Football League is set to broadcast a game exclusively live over the Internet next season. The decision was made at a meeting of league owners on March 23 and could mark a turning point in the coverage of live football.
The game in question is the Jacksonville Jaguars vs. the Buffalo Bills game in week seven, which will be played in London. The game will be available on regular over-the-air networks in Buffalo and Jacksonville but crucially won't be on DirectTV's Sunday ticket which broadcasts nationwide. Instead, the NFL, according to a Wall Street Journal source, will sell the rights to a digital distribution company. No doubt Facebook, YouTube and others will be falling over each other to win the deal.
In 2013 the NFL met with Google for discussions about broadcasting its Sunday Ticket on YouTube, but in the end decided to go with traditional partner DirectTV. While this development is significant, don't expect the Super Bowl to be streaming over the Web anytime soon, especially the upcoming landmark Super Bowl 50 on Feb. 7, 2016. The Jaguars against the Bills on Oct. 25 is about as low-key as an NFL match gets. Also, with the game being played in London, the time difference means that it kicks off at 9:30 a.m. Eastern time in the United States, so it is unlikely to attract a huge audience at that hour anyway.
In choosing a low-profile game it is clear that the NFL is just experimenting with the new format, but there's no doubt that Web-only broadcasting will be expanded in the future. This is likely to be just the first step and it's only a matter of time before a slate of games are scheduled for online broadcast.
It will be fascinating to see who wins the rights to show the Jaguars versus Bills showdown, but there will surely be interest from any tech company with a streaming television offering. Sports has long been a key driver in television sales and the huge audiences that NFL brings will of course be attractive to advertisers. The fact that Google has previously been in talks with the NFL over rights may make it the most likely broadcaster, but no doubt Apple, Facebook, et al., will be competing.
The Oct. 25 Jaguars vs. Bills game is one of three NFL games being played in London on a Sunday and broadcast in the U.S. this fall. In what the NFL bills as the International Series, the other games played abroad are the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins on Oct. 4 and the Detroit Lions and Kansas City Chiefs on Nov. 1, all at London's Wembley Stadium.
