Overview
- Disney, which reported earnings Wednesday, said through CFO Hugh Johnston that ESPN has not begun early negotiations with the NFL on its Monday Night Football deal.
- NFL commissioner Roger Goodell defended the shift to streaming in a new Vanity Fair profile, saying about 88% of games stay on free broadcast and that “Netflix is not a small distribution.”
- The league is marketing a new five‑game package that reporting says YouTube is favored to land, with inventory drawn from windows ESPN returned in the NFL Network deal plus an International Series game in Australia.
- The Department of Justice is investigating whether the NFL’s rights practices harm consumers, a review that follows fan complaints about paying for several streaming subscriptions to see marquee games.
- Rights talks are widening as the NFL pushes for much higher fees using opt‑outs and change‑of‑control triggers, with industry reporting suggesting the league wants increases far above what some networks are willing to pay.