NBA in Talks With Sky Sports & ESPN, Stern Not Happy - Hoopsfix.com

NBA in Talks With Sky Sports & ESPN, Stern Not Happy

NBA UK TV Deal ESPN BSkyB Sky Sports

NBA UK TV Deal ESPN BSkyB Sky SportsSportsmail has revealed the NBA are in talks with Sky Sports and ESPN to end the current TV black-out that is frustrating so many fans in the UK, whilst NBA commissioner David Stern has branded the current situation “unacceptable”.

Last season ESPN held the UK television rights to the NBA, but the deal has expired and not yet been renewed. An ESPN spokesman told Sportsmail they are “engaged in discussions with the NBA”, however, Stern seems to be more focused on discussions with BSkyB.

Talking exclusively to Sportsmail, the NBA commissioner of 28 years also admitted they need to do a better job for fans in the UK:

“We are in discussions with BSkyB about more regular scheduling of our games.

“…we really need to do a better job of offering games in the UK. While our online had over a billion streams outside the US last season, it is not an acceptable answer to fans in the UK.

“For those fans who are currently starved I would recommend that, for now, they sign up to our online league pass where they can get a thousand NBA games through their smart TV, their computers, tablets and their cell phones.

“We need exposure to build a stronger fan base here, so at the moment we are struggling. But we are currently talking to people at the highest level from BSkyB to see what they can do to change that.”

Regardless of who the deal is done with, it seems most people just want a deal done sooner rather than later. The NBA UK Facebook and Twitter has been flooded with comments from disgruntled fans who want the NBA back on the box.

Read the full article over at the Daily Mail.

Thoughts? Waiting for that deal? Given in and bought NBA League Pass? Let us know in the comments!

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