Verizon has officially signed a new partnership deal with the NBA which will allow the carrier and its subsidiary-owned Yahoo to offer an array of basketball content to subscribers and via the Yahoo Sports platform. That’s according to an announcement made by Verizon on January 17. The carrier says that the new partnership will open a wide variety of streaming and fantasy sports opportunities for subscribers and users on both platforms. Additionally, the two companies will be able to offer wholly unique experiences outside of the usually broadcasted games or time-restricted fantasy leagues.
As part of the new partnership, both Yahoo Sports and Verizon – via its own media platforms – will be able to offer consumers in the U.S. the ability to purchase NBA League Pass. For those who may not know, that’s the NBA’s official platform for presenting live games to consumers who may not otherwise have access because they weren’t broadcast for them locally. Along those same lines, Verizon will also be able to offer its users up to 8 of those games as a free preview through its “It’s on Us” program. Additionally, Verizon and Yahoo Sports users will now have exclusive access to a new daily show centered around NBA action, stories, and commentary. Beyond even that, original sports and sports-centered lifestyle programming will also be made available on those services. Both Yahoo and Verizon will also have some exclusive deals of their own as well. Yahoo’s fantasy league sports, Yahoo Fantasy, will be getting a boost from Verizon and the NBA, as the two companies partner to enhance the service on a global scale. Alongside those enhancements, a newly created Official NBA Fantasy format, with flexible entry schedules and customized highlight packages, will also be released. Finally, Verizon has been given license to develop new augmented reality NBA content, as a result of the new partnership.
No financial details about the deal have been released, as of this writing, but the NBA is not giving away its content for free, either. As more of its content is pushed to Verizon and Yahoo’s platforms, the association will be given access to a wider audience of fans across new platforms in order to further its own brand. Unfortunately, there are no specifics provided with the announcement as to when that content will begin to become available and there are likely still more details being kept under wraps. Bearing that in mind, Verizon does plan to at least reveal more information beginning at the start of the NBA All-Star Game 2018 – which takes place in L.A. on February 18.