The groundbreaking NFL game for Black Friday will air on Amazon’s Prime Video rather than on regular TV, featuring a showdown between the Miami Dolphins and the New York Jets at 3 p.m. ET. Alongside the game action will be Amazon’s Black Friday deals and an exclusive performance by Garth Brooks. This path-breaking shift from traditional TV to a streaming service like Amazon’s Prime Video showcases the possible future of how sports games are broadcasted.
The NFL’s decision to dive into streaming instead of traditional TV indicators the declining state of linear TV. This shift stands to benefit Amazon, piggybacking on the massive spike in NFL viewership since the beginning of their deal. Additionally, Amazon is visioning a substantial growth in its viewer base through its streaming of the Black Friday game.
Thanksgiving is already celebrated as a day of football, mainly hosted by the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys in years past. Those matches will be broadcast on regular TV networks such as Fox, CBS, and NBC. The NFL and Amazon are hoping to establish a new tradition with their Black Friday game. Amazon will display QR codes at the bottom for viewers to access exclusive Black Friday deals subsequently.
While cable and regular TV struggle to survive, sports programming remains a cornerstone of linear TV, as seen when ESPN snagged the top 11 telecasts for the month of September, 10 of which were football-related. ESPN remains steadfast, showing a “modest increase” in ad revenue for its parent company Disney in the recent quarterly report, holding the TV broadcasting industry together.
However, the NFL’s move to exclusively show the Black Friday game on Amazon Prime Video might be a signal of the impending doom for traditional TV, especially since ESPN is planning a direct-to-consumer release. This shift from cable to streaming could be harmful for media companies that have not transitioned to streaming, potentially leading to dire consequences. Even as streaming grows in popularity and dominance, it may take time for the full transition from traditional TV to streaming to take place. This change could force traditional networks like Fox to unveil plans in an attempt to adapt to a world that is shifting towards streaming.
