Cricket Australia turned down a hefty offer from American media behemoths Paramount, which could have netted them $1.5 billion, and instead chose to keep existing broadcasters Seven Network and Fox Sports on a multi-million-dollar deal.
The home Test in summer and a limited number of Big Bash League (BBL) matches are expected to be shown on Seven Network, while Fox Sports will continue to broadcast Tests, the BBL, white-ball internationals, and other domestic events.
According to News Corp, the new agreement will take effect once the present agreement ends in 2024, and the contract signed by the parties is for a five-year period. Cricket Australia struck a six-year, $809 million domestic television rights agreement with Fox and Seven Network in 2018.
The streaming service Paramount Plus launched in Australia in August 2021 and has established a presence as the broadcaster of the A-League and Australian football internationals. Furthermore, the large proposal made by the American media behemoth was much more profitable than those made by the Australian networks.
Regardless, the decision to reject the offer comes after the Australian Football League (AFL) rejected the American company’s attempts last year. Surprisingly, Paramount also put the highest offer on that occasion. Nonetheless, CA believed that despite the big offer, Paramount Plus could not match the reach of the present broadcast hosts and opted to decline the proposal.
In any event, with the new agreement in place, CA will now continue its cooperation with Seven Network and Fox Sports. It is worth noting that the board signed a $250 million contract with Disney in July to broadcast games in India through Disney Star.
