Most in-town games are carried by Verizon on the smartphone form factor. That could change with a new agreement coming into place.
A new agreement between the National Football League and Verizon may not only allow its mobile customers to stream games live, but it may allow room for other networks and carriers, too, Bloomberg reports.
The existing agreement only allowed Verizon the right to stream Monday, Thursday, Sunday afternoon and Sunday night home market games to devices with screen sizes under 7 inches. The new agreement would break that size cap and allow any internet-connected device, including televisions, into the viewing mix. However, Big Red is said to lose exclusive rights for mobile streaming.
AT&T-owned DIRECTV currently covers out-of-market NFL games on Sunday afternoons on mobile phones. It could come into competition for more pieces of what was originally Verizon’s pie, along with Dish, Sling TV and other carriers, just to name a few potential sources.
Twitter has streamed some Thursday night games as the league has been working on its multi-platform reach to combat declines in television viewing.
