Twitter, NFL announce streaming partnership for Thursday Night Football

Twitter has won a deal to stream the NFL games online. NFL made the announcement and stated Twitter will air 10 games for free, while NBC, CBS or the NFL Network simultaneously broadcast them as well, securing the league’s “Tri-Cast” distribution model of broadcast (NBC/CBS), cable (NFL Network) and digital (Twitter). However, the NFL did not announce any terms of the deal. Last season, the NFL got in to a partnership with Yahoo! to deliver a free, global live stream of a regular season NFL game, the first time users could access the NFL’s premium content worldwide, without authentication. A report by Time points out that the NFL hopes to reach the growing cohort of “cord cutters” who have opted out of paying for cable and exclusively stream their entertainment. In a press statement, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said, “Twitter is where live events unfold and is the right partner for the NFL as we take the latest step in serving fans around the world live NFL football. There is a massive amount of NFL-related conversation happening on Twitter during our games and tapping into that audience, in addition to our viewers on broadcast and cable, will ensure Thursday Night Football is seen on an unprecedented number of platforms this season. This agreement also provides additional reach for those brands advertising with our broadcast partners.”.