The ice continues to melt under the regional sports network business as the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League have made a long-term deal to broadcast its games on stations owned by Tegna and stream them on Amazon Prime Video in the Northwest.
Root Sports Northwest had televised the Kraken during the team’s previous three seasons.
Tegna stations KING and KONG in Seattle, KGW in Portland and KREM in Spokane will broadcast all 70-plus non-nationally televised Kraken games starting next season.
KING will be the official television partner of the Kraken.
Tegna said it will work with other broadcasters to televise Kraken games in other markets in Washington, Oregon and Alaska.
The Kraken also become the first NHL team to work directly with a streaming service.
Prime Video will stream all non-nationally televised games to Prime members in Washington, Oregon and Alaska. Prime will also have preseason games and the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Root has been a terrific partner for us; we have appreciated their support as we determined our broadcast plans moving forward,” Kraken owner Sam Holloway said. “Today’s announcement is a game-changer for our fans. Our goal is to increase the ways they can watch our games — whether they’re cheering us on at home or on the go. To have both Tegna and Prime Video as trusted partners is a dream come true. I can’t wait for more fans to fall in love with Kraken hockey.”
With cord-cutting impacting the cable industry, fewer fans are pay TV subscribers, limiting the number of people who can watch games.
Cord-cutting also puts financial pressure on the RSNs, which lose subscription and advertising revenue while programming rights costs stay high.
Last year, Diamond Sports, the largest RSN operator, declared bankruptcy and dropped its contract with a number of teams.
The Arizona Coyotes (which last week announced a move to Salt Lake City, Utah) and Vegas Golden Knights have also taken the bulk of their local game telecasts to broadcast.
“Our collaboration with the Seattle Kraken marks a significant milestone in our commitment to celebrating the essence of local sports on local broadcast television,” Tegna president Dave Lougee said. “We look forward to bringing every thrilling moment of Kraken hockey to all viewers in the Pacific Northwest as we build on our long-standing commitment to the region.”
KING ,Tegna and the Kraken will lead advertising and sponsorship sales for all local games.
John Forslund, JT Brown, Eddie Olczyk, Alison Lukan and Nick Olczyk will continue broadcasting the games next season.
“Seattle Kraken hockey is synonymous with the Pacific Northwest, and we're thrilled to bring Prime members in Washington, Oregon and Alaska access to Kraken games on Prime Video,” said Charlie Neiman, head of sports partnerships, Prime Video. “Live Kraken games add to our growing selection of premium live sports and deliver additional value for Prime members throughout the Kraken home footprint.”
