SALT LAKE CITY—The parent company of the Utah Jazz NBA team, Smith Entertainment Group (SEG), has announced plans to air next season's games on Sincair’s KJZZ broadcast TV station and to launch a new SVOD service that will stream the games.
KJZZ will have rights to games that are not being nationally televised. The games will be available for free over-the-air and on pay TV operators that carry KJZZ.
The Jazz games previously aired on Warner Bros. Discovery’s AT&T SportsNet, which is being shut down.
The move to broadcast follows a trend in major league sports as teams adapt to the cratering economics of regional sports networks that have forced some RSNs to shut down or file for bankruptcy.
As part of the plan, SEG has set up SEG Media, a new production company that will produce the games and provide access to the games through a combination of over-the-air broadcast television and a paid, subscription-based streaming service, starting in the 2023-24 NBA season.
“Our top priority has always been providing the best fan experience possible. When we first took over stewardship of the team, 39% of Utah households had the ability to watch Jazz games, so as soon as the window opened last fall for us to rethink our approach to broadcasting, we began exploring all options to provide fans the most reliable access to Jazz games,” said Ryan Smith, chairman of Smith Entertainment Group and governor of the Utah Jazz. “This new approach is one of the most important investments we have made since purchasing the team because it allows us to deliver Utah Jazz games to all 3.3 million plus Utahns.”
SEG Media is the organization’s first entry into the media and broadcast world. The new production company will produce all Utah Jazz content to be distributed on the over-the-air TV channel, the team’s digital platforms, and a new direct-to-consumer (DTC) streaming option, with future plans to service other SEG entities and external partners, the company explained.
Starting October 2023, a new paid, Utah Jazz-branded, subscription-based streaming platform will deliver every available Jazz game, as well as other team related content.
Full details on the Jazz’s DTC offering will be announced in the coming months, SEG said.
Utah Jazz TV broadcasters Craig Bolerjack, Thurl Bailey, and Holly Rowe will continue to call games, while Michael Smith and Alema Harrington will host the pre- and post-game TV show hosts, SEG said.
The Jazz have granted Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owns and operates KJZZ, the rights to air all available Jazz games on the station, and fans should expect significant coverage of the team from Sinclair’s CBS affiliate in the market, KUTV (channel 2). The Jazz will also collaborate with the KJZZ and KUTV teams to distribute additional Jazz-related ancillary programming, produced by SEG Media, throughout the year.
SEG and the Utah Jazz have obtained all necessary approvals from the National Basketball Association and were advised on the new direction by Endeavor/WME Sports. Financial terms are not being disclosed.
