Internet company Amazon is expected to challenge for the domestic rights to competitions organised by the New Zealand Rugby Union and its Sanzaar partners in the southern hemisphere, according to the New Zealand Herald.
The newspaper said the NZRU is preparing for Amazon to challenge incumbent rights-holder, pay-television broadcaster Sky New Zealand, when Sanzaar’s formal bidding process to broadcast provincial and Super Rugby club competitions, as well as national team Test matches, is launched by April next year.
Sky currently holds the rights under a five-year deal running from 2016 to 2020. The NZRU is one fourth of Sanzaar, which also comprises rugby union’s national associations in South Africa, Australia and Argentina.
The Herald notes that the early stages of a relationship between NZRU and Amazon have been forming for over a year. It emerged last month that Amazon is in the process of producing an eight-part documentary series on the All Blacks which is scheduled to go to air next year.
Amazon soft-launched its Prime Video service in New Zealand in December, and the newspaper added that filings with the Intellectual Property Office demonstrated that it also registered trademarks for its brand at the same time.