Jiangsu Suning Sports, whose sister operations include streaming platform PPTV, has formed a partnership with sports and entertainment company DDMC in order to strengthen their respective positions in the Chinese sports media market.
The Yutang Sports website said the two firms will form a joint venture company to advance their ambitions, with an initial investment of RMB100m (€13m/$14.6m) in the new entity.
DDMC, whose assets include the Desports agency, will invest RMB45m in the venture, with Suning Sports putting in RMB40m and the remaining RMB15m coming from the joint venture’s management team and other shareholders.
DDMC said it has been gradually building up its sports business but is currently falling short in the media rights sector, in particular their acquisition, operations and development.
PPTV has been highly active in the Chinese sports rights market of late. Its last major deal came in April as it secured digital rights to the Bundesliga, the top division of German football, for a five-season term spanning from 2018-19 to 2022-23.
PPTV also currently holds Spanish LaLiga rights, from 2015-16 to 2019-20, and in November struck a major deal to acquire English Premier League rights over three seasons from 2019-20 to 2021-22