Netflix takes a swing at live sports

Netflix is toying with the idea of live-streaming a celebrity golf tournament.

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The Future. Netflix is possibly taking its live-streaming experimentation to the world of sports this fall with a Las Vegas-set golf tournament. If it isn’t a miss, the streamer may start to go headfirst into the sports-bidding fray… and have the beginnings of a new strategy to attract advertisers.

Greenlight on the green
Following every other major streaming service, Netflix is getting into live sports.

  • Netflix is toying with the idea of live-streaming a celebrity golf tournament that will feature names from its Formula 1 series, Drive to Survive, and its golf series, Full Swing.
  • It’s seen as a way for Netflix to dip its toes in the live sports space without having to commit right away to buy the broadcast rights to a major league.
  • That’s because Netflix, one of the few pure-play streaming companies, hasn’t really found a way to make live sports a profitable business venture.

That’s not to say that Netflix hasn’t bid on sports rights. It made a play for Formula 1 (an obvious strategy) but lost out to ESPN. It also made efforts for tennis and cycling events and some other lower-level leagues, according to WSJ.

Netflix’s hope is that the celebrity golf tournament will go over more like its Chris Rock comedy special than the Love is Blind reunion.

David Vendrell

Born and raised a stone’s-throw away from the Everglades, David left the Florida swamp for the California desert. Over-caffeinated, he stares at his computer too long either writing the TFP newsletter or screenplays. He is repped by Anonymous Content.

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