Huge shift in broadcast landscape as Amazon lands exclusive cricket rights

Amazon Prime Video has secured the Australian rights to the next cricket World Cup and a range of other tournaments run by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

The deal means cricket fans will only be able to watch Australia defend its crown at the next World Cup if they have a paid subscription to Amazon, which offers membership of Prime Video as a bonus, or to the video streaming service itself.

Pat Cummins had Virat Kohli chop a ball on to his stumps during the Men’s ICC World Cup final in November.Credit: AP

The rights deal represents a major shift in the broadcasting landscape, as it is the most significant sports deal ever to go to a streaming service without an attached free-to-air partner.

It is also a clear indication that while quotas for scripted content remain an unresolved issue, the next great battleground is likely to be over sports rights.

News of the deal comes just two weeks after the 2023 cricket World Cup final played out on free-to-air TV, and a week after the federal government reaffirmed its commitment to sports anti-siphoning measures.

Under the anti-siphoning legislation, the provisions of which Communications Minister Michelle Rowland last week indicated would be extended for another three years, particular sporting events deemed to be of national significance are quarantined for broadcast on free services. If no free service takes up those rights they can then be picked up by a paid service.

Steve Waugh (centre) with members of the Australian Cricket Team during the Amazon Original premiere of The Test: A New Era for Australia’s Team in March 2020.Credit: Don Arnold/WireImage

Lobby group Free TV last week hailed the imminent extension of the anti-siphoning list by the government.

“Being able to share in the sporting moments that bring Australians together as a nation is fundamental to our community,” said chief executive Bridget Fair. “It’s important that the government has reaffirmed that live and free access to key sporting events remains a central part of the Australian way of life.

“With cost-of-living pressures top of mind for Australians, we cannot allow access to key sporting events to be limited by the subscriptions Australians can afford, their internet access or their data plan. The expansion of the current anti-siphoning rules to apply to subscription streaming services is an important new measure.”

While the World Cup and other matches involving the Australian cricket team are included on the list, not every game is covered. World Cup games involving Australia, for example, are included only if they are played in Australia or New Zealand.

Even if Australia makes the final of the next ODI World Cup in 2027, which will be jointly hosted by Namibia, Zimbabwe and South Africa, there is no provision for the game to be shown on free-to-air television.

Australia and New Zealand will next jointly host a major ICC tournament in 2028, a T20 cricket World Cup, which falls outside the time frame of this rights agreement.

The Test, an eight-part documentary series about the Australian men’s cricket team aired on Amazon Prime Video.

Though Amazon has not revealed how much it has paid for the rights to 448 live games between 2024 and 2027, some other rights deals negotiated recently give an indication of the value broadcasters place on cricket.

In January, Seven and Foxtel reportedly paid $1.5 billion for the rights to one-day internationals, BBL and Test cricket, while in August Disney paid $US3 billion to secure the Indian rights to ICC tournaments.

In addition to the men’s World Cup, the Australian deal gives Amazon Prime Video exclusive rights to the Women’s World Cup, T20 World Cups, Champions Trophy, Under 19s and the World Test Championship Final.

Amazon also confirmed a third season of its fly-on-the-wall documentary, The Test. It follows the 2023 Australian tour of the UK.

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