The proposed combination of Eurosport's UK business with BT
Sport would bring together major long-term rights and world-class
sports broadcast and digital capabilities
NEW YORK and LONDON, Feb. 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/
-- Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK) confirms that
it has entered into exclusive discussions with BT Group to create a
new sport venture in the UK by combining its Eurosport business in
the UK and Ireland with BT
Sport. The companies aim for the 50:50 Joint Venture to be
operational in 2022 pending a definite agreement and regulatory
approval.
The proposed UK venture would bring together BT Sport and
Eurosport UK, which have extensive portfolios of premium sport
rights, including the Olympic Games, Premier League, UEFA
Champions League, UEFA Europa League, cycling Grand Tours, tennis
Grand Slams, the winter sport World Cup season and Premiership
Rugby.
"We are excited about this opportunity with BT Group to
offer consumers a stronger and simplified combined sport
offering in the U.K. and Ireland,
and, more broadly, to advance our strategy of bringing sports and
entertainment to more consumers on the platform of their choice,"
said JB Perrette, President & CEO
of Discovery Streaming & International. "We
are aligned with BT Group on a shared vision to maximize the value
and appeal of our respective UK sport assets, and we look forward
to concluding a deal in the coming weeks."
Discovery, Inc. entered the global sports media business in 2014
with its acquisition of Eurosport. Today, Discovery's sports
business – under the Discovery Sports banner – produces and
distributes content to 130 million unique individuals a month
across more than 200 markets and 20 languages outside the U.S.
Discovery Sports' consumer brands include Eurosport, Global Cycling
Network (GCN), Global Mountain Bike Network (GMBN), Golf Digest and
GOLFTV powered by PGA TOUR, as well as sports programming
and content on discovery+ and Discovery's free-to-air TV networks
in Europe. The leading sports news and video site,
Eurosport.com and its local country versions, engages audiences of
more than 50 million sports fans per month.
NOTES TO EDITORS
About Discovery, Inc.
Discovery, Inc. (Nasdaq: DISCA,
DISCB, DISCK) is a global leader in real life entertainment,
serving a passionate audience of superfans around the world with
content that inspires, informs and entertains. Discovery delivers
over 8,000 hours of original programming each year and has category
leadership across deeply loved content genres around the world.
Available in over 220 countries and territories and nearly 50
languages, Discovery is a platform innovator, reaching viewers on
all screens, including TV Everywhere products such as the GO
portfolio of apps; direct-to-consumer streaming services such as
discovery+, Food Network Kitchen and MotorTrend OnDemand;
digital-first and social content from Group Nine Media; a landmark
natural history and factual content partnership with the BBC; and a
strategic alliance with PGA TOUR to create the international home
of golf. Discovery's portfolio of premium brands includes Discovery
Channel, HGTV, Food Network, TLC, Investigation Discovery, Travel
Channel, MotorTrend, Animal Planet, Science Channel, OWN: Oprah
Winfrey Network, as well as the multi-platform JV with Chip and Joanna Gaines, Magnolia Network, in the
U.S, Discovery Kids in Latin
America, and Eurosport, the leading provider of locally
relevant, premium sports and Home of the Olympic Games across
Europe. For more information,
please visit corporate.discovery.com and follow
@DiscoveryIncTV across social platforms.
About BT
BT Group is the UK's leading
telecommunications and network provider and a leading provider of
global communications services and solutions, serving customers in
180 countries. Its principal activities in the UK include the
provision of fixed voice, mobile, broadband and TV (including
Sport) and a range of products and services over converged fixed
and mobile networks to consumer, business and public sector
customers.
For its global customers, BT provides managed services, security
and network and IT infrastructure services to support their
operations all over the world. BT consists of four customer-facing
units: Consumer, Enterprise, Global and its wholly-owned
subsidiary, Openreach, which provides access network services to
over 650 communications provider customers who sell phone,
broadband and Ethernet services to homes and businesses across the
UK.
For the year ended 31 March 2021,
BT Group's reported revenue was £21,331m with reported profit
before taxation of £1,804m.
British Telecommunications plc is a wholly-owned subsidiary of
BT Group plc and encompasses virtually all businesses and assets of
the BT Group. BT Group plc is listed on the London Stock
Exchange.
For more information, visit www.bt.com/about
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