Sun and Mercury: A Success on Open Television
After being the first NBA team to break with its regional television partner, the Phoenix Suns and the Phoenix Mercury celebrate a deal that has revitalized their revenue. The Suns and Mercury have signed a two-year extension with Gray Media to broadcast their games for free in Arizona through the 2027-28 season. This deal, valued at over $30 million per season, recovers the revenue they stopped receiving when their partnership with Diamond Sports ended in 2023. This lucrative contract has been driven by the significant increase in the Suns’ local audiences, which doubled, and the 425% growth in the Mercury’s audience, against a backdrop of widespread growth in WNBA audiences.At the time, this was a bold and unconventional move, which led Diamond Sports to sue the team for breach of contract. The lawsuit was eventually settled, and the Suns began producing their own broadcasts, offering free television antennas to fans. They also launched a streaming service called Suns+. Other NBA teams, such as the Utah Jazz, Charlotte Hornets, and New Orleans Pelicans, followed Phoenix’s lead and broadcast their games on local channels for free. The financial situation of regional sports networks (RSNs) is one of the biggest economic challenges currently facing the NBA. Although a new 11-year, $77 billion national television rights deal begins this season, ensuring revenue growth, the reduction in local television revenue has led the league to slightly reduce its salary cap projections for this season. NBA teams are expected to receive around $145 million each for rights deals this season, but some teams are experiencing reductions in their local television deals. Ishbia has been in contact with other owners who are exploring how to handle changing market conditions and hopes that the initial success of the Suns and the Mercury can continue. In the next two years, the RSN agreements of 18 teams will expire, and the NBA is looking for options in both broadcast television and streaming platforms.It has been a beneficial situation for everyone. It was about doing the right thing for the fans and making the games more accessible. And when you grow the fan base, good things happen.
Mat Ishbia, owner of the Suns and the Mercury
Everyone wanted to wait and see, it’s important to take less money [from local television] or even nothing and trust in it. Let’s hope it can be a model for other NBA teams. If you do the right thing for the customer, good things tend to happen.
Mat Ishbia
