UPDATED 00:02 EDT / SEPTEMBER 18 2017

APPS

Report: Amazon is looking to acquire cable television channels

Amazon.com Inc. is looking to acquire cable television channels to expand its Prime video service, according to a new report.

Sources quoted by NBC claimed that the e-commerce giant has started talks to buy scores of small television channels in an attempt to “supersize its video-channel business,” not just in the U.S. but around the globe.

“They are doubling down on the channels industry,” one person who is included in the talks told NBC. “They’re involved in doing deals with smaller indie networks where they can get benefits to carriers that are not handcuffed into traditional distribution packages and they’re involved in offering them individually. Eventually, they may bundle them collectively.”

Amazon first added the ability for viewers to subscribe to cable television channels in December through a deal with Home Box Office Inc. The new offering would be different in either allowing users to subscribe to Amazon-owned channels or possibly having those channels available for free as part of their standard Prime subscriptions.

The theory behind the possible acquisitions is that with cable operators now providing pared-down, cheaper packages to appeal to “cord cutters,” numerous smaller cable channels are now being excluded. “Amazon is looking to scoop up smaller TV channels with minimal distribution in order to build itself into a video destination for every imaginable niche, with a particular focus on millennial audiences,” the NBC report claimed.

The potential move by Amazon to start buying cable channels comes as big tech companies continue to push video as a revenue stream of the future. While the Google LLC-owned YouTube continues to dominate online video, others want a slice of the pie, including Facebook Inc. which was reported earlier this month to be offering hundreds of millions to acquire the rights to music videos. In live streaming, Twitter Inc. has taken various stabs at offering live sport streams ranging from MLB, NHL and Tennis. The live streams of the NFL were acquired by Amazon earlier this year.

Obscure cable television channels will not compete directly with live sports coverage, but for Amazon, the end game has always been to offer a wide variety of content. In its ongoing battle against market leader Netflix Inc., more content can only help.

Photo: janitors/Flickr

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