Has Warner Brothers Discovery announced plans to sell of TNT and TruTV? No. It has not been discussed. At least not openly. But I think there is good reason to expect it. Why? Because the two networks are going to be functionally useless if WBD loses the NBA contract to Comcast. And according to NBA insider and all-around sports radar detector Bill Simmons it is looking more and more like this is going to happen.
Simmons has been calling it a sure thing for some time.
“One of the funniest things ever is that we’re all pretending that the TV deal wasn’t done like a week and a half ago,” Simmons said. “I think it’s done. I think Warner [Bros. Discovery] already lost it. And I don’t know why we’re waiting until after the playoffs, maybe that’s how they have to do it. But it’s a wrap. NBC’s getting it. I’m just telling you.”
Warner Brothers Discovery CEO David Sazlav indicated almost two years ago that NBA rights were not a major priority. “We don’t have to have the NBA. And if we do a new deal with the NBA, it’s gonna look a lot different,” Zaslav said. “I’d like to do a deal with the NBA, but it has to be a deal for the future. It can’t be a deal for the past.”
We first speculated that the company could sell TNT and TBS as it transitioned away from sports as a pillar of the company’s portfolio and more recent developments seem to indicate that shift is happening. Why sell the networks? Debt. It would not be a huge shock to see TNT, TBS and TruTV under the auspices of another media empire such as Comcast or even Allen Media group whic is currently slimming its workforce and made an aggressive offer Parount assets earlier in the year.
Since its purchase of Turners assets and merger with Discovery Networks in 2022 the new company dropped almost all original programming from TBS and TNT. Instead it has licensed programming. Without saying so it seems that the company decided heavy investments in scripted drama, and comedies on TBS which the networks were known for from the late 1990’s through the mid-2000’s would not be worth the effort as cord-cutting eroded the potential viewership (advertising revenue) a basic cable network could expect.
Premium offerings like MAX and even Discovery+ have received makeovers and new programming along the way including the insertion of sports and news offerings under the company’s headers. Meanwhile, the linear networks seem stuck in a different era showing commercially supported movies and TV that are otherwise available in other places.
Will anybody want the networks in the end or will they limp along like zombie channels with three shows and a movie playing 24-7 till the whole system folds in on itself?
