After 78 years: The Emmy Awards move to streaming

Amazon's Prime Video streaming service has acquired the global broadcasting rights for the Emmy Awards for the next six years, in a deal estimated at around $120 million. The agreement ends the rotation system among the four major U.S. networks that had been in place since 1995. The broadcast will be free to view.

Amazon's Prime Video streaming service and the American Television Academy have signed an agreement granting global broadcasting rights for the Emmy Awards for the next six years. According to industry estimates, the deal is valued at approximately $120 million, or about $20 to $25 million per year. The new agreement ends the "rotation" system that had been in place since 1995, under which broadcasting rights in the United States rotated annually among the four major networks (ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC), which paid an estimated eight to ten million dollars per year. Under the terms of the agreement, the ceremony will be broadcast annually in September on Prime Video, but the broadcast will be free to view. Mike Hopkins, head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios, noted that the move is intended to expand global access and adapt to the viewing habits of a younger audience. Alongside the platform change, the Academy and Amazon are examining structural changes to the ceremony, including a review of the number of categories, broadcast duration, and production format. The Emmy Awards, presented annually since 1949, are considered the most prestigious honor in the American and global television industry.