Entertainment

Apple is interested in acquiring rights to NBA

So is Amazon

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Basketball is a golden egg for a lot of platforms and networks in the United States. Big companies are always bidding to acquire the rights to air televised games, hoping to attract a wide array of audiences to their platform. Now, the bidding wars for the NBA have begun anew. This time, a surprising contender has entered the fray: Apple.

Reported by CNBC, the NBA is once again looking for the highest bidder in the United States. Though the bidding features some of the usual suspects, a few surprises have emerged as contenders for some streaming rights.

Currently, Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery share the rights to air the NBA on ESPN and TNT, respectively. The current deal will last until the end of the 2024-2025 season. Much like the last time, the NBA can always just extend the deal, blocking all outsiders from negotiations.

Still, unless all three parties — that is the NBA, Disney, and Warner Bros. Discovery — agree to an extension, outside parties can still make their case. Comcast’s NBCUniversal is currently an important party to watch since the company previously had the rights around 20 years ago. Besides Comcast, Apple and Amazon have also expressed interest in acquiring rights to the league.

Of note, all three outside players have sizable streaming platforms, namely NBCUniversal’s Peacock, Apple’s Apple TV+, and Amazon’s Amazon Prime Video. All three platforms have a gallery of live sports, too. With streaming emerging as a viable way to air live sports, an outside deal remains possible on the road to 2025.

SEE ALSO: NBA 2K23 review: A certified All-Star

Entertainment

Netflix: Kris Aquino makes on-screen comeback with fictional role

Long-time TV icon named “C.H.I.K.A.” of Netflix

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Long-time popular Philippine TV icon Kris Aquino has made her on-screen comeback as Netflix’s fictional C.H.I.K.A., or “Chief Head of Insights and Kontent Analysis.”

Netflix initially teased the campaign through a post mentioning that they were “hiring” for the said position.

The post also contained a bullet list of descriptions that served as clues. Not long after, the streaming giant bared the former presidential daughter and presidential sister has made her comeback.

A teaser has likewise been released. The fun skit features Aquino in this new fictional role, giving her signature witty commentary inside the Netflix editing room to ensure that the production of local entertainment content is of topnotch quality.

Two more episodes will be rolled out on August 14 and 20.

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Entertainment

New Yorkers compete in Ted Lasso lookalike contest at Apple Fifth Avenue

Futbol is life!

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Apple Fifth Avenue or Nelson Road? New Yorkers gathered at the iconic flagship store as it transformed into a slice of AFC Richmond for a Ted Lasso lookalike contest celebrating the return of the hit Apple TV+ series.

Dozens of fans arrived in Ted’s signature look, complete with mustaches, visors, blue sweaters, and khakis. Inside the store, the AFC Richmond takeover continued with themed photo opportunities and hidden Easter eggs for longtime fans to discover.

The celebration continued across Midtown and Central Park, where brand ambassadors spread kindness with “Believe” signs, complimentary coffee and tea, a tunnel of cheering Teds for runners, and the Goldfish Zone, where visitors symbolically let go of worries by dropping paper fish into a fishbowl.

Photo by Apple

The takeover marked the return of Ted Lasso, which premiered its fourth season on Apple TV+ on Aug. 5, which arrives more than three years after Season 3 concluded in 2023.

Jason Sudeikis returns as the relentlessly optimistic coach, this time leading AFC Richmond’s newly formed women’s team while reuniting with familiar faces.

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Street Fighter special look: Blanka vs. Ryu

Jason Momoa, Andrew Koji’s characters face off

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Paramount Pictures has released a new special look for Street Fighter featuring Jason Momoa and Andrew Koji.

The short, minute-long clip shows the actors’ respective characters, Blanka and Ryu, in battle.

It opens with a chained prisoner struck by extreme electrical charges, transforming into the green-skinned, electricity-infused Blanka.

He unleashes a fierce roar. Meanwhile, Ryu drops into a fighting stance, but tells Blanka he does not want to fight him.

Forced to defend himself, Ryu then fires a signature Hadouken fireball towards Blanka, as the teaser cuts to the Street Fighter title card.

Street Fighter debuts in cinemas starting October 14. It is directed by Kitao Sakurai and stars an ensemble cast that includes Noah Centineo as Ken Masters, Callina Liang as Chun-Li, Joe “Roman Reigns” Anoai as Akuma, and Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson as Balrog, among others.

The film is set in 1993 when estranged Street Fighters Ryu and Ken Masters are thrown into combat when Chun-Li recruits them for the next World Warrior Tournament.

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