Chinese Internet giant Tencent announced that the company has reached a deal with U.S.-based ESPN to become its exclusive sports content partner in mainland China.
Under the agreement signed by the two parties, Tencent will provide Chinese-language ESPN information exclusively in mainland China, covering event broadcasts and special collections. With the cooperation, ESPN's various authorized events will be played on Tencent's platform, including the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship Tournament and the X Games.
The two parties will also focus on the NBA. Beginning with the 2016 NBA Playoffs, ESPN experts will be on-site at five games per week to provide exclusive, live Chinese-language analysis as part of Tencent's NBA coverage. ESPN will also provide a weekly NBA opinion and debate program for Tencent users.
Liu Shengyi, Tencent Group's senior executive vice president and president of its network media business group, said that they are looking forward to the cooperation. With the cooperation, Tencent will be able to make its platform richer and more professional, and the company hopes to set a new example for the Chinese sports industry.
Financial terms of the deal were not released.