In a landmark day for media, Warner Bros. Discovery proclaimed it will split into separate entities, breaking up its global networks (including TNT Sports and Bleacher Report) from its streaming and studios properties.

The deal, expected to close mid-2026, isn’t unexpected — but the timing is.

“It seemed to have been well telegraphed that they were going to go down this path,” said Naveen Sarma, S&P Global’s managing director. “The timing of the announcement was a bit of a surprise. We thought it would happen later this year.”

The majority of WBD’s $37 billion debt will head to Global Networks, helmed by the company’s new president and CEO, Gunnar Wiedenfels (current WBD CFO). WBD CEO David Zaslav will run the streaming and studios business.

“They’re trying to manage the decline of linear television and the ability to get the streaming/studio business sustainable,” said Sarma. “If they think that next year is the right time that they’ll be cash-flow break-even on that business, maybe that’s the way they did the math, because clearly linear is declining at a much more rapid rate than we thought six months ago.”

The linear business (Global Networks) will keep the company’s sports rights, which now includes properties like the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, NHL, NASCAR, Roland-Garros, MLB, Big East basketball, Unrivaled and a sublicensing agreement with ESPN for the College Football Playoff. Those properties primarily air across TNT, TBS and truTV.

“I would call cable the soon-to-be-forgotten stepchild of the different broadcast distribution menus,” said Sarma. “If you’re a sports league, you want to be on broadcast networks, because you get the broadest reach. When you think of tonnage, you really want to be on streaming. That used to be cable.”

Added Sarma: “It sounded like sports was going to go on HBO Max, but how is that going to benefit the new cable ‘SpinCo’? It isn’t, other than the fact they may get [carriage] fees. That puts them in a really tough position.”

The companies will have one advertising sales team that will work across both entities and there will also be content-sharing agreements that allow programming to be shared across both platforms.

What does the future hold?

What Zaslav announced today might look different down the road, especially when it comes to sports.

“[WBD] made a comment about how sports was going to stay with the linear TV business, but then decisions would be made down the road,” said Sarma. “I’m not sure what that meant. Does that mean that they put it on their own streaming service or they decide to walk away from it eventually?”

The WBD breakup comes after Comcast/NBCUniversal made its own moves into two separate companies, though that split may be better overall than WBD’s. “Comcast is still keeping two of the better assets,” said Sarma, pointing to NBC’s broadcast network and the Bravo library (which includes the cash-printing “Real Housewives” franchise).

Where WBD might have a bit of an “advantage” is the global portfolio and sports rights overseas, which is not experiencing the same declines in viewership or cord-cutting as in the U.S.

“In theory, it’s a better, more diversified business, which in theory should have better results because advertising overseas isn’t falling off a cliff,” said Sarma. “The metrics for the Warner linear TV business — advertising is dropping in double digits. They’re losing a billion dollars a year in EBITDA. You’d think with the diversification the numbers would be better, but they’re clearly not very good.”

For other large media companies, don’t expect to see a similar split with Disney and ESPN, though it could remain a possibility for Paramount if the Skydance Media merger closes. “CBS is probably a keeper, but the rest of the linear networks could do something similar,” said Sarma.

The inventor of sustained acoustic medicine and the sam® wearable ultrasound technologies support students at an internationally known summer program and funds student and professional research through its STEM Scholarship Program.

TRUMBULL, Conn., June 10, 2025 (Newswire.com)
–
ZetrOZ Systems, inventor of sustained acoustic medicine and the sam® wearable ultrasound device, is supporting the next generation of medical science through its sponsorship of the Orthopaedic Foundation’s Manhattan Medical Immersion Camp, a world-class hands-on program for aspiring physicians and medical researchers.

The Orthopaedic Foundation created the camp to provide high school and college students with the opportunity to explore a broad spectrum of medical specialties and alternative fields within healthcare, including biomedical engineering and medical devices.

ZetrOZ Systems CEO George K. Lewis, PhD, a biomedical engineer, is a member of the Foundation’s board of directors and has served on the faculty of the Medical Immersion Camp. “It is an honor to be part of the Orthopaedic Foundation’s Medical Immersion Camp and to be able to show these ambitious students how technological innovations like sustained acoustic medicine evolved out of the lab and how the sam® devices are changing the way we treat soft tissue injuries,” Lewis said.

Sustained acoustic medicine is a long-duration, continuous, multi-hour, high frequency ultrasound treatment that reduces inflammation, increases blood vessel diameters, and improves blood flow. That increases oxygenated hemoglobin at the site and removes cytokine enzymes and cellular waste, with the result of more rapid healing and reduced pain.

The treatment has been extensively studied in over 30 clinical trials for treating chronic soft tissue injuries, and through millions of treatments provided annually to patients across the United States.

Dr. Stephanie Petterson, the Orthopaedic Foundation’s director of research and clinical education program director. “One of the goals of the Medical Immersion Camp is to have students examine the field of medicine from many perspectives, including regenerative and sports medicine and physical therapy,” she said. “Sustained acoustic medicine is an important, emerging treatment in those fields, helping patients recover without surgery and or the use of potentially addictive pain medication.”

The technology behind ZetrOZ Systems’ sam® wearable ultrasound devices is defined in 48 U.S. and global patents and has been cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for home use in treating soft-tissue injuries.

ZetrOZ Systems is also supporting medical students and professionals with its second $20,000 STEM Scholarship Program. To help this generation of researchers achieve their goals, ZetrOZ Systems is providing four $5,000 scholarships to students or healthcare professionals in support of their educational or research expenses.

Applicants are required to write a 1,200-word essay on the global healthcare advancements in healing soft tissue injuries, addressing new medical technologies, mechanobiology applications and emerging clinical research trends worldwide, and a 250-word letter on their plans for the scholarship funds should they be selected as a recipient.

Applicants should submit those written pieces, as well as a current transcript of undergraduate and/or graduate studies and two professional references, to info@samrecover.com by July 31, 2025. Winners will be announced in September and October.

ZetrOZ Systems’ support of healthcare students and researchers aligns with its mission of developing innovations in medical science. For more information on ZetrOZ Systems and the revolutionary sam® wearable ultrasound device, please visit https://zetroz.com/ and www.samrecover.com.

For more information on the Orthopaedic Foundation, please visit https://ofals.org/.

About ZetrOZ Systems

ZetrOZ Systems is leading healing innovations in sports medicine, developing wearable bioelectronic devices to deliver sustained acoustic medicine (sam®). Researched and funded by the federal government, ZetrOZ is built on the proprietary medical technology of 48 patents and is the exclusive manufacturer and developer of the sam® product line, designed to treat acute and chronic musculoskeletal conditions.

About the Orthopaedic Foundation

Born of the need to promote and encourage research and education in the field of orthopaedics and sports medicine, the Orthopaedic Foundation was established in 2002 with a focus on innovation to manage osteoarthritis and other musculoskeletal diseases, prevent injury to individuals across the spectrum of activity, and develop minimally invasive treatments with shorter recovery times, to keep people active and pain-free.

Source: ZetrOZ Systems

Tennis is easy to follow on the surface—big matches, famous players, major tournaments. That’s what most people see. But a whole other side keeps the sport alive and growing: business. From sponsorships to broadcasting rights, and from betting platforms to event tech, tennis runs on much more than rallies and rankings. What happens off the court matters as much as what happens on it. In this article, we’ll look at the business side of tennis—how it works, who’s involved, and why it matters more than people realize.

The Quiet Players Behind Modern Tennis

There’s more to tennis than what you see on the court. Behind every match are companies helping to shape how the sport is run, watched, and supported. From brand sponsors to tech providers, these players help keep tournaments going and fans connected. Some focus on streaming or live stats, while others handle event logistics or digital tools for organizers and media outlets.

One of these behind-the-scenes names is Altenar, a sportsbook software provider that works with licensed betting platforms worldwide. Betting may not always be front and centre, but it plays a steady role in keeping fans engaged and bringing in extra sports revenue. Alongside betting tech, data services and event support systems are becoming key to how tennis grows and reaches new audiences—quietly keeping the game running beyond the rallies.

Sponsorships Keep the Game Going

Sponsorship is a key part of what keeps tennis alive, both on the global stage and at the grassroots level. From branded courts to logos on shirts, sponsors are everywhere in the sport. Their support helps cover tournament costs, boost prize funds, and bring events to TV screens worldwide. Even smaller local competitions often rely on sponsorship just to take place. Here are some of the biggest names involved in tennis sponsorship:

• Rolex: Serves as the official timekeeper for Wimbledon and other major events.
• Emirates: A long-time sponsor of the ATP Tour, with branding seen at top tournaments.
• Nike and Adidas: Provide apparel and footwear to many of the sport’s biggest stars.
• Peugeot and Kia: Known for player partnerships and supporting tournament transport.
• Lacoste and Wilson: Active through player sponsorships and official equipment deals.

These brands don’t just show up for the visibility—they become part of the sport’s identity. Their funding supports players’ careers, tournament growth, and the overall fan experience, making them essential to tennis beyond the court.

How Tennis Reaches Millions Through TV and Streaming

TV and streaming deals bring in a lot of money for tennis. Big sports networks and online platforms pay to show tournaments like Wimbledon and the US Open, and that money helps fund events, players, and organizers. These deals also mean fans everywhere—from Europe to Asia to Africa—can watch matches live, regardless of where they happen. Lately, there’s a shift toward streaming without middlemen. Some tennis organizations are launching platforms and apps, so fans can watch matches directly. This helps people in countries without easy access to sports channels to still follow the action. It’s not just about showing the game—it’s about growing it, bringing tennis to new places and more people, one stream at a time.

The Tech That Keeps Tournaments Running

Tennis tournaments use many tools to stay on schedule and keep everything in place. Hawk-Eye makes line calls using video review. Fans enter with mobile tickets, and matches are planned using software that tracks court use, timing, and delays. These systems help events stay organized from the first serve to the last point.

Behind the scenes, are tools for player check-ins, equipment handling, and entry control. Vendors also manage live scoring, data feeds, and broadcasting. This setup allows events to run without major issues. While fans don’t often notice, this tech is part of nearly every match they watch or attend.

Final Thoughts: A Sport Built on More Than Talent

Tennis isn’t just about players and matches. It depends on many working in the background—sponsors who fund events, tech companies that power live scoring and betting, and platforms that bring the game to screens around the world. These parts ensure fans can watch, tournaments can run, and players can focus on competing.

In the future, this side of tennis will only grow. More events will use their streaming services, betting will continue to bring in money, and data will shape how fans follow matches in real time. Understanding this helps us see tennis more clearly—not just as a sport, but as something built on teamwork far beyond the court.

It’s been a difficult year or so for TNT Sports, Warner Bros. Discovery’s live sports rights arm in the U.S.

First, it lost its share of NBA rights to Amazon Prime Video as part of the league’s new media deal. Then the award-winning Inside the NBA was moved to ESPN and ABC. And now, WBD’s latest corporate shuffle, breaking apart the business into separate buckets for “streaming and studios” and its “global networks” legacy TV assets, leaves TNT Sports’ future more muddled than ever.

Monday’s announcement of the WBD split included thoughts that TNT Sports could be licensed out to HBO Max, licensed to another entity entirely or even spun off into another separate company. But in the meantime, TNT Sports is still a major player in televised live sports, and is even adding new premium inventory as it prepares for life without the NBA.

TNT Sports’ Current Rights

Even without the NBA, the group still splits the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament rights with Paramount – games that accounted for 86.9% of total est. national linear TV ad spend across TNT, TBS and truTV over the course of the event, according to data provided by iSpot.

TNT Sports also airs NASCAR races, MLB (regular season, playoff) games, NHL (regular season, playoff) games, French Open, All Elite Wrestling, Big East and Big 12 men’s/women’s basketball games, U.S. men’s and women’s soccer action, and more.

Additionally, the group has also been sublicensing high-profile games from ESPN/ABC. After airing two of last year’s expanded College Football Playoff quarterfinal games from ESPN, it will do so again for 2025, and then potentially expand into the semifinal round after that.

There’s also the possibility that TNT Sports is the mystery “third partner” in MLB’s rights negotiations that also include Amazon and NBCUniversal. Such a move would make TNT baseball’s biggest TV partner, and shift the network’s primary sports focus to summer – when ESPN’s actually relatively light on content once its own MLB deal ends after this season.

Whether TNT Sports grabs a larger share of MLB rights or not, though, it will remain a major player in the competitive live sports market. In a TV environment that’s increasingly reliant on sports, that makes the property a very valuable commodity.

But Is It Valuable To WBD?

On Monday, WBD CEO David Zaslav downplayed the importance of sports for HBO Max sign-ups in the U.S., and stated that sports will stay on HBO Max for the time being.

Part of that could come from the fact that sports are not included in the $9.99-per-month basic with ads plan. Another could be that WBD has never really been clear on its sports streaming strategy. And still another comes from the fact that while TNT Sports has had valuable content among its ranks (especially when it had the NBA), you can find all of it via other streaming or cable/satellite providers.

So without much streaming cohesion between the sports content, traditional Discovery shows, Warner Bros. IP and prestige HBO content, it’s understandable to doubt how all of this works together – and how sports, in particular, fit into that puzzle without significant changes to how they’re positioned within the larger vision.

Could TNT Sports Be Valuable To Someone Else?

Right now? Yes. Spinning TNT Sports off into another separate entity or selling it to another entertainment company has significant value that could help pay down some of WBD’s lingering debts. But who’s really in the market for something like TNT Sports?

Disney already has ESPN, and has been shedding and consolidating expensive rights. NBCUniversal got out of the cable sports game, but could use more year-round programming. Paramount seemingly has a full plate. Amazon, Apple and Netflix have the money to purchase TNT Sports, but no real need beyond beefing up their sports production chops. And maybe that’s enough.

Fox is an interesting possibility to acquire TNT Sports, as Awful Announcing also points out. The move actually makes the most sense since it’s another boost for Fox in its ongoing battle with ESPN for sports eyeballs, and TNT’s sports properties have a lot of synergy with Fox’s own existing rights deals (NASCAR, MLB, college basketball).

Acquiring the backend of TNT’s March Madness rights – the deal runs through 2032 – would be the real prize here, and a coup for Fox. That alone may be worth the effort and the dollars required.

There’s also the streaming element here. Fox One is launching by the fall, and puts sports at the forefront of its overall offering. Looping TNT Sports into that would make it an even larger contender as one of the must-have streaming apps in the U.S.

None of this is to say that anything happens to TNT Sports in the immediate term. But now WBD is splitting up its businesses, time is officially ticking for the sports entity.