Twitter wins right to stream NFL Thursday night games

ByDARREN ROVELL
April 5, 2016, 8:44 AM

— -- Twitter won the bidding for the digital streaming rights to the NFL's Thursday night games, Roger Goodell announced Tuesday morning -- on Twitter, of course.

The league offered the package to a host of companies, including Facebook, Amazon and Verizon, which is the last year of a sponsorship deal with the NFL that pays the league $250 million a year.

Twitter has been pressured by Wall Street investors to bolster revenue as its advertising cash flow has paled in comparison to Facebook and Instagram, which Facebook also owns. Shares of the company's stock were down 66.5 percent over the last year going into Tuesday's opening of the markets.

The success of the company has also been measured by active monthly users, and Twitter hasn't had similar growth trajectory compared to the other social media networks.

Calls placed to the league and Twitter officials by ESPN were not immediately returned.

Twitter's investment in sports doesn't come as a surprise. The platform has had great success as a fan's accompaniment to live games. The deal would allow fans to experience both the game and their Twitter feed without use of a second screen.

"Twitter is the live media platform of the Internet, and sports makes up approximately 50 percent of all conversation on Twitter," said Jason Stein, CEO of Laundry Service, a social media marketing firm specializing in content creation and distribution. "This is a smart, natural fit and a very worthwhile experiment for Twitter. By distributing this live content, which fuels conversation and engagement on the platform, Twitter is adding great value to users and very exciting advertising opportunities."

Twitter would be the third destination for a fan to see a Thursday night game. In February, the NFL sold additional rights to five Thursday games each to CBS and NBC for $225 million. All of those 10 games will be simulcast on the NFL Network as well.