MetaMedia, the world’s first global entertainment platform that delivers movies, premium content, and live events to cinemas and other venues, today announced that the company will serve as the exclusive live streaming partner for Theater Sports Network and its theatrical distribution agreement with ESPN to live stream regular season Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) college football and major New Year’s Bowl games into U.S. cinemas.
Speaking On the partnership, Jason Brenek, CEO of MetaMedia said, “We believe that Theater Sports Network has identified an unmet demand for families and fans to view live sports on massive movie theater screens and are thrilled to be selected as their live streaming partner.”
Commenting on the development, Scott Daw, President and COO of Theater Sports Network said, “We believe movie theaters are the next great frontier for live sporting events, and we are elated with this unprecedented agreement with ESPN. We look forward to bringing these games to ACC football fans. We believe that theaters can generate excitement around live sporting events. These events will replicate the feel of a football stadium experience as fans gather and fill theaters to watch the games on the big screen. As we move forward, we hope to add games from additional college football conferences as well as other live sporting events.”
The ESPN and Theater Sports Network agreement covers the New Year’s Six Bowl games including the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl, the Capital One Orange Bowl, the CFP Semifinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl, the CFP Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game, and the College Football Playoff National Championship Presented by AT&T. In all, the agreement includes approximately 75 games during the 2023-24 college football season.
ACC games that air on ESPN platforms are available for Theater Sports Network distribution in the away team markets– or in both home and away markets for neutral site games. The cost of attendance to watch the games will be determined by participating local theaters. For more information and a schedule of games in specific areas, fans can visit theatersportsnetwork.com.
MetaMedia is a cloud-based entertainment delivery platform for cinemas, drive-ins, and other out-of-home venues. Currently connected to more than 5,000 screens across the US and Canada in all the top 50 cities, MetaMedia seeks to expand and redefine the cinemagoing experience. ESPN previously teamed up with Cinemark in 2021 and 2022 to make the NCAA College Football Playoff semifinal games and National Championship game available to fans in cinemas.