Emmys in Talks to Move to Amazon Prime Video Under New Licensing Arrangement, as the Broadcast Wheel Deal Ends (EXCLUSIVE)
The Emmy “wheel” is about to pop. According to insiders, the Television Academy is in advanced talks to park the annual Emmy telecast at Amazon Prime Video — taking the ceremony off broadcast TV for the first time since its start in 1949. It would end the 31-year tradition of rotating the ceremony annually between […]
The Television Academy is contemplating a shift for the Emmy Awards ceremony, with preliminary discussions underway to relocate the prestigious event to Prime Video beginning in 2027, according to recent media reports. The Emmy Awards have been moving on a rotating basis, annually rotating among the five major broadcast networks for the past three decades.
However, with the wheel contract expiring after the 2026 ceremony, the Academy is now evaluating its alternatives on streaming platforms. Prime Video has emerged as a leading candidate for hosting the Emmy Awards, though the Academy is also exploring the possibility of maintaining the rotating format while incorporating additional streaming platforms while some networks opt out.
A Prime Video spokesperson declined to provide a comment, and the Academy's representative has not yet responded to inquiries. TV Academy chair Cris Abrego commented to TheWrap at last week's Thursday Emmys press preview, "We're definitely having conversations...we have incredible partners like NBC today, and so we're having a lot of conversations."
"We just want to find the right place and the right home for the future of the Emmys. Right now, we're focused on Monday." Should the ceremony move to Prime Video, it would align with the Oscars, which are slated to move from ABC to YouTube starting with the 101st Academy Awards in 2029. ABC has served as the Oscars' home since 1975, but the Academy is exploring alternatives due to falling linear ratings.
The YouTube agreement, valid until 2033, grants YouTube exclusive rights to the awards show, red carpet coverage, behind-the-scenes content, and Governors Ball access. Emmy viewership reached a record low for the January 2024 strike-delayed show, but numbers have increased in recent years. Nevertheless, the 2025 Emmy Awards attracted 7.42 million viewers across CBS, Paramount+, and other platforms, compared to the 11.39 million viewers who tuned in for the 2017 show. Variety initially broke the news of the potential Emmy Awards shift to Prime Video.
Written by urgent.news from TheWrap's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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