NBA’s Phoenix Suns Launch DTC Streaming Service

(Image credit: Getty/Matthew Stockman)

PHOENIX—The Phoenix Suns NBA franchise has launched “Suns Live,” a new streaming service that supplements its broadcasts by simulcasting the games online.

Powered by Kiswe—which has built similar streaming platforms for the NBA’s Utah Jazz and NHL’s Las Vegas Golden Knights—Suns Live will offer all locally broadcast games, including 70 regular season games and all five preseason contests, along with replays and original content including pregame, halftime and postgame shows.

The Suns, which were previously on the Diamond Sports RSN—which went bankrupt earlier this year—announced their intention to launch the OTT service when it signed a multiyear deal with Gray TV in April to bring every locally broadcast game to viewers for free in a statewide distribution model utilizing Gray’s Phoenix television stations KTVK (Arizona’s Family 3TV) and the newly launched KPHE (Arizona’s Family Sports & Entertainment Network)

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Tom has covered the broadcast technology market for the past 25 years, including three years handling member communications for the National Association of Broadcasters followed by a year as editor of Video Technology News and DTV Business executive newsletters for Phillips Publishing. In 1999 he launched digitalbroadcasting.com for internet B2B portal Verticalnet. He is also a charter member of the CTA's Academy of Digital TV Pioneers. Since 2001, he has been editor-in-chief of TV Tech (www.tvtech.com), the leading source of news and information on broadcast and related media technology and is a frequent contributor and moderator to the brand’s Tech Leadership events.