Why the Awards Show Is Moving to Prime Video in 2027

For 78 years, the Emmys have lived on broadcast television. In 2027, that ends. Amazon’s Prime Video has secured exclusive global rights to the awards show in a six-year deal that marks the most significant change in the ceremony’s history — and the clearest sign yet that live events have definitively moved to streaming.

The End of the “Wheel Deal”

Since 1955, the Primetime Emmy Awards have aired on one of the four major broadcast networks — ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC. For the past three decades, those networks rotated the ceremony in what the industry called the “Wheel Deal,” an arrangement that guaranteed the Emmys a home on traditional television but left the Television Academy with no permanent partner.

That era is over.

On October 6, 2026, the Television Academy and Amazon’s Prime Video announced a landmark six-year agreement establishing Prime Video as the exclusive global home of the Emmy Awards, beginning with the 2027 ceremony. The deal ends a 70-year run of broadcast networks airing the ceremony and marks the first time the Emmys will leave traditional broadcast television entirely.

The 2027 Primetime Emmys, the 79th edition of the awards, will air live in September 2027 and stream free on Prime Video, with no subscription required.

What the Deal Actually Includes

The agreement is not just a broadcast rights deal. It’s a comprehensive partnership that transforms the Emmys from a single annual telecast into a year-round cultural property.

Under the six-year pact, Prime Video will be the exclusive global home of the Emmy Awards, streaming the ceremony live and free in more than 240 countries and territories. The deal also allows Prime Video to carry other Television Academy programming, including the Hall of Fame and Honors ceremonies.

The financial terms were not officially disclosed, but sources told Variety that Prime Video is paying a license fee of approximately $15 million per year** for global rights, beginning in September 2027. For comparison, the previous “Wheel Deal” networks paid around **$8 million to $10 million annually — but that was only for domestic rights.

“It’s a meaningful investment,” said Cris Abrego, chair of the Television Academy, who confirmed the fee was “definitely an increase” from the previous license fees.

Mike Hopkins, head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios, called it “a fair deal” and said the six-year term felt like the right length to “see if we can together make a meaningful impact”.

Why the Academy Made the Move

The decision to leave broadcast television was driven by a single word: continuity.

“The rotating part of it basically meant in many ways that we were starting over every year,” Abrego told the Associated Press. “With one partner over six years, we can really learn together and build from year to year together”.

But there was also a more practical consideration: reach. The Emmys have seen their viewership decline dramatically over the past two decades. At its peak, the ceremony drew more than 20 million viewers. Today, that figure hovers around 7 million. The Academy hopes that Prime Video’s global platform — and its ability to promote Emmy-nominated shows to its massive subscriber base throughout the year — can reverse that trend.

“I think we’re going to be able to increase the viewership over time on this show, age it down, actually bring in a younger audience, which I think is a catalyst to growing,” Hopkins said.

Abrego echoed that sentiment: “Television has never been more global, and the Emmys should be a celebration that the world can share”.

Free to Watch, Everywhere

One of the most important details of the deal is that the Emmys will remain free to watch — a demand the Academy made from the start of negotiations.

The ceremony will not be placed behind a paywall. It will stream live for free on Prime Video in the US and across more than 240 countries and territories, with no Prime Video subscription required. This is a significant departure from the previous model, where international viewers often had to rely on syndication or local broadcasters, and it’s a key reason the Academy chose Prime Video over other suitors.

The move also gives Amazon a major advertising opportunity. Like its live sports broadcasts — including NFL Thursday Night Football, NBA games, and UEFA Champions League fixtures — the free Emmy telecast will allow Amazon to build a substantial global advertising footprint.

The Broader Shift: Awards Shows Are Leaving Broadcast

The Emmys are not the first major awards show to abandon traditional television. They’re not even the first this year.

In December 2025, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that the Oscars would move to YouTube starting in 2029, ending their own decades-long relationship with broadcast networks. The Emmys deal is effective immediately, but it follows the same logic: live events are migrating to platforms where audiences already are, rather than waiting for audiences to come to them.

The Emmys have been particularly vulnerable to this shift because their viewership has consistently lagged behind the Oscars, Grammys, and Golden Globes — even as the acclaim for the shows they honor has grown. The move to Prime Video is an attempt to close that gap by meeting viewers where they already watch television.

There’s also an irony worth noting: the streaming services have come to utterly dominate the prestige categories at the Emmys in recent years. The biggest winners at the last two ceremonies, Widow’s Bay and The Studio, can both be watched on Prime Video. The Emmys are moving to the platform that produces the shows it awards.

What It Means for the Television Academy

For the Television Academy, the deal represents both a financial windfall and a strategic pivot. The $15 million annual license fee is a meaningful increase over the previous domestic-only deal, and the global rights mean the Academy no longer needs to negotiate separate international distribution agreements.

But the bigger opportunity is the year-round partnership. Prime Video will have the ability to promote Emmy nominees to its customers throughout the year, creating a continuous cycle of engagement rather than a single annual event. Hopkins described it as “a way of saying ‘Hey, watch these shows, but also watch the Emmys'”.

Abrego said Prime Video’s role as a television hub — not just a streaming service, but a destination where viewers can watch shows from multiple platforms — was a major factor in the Academy’s decision.

“They really support all television,” he said. “We want reach, we want access, and we felt Amazon was in line with that”.

And while Abrego acknowledged the significance of the move to streaming, he was careful to note that the Academy’s mission hasn’t changed.

“The Academy has never defined television by how it reaches your screen or even which screen it reaches,” he said. “The goal is to consistently want to recognize excellence wherever it comes from”.

The Emmys are leaving

 broadcast television. After 78 years, the awards show that celebrates the best in TV is moving to the platform that has come to define how we watch it.

For the Television Academy, the deal offers continuity, global reach, and a partner willing to invest in the ceremony’s future. For Amazon, it’s a marquee entertainment property that complements its growing live sports portfolio and gives it a new advertising vehicle. For viewers, it’s a free, live, globally accessible broadcast of television’s biggest night.

For broadcast television, it’s another reminder that the medium it once dominated has moved on.

The 79th Primetime Emmy Awards will air live on Prime Video in September 2027. No subscription required. No broadcast network. Just television — wherever you happen to be watching.