Beginning in 2027, the Emmy Awards will stream on Prime Video under a six-year deal between Amazon and the Television Academy, ending a seven-decade era of traditional broadcast networks carrying the event honoring the finest in television.
The agreement announced Tuesday reflects a major transition toward streaming platforms, which now regularly dominate the top award categories at the Emmys.
The ceremony has appeared on one of four major broadcast networks every year since 1955. NBC handled the original national broadcast and hosted the most recent telecast last month. For the last 30 years, the show moved annually between ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC under a rotating arrangement known as the "Wheel Deal."
Establishing a single partner starting with the 79th Primetime Emmy Awards next September marks perhaps the most significant change.
"Continuity is a big part of what we're looking for because the rotating part of it basically meant in many ways that we were starting over every year," Cris Abrego, chairman of the Television Academy, told The Associated Press. "With one partner over six years, we can really learn together and build from year to year together."
The broadcast will remain free to view, satisfying a key requirement set by the Academy. Viewers will not need a paid Prime Video subscription to watch. The shift follows a similar deal announced in December that moves the Oscars to YouTube, though that arrangement begins in 2029 while the Emmys deal takes effect immediately.
"We’re on the clock, we gotta get rolling," Mike Hopkins, head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios, told the AP.
Ratings for live awards broadcasts have dropped significantly across a fragmented media environment.
The Emmys have consistently trailed behind the Oscars, Grammys, and Golden Globes, with viewership falling from a peak of over 20 million down to roughly 7 million.
The Academy and Amazon believe Prime Video could help rebuild that audience, as many top Emmy contenders are hosted on the platform directly or through streaming partnerships. For instance, recent major winners "Widow's Bay" and "The Studio" are available on Prime Video via its partnership with Apple TV.
"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. "We will have the opportunity throughout the year to be promoting Emmy nominees to our customers as a way of saying ‘Hey, watch these shows, but also watch the Emmys.’"
Abrego emphasized that Amazon’s position as a broad television hub was a central factor in the decision. "They really support all television," he said. "We want reach, we want access, and we felt Amazon was in line with that."
Addressing the shift away from traditional broadcasting, Abrego noted that platform delivery is secondary to content quality. "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."
Live programming is already established on Amazon, which began streaming NFL games nearly a decade ago alongside other major sporting events.
"We look at our service as something that’s a hybrid between live and on-demand, and we’ve made live a real priority," Hopkins said.
Football scheduling has long created direct competition for the Emmys. September airings on Sunday or Monday evenings frequently clash with high-rated NFL coverage. Last month’s ceremony was handily beaten in the ratings by ESPN’s season-opening Monday Night Football game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos.
While the 2027 show will remain in September, future date adjustments remain a possibility.
"We had conversations with Amazon, if we wanted to change that date moving forward with time, we could explore it and we would be open to it," Abrego said, acknowledging such a move would require adjustments to voting windows and eligibility deadlines.
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