Prime Video to Stream Emmys Live for Free Starting in 2027

The Television Academy and Prime Video announced Tuesday, October 6, 2026, a six-year deal making Prime Video the exclusive free worldwide home of the Primetime Emmys from the 79th ceremony in September 2027. No Prime subscription is required. The move ends the 30-year Wheel Deal rotating the show among ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC after networks aired it since 1955. NBC's 2026 Emmys, hosted by Mariska Hargitay, drew 6.7 million viewers and lost in the ratings to the Chiefs-Broncos Monday Night Football game on ESPN. Peak audiences once exceeded 20 million and now sit near 7 million. The Oscars separately head to YouTube in 2029. Cris Abrego of the Television Academy told AP's Andrew Dalton that continuity is a big part of what they are looking for because the rotating part meant starting over every year, and that with one partner over six years they can learn and build together. He said they want reach and access and felt Amazon was in line with that; the Academy has never defined television by how or which screen it reaches. Mike Hopkins of Prime Video said they are on the clock and gotta get rolling, aiming to increase viewership, age it down, and promote nominees year-round. After a historic double-Emmy win, Matthew Rhys said backstage he was giddy and dizzy and called his first speech a vomit of a speech. Deadline puts the deal above $120 million total and more than $20 million a year; Variety puts it around $15 million a year.