TOKYO— The National Basketball Association and Rakuten Inc. have announced a marketing partnership.
The deal announced Tuesday makes the Japanese online giant the exclusive distributor in Japan of all live NBA games.
The partnership, Rakuten’s first with a North American professional league, comes as the internet services company expands its involvement in sports.
The two companies said Rakuten will offer the NBA’s premium live game subscription service exclusively to Rakuten’s members through NBA.com, the NBA app and for purchase through Rakuten TV, the company’s video-on-demand service.
Last month, the NBA Champion Golden State Warriors and Rakuten announced a partnership to include the Rakuten logo on all Warriors jerseys beginning in the 2017-18 NBA season.