NBC’s new agreement with affiliates could be a big deal for internet TV services

NBC announced today that it had reached an agreement with its TV affiliate board to allow stations to opt-in to be included in NBC and Universal’s blanket agreements for internet streaming and other “TV Everywhere” distribution rights.

While that might not sound like much, it’s actually kind of a big deal that could make it easier to get live NBC streams on services like PlayStation Vue or Sling TV, which currently offer some fairly major limitations on where you can get NBC streams based on geographic location.

The new agreement could help streamline that process going forward by allowing the individual local affiliates to opt-in to be included in NBC’s internet streams, as opposed to the company simply offering a less regionally specific national feed. That change won’t happen overnight, of course, and it’s all still reliant on the local affiliates opting in, but it’s definitely a positive sign as internet-based TV grows in popularity.

Disclosure: Comcast’s NBCUniversal, the focus of this article, is a minority investor in Vox Media, which owns this website.