NBA, NBPA Reportedly Agree to $1.1 Billion Licensing Agreement for NBA 2K Series

The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association agreed to an extension of their licensing agreement with Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. on Tuesday for their NBA 2K video game franchise.

According to Sarah E. Needleman of the Wall Street Journal (h/t Jason Owens of Yahoo Sports), the deal is worth as much as $1.1 billion over seven years.

The extension will allow Take-Two to continue producing NBA 2K games and using the likenesses of NBA players, but there is seemingly no exclusivity involved in the deal.

That means EA Sports will be allowed to continue on with the NBA Live series as well.

Per Needleman, NBA 2K sold 10 million copies last year, making it the top-selling sports game (ahead of Madden) and the No. 3 best-selling game overall.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said the following about the extension: "An entire generation of basketball fans engage and connect with NBA teams and players through NBA 2K. We are grateful to extend our partnership with Take-Two and the NBPA to build on the enormous popularity of the NBA 2K franchise and the continued global growth of basketball."

The NBA 2K franchise began with NBA 2K in 1999, and it has seen a meteoric rise since then en route to becoming the most popular sports video game available.

In addition to the continued release of the game itself, the extended partnership bodes well for the continuation of the NBA 2K League, which was launched by the NBA and Take-Two in 2017 and has aired on Twitch since last year.