Seinfeld, The Office and Friends have become "the heavy artillery used on the next front of the streaming wars"

Los Angeles Times

In 2015, Hulu paid $160 million for streaming rights for Seinfeld for five years. With Seinfeld's rights coming up again following the Friends and The Office megadeals, Netflix, WarnerMedia, Comcast and Hulu are expected to pay big bucks for streaming rights. "Why are companies willing to break the bank for streaming rights to shows that have been readily available to viewers for years?" says Stephen Battaglio. "They may be repeats to fans who first experienced them during their network and syndication runs. But viewers under age 35, whose viewing of broadcast and cable TV has dropped dramatically over the last five years, are discovering them on Netflix as if they were new."