WITHOUT SPORTS GAMES TO AIR, NETWORKS LOSE AD REVENUE

Imagine a TV network with no regular fare to show, asks Grumpy Editor.

That’s the problem networks that air sports now face.  Almost every major sports league and conference is suspending play, rescheduling or canceling events stemming from the coronavirus pandemic.

 

Among them:  National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball and National Hockey League.

 

Losing games puts a big hole in TV networks schedules.

 

Without games to air, networks will take a substantial hit in advertising revenue.

 

The Wall Street Journal points out Walt Disney’s ESPN and AT&T’s Turner, parent of TNT, together spend about $2.7 billion a year to show NBA games nationally while regional networks owned by Comcast and Sinclair Broadcast Group, among others, air NBA games in local markets.

 

In the last NBA season, for example, a reserach firm says TV networks brought in nearly $600 million in ad revenue from NBA games and $972 million from playoffs. 

 

Meanwhile, ESPN, Turner and Fox all have Major League Baseball rights.

 

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