Sports and TV
why networks view sports as loss leader
Nearly every entity that televises a sporting event loses money. ESPN is the only network that makes money on sports. Commercial revenue doesn't cover costs of rights and production.
why some advertisers were and are attracted to sports programming
single, specific, known demographic that watches live. Early on, certain programs were only provided by a single sponsor.--ie, Calvacade of Sports was gillette.
impact of espn on culture and sports
Impacted sports - professional, collegiate and amateur Revolutionized television Changed the value of sports in our culture
Benefits sports provide tv and v.v.
SPORTS PROVIDE TV: --Sports provide a programming base for broadcast networks on weekends. --Sports programming provides a promotional vehicle for other network programming --sports can lure in non-regular viewers. --Sports can be an image builder for networks and local stations. --Sports provide a huge programming base for national and regional sports cable networks. And rake in 50 percent of all cable subscriber fees. --Sports is a haven for advertisers looking for men. --Can bring large audiences to the television set at a time when audiences are becoming more fragmented. TV PROVIDES SPORTS: Exposure Money - Rights Fees Public Relations
History and evolution of espn--impt acq
--About the same time, Bill Rasmussen and his son Scott had a wacky idea to televise University of Connecticut athletic events to all 12 cable systems in the state. --In February, 1979, Getty Oil paid Rasmussen $10 million for 85 percent of his idea. --Rasmussen discovered it was cheaper to purchase 24 hours of satellite time than to purchase "blocks" of time - 24/7. --When ESPN began broadcasting, the cable network was available in just 1.2 million homes. --Now it's in close to 100 million homes (116.5 million in U.S.) --In 2013, ESPN produced 35,000 (18,000 live event) hours of programming, including HALF of all live athletic events televised in the United States. --ESPN is now a billion dollar industry of eight cable channels, a radio network, a production division, a Web site, a magazine, mobile TV and Apps. --ESPN picked up steam and as it gained more carriage on cable systems across the country and more investors, it added more legitimate sports properties - Major League Baseball, the NHL, the NBA, college football and finally, NFL football. **NCAA BASKETBALL AND NFL DRAFT SECURED AS LEGIT NETWORK in 1980.
Differences between broadcast and cable and implications of those differences
--Broadcast-Transmitting sound and pictures by means of radio waves through space for reception by the general public—Licensed by FCC. 1600 of these; 75% of content is from network. Sell commercials on own locally. Three ways of getting content (local, broadcast, purchase from syndicator). 210 markets in US. Broadcast gets all money from ads, but now there is a fraction of cable bill. --Cable-Transmitting sound and pictures through a coaxial cable/satellite dish for reception by an audience that pays for the service. Cable networks or channels sell their programming to system operators (i.e. Comcast) who then charge subscribers to receive programming. $50-$130 is normal cable bill. 43-85% subscriptions since 1984. 40-78 avg cable bill from 2001-2011. Sports: 99% watched live, 5 of 10 most expensive channels have sports. 20% of content, 50% of bill. Cable television networks make their money from: Subscription fees Advertising Broadcast networks make their money from: Advertising Retransmission fees
Why sports on tv cost so much
--More sports networks have emerged, driving up the bidding. --will surpass tix revenue in 2019; TV rights fees are growing at a 9.3 annual rate --Sports remains one of the few genres on television that still draw large, diverse, live audiences. --Sports is the one genre that consistently attracts advertisers trying to reach men.
rating,share, affiliate, subscriber fees, retransmission fees
--Rating: 116.5 homes in US. Rating is the percentage of the total survey universe watching a specific program or channel at a particular time. --Share: Share is the percent of the survey audience with TV sets on watching a particular program or channel at a specific time. --Affiliate: think NBC and NBC Sports. --retransmission fees: the money that TV stations get from cable and satellite providers for the right to carry their signals
influence of sports center
--SportsCenter aired its first edition on September 7, 1979, and changed sports television forever. --SportsCenter redefined the meaning of "sportscast." --Video highlights have changed the way athletes at every level play the game --SportsCenter anchors and other ESPN personalities have become celebrities. --SportsCenter phrases have entered the American lexicon. --SportsCenter has become a legitimate sports journalism entity. --SportsCenter made it "okay" to add fun, creativity, excitement and humor to a sportscast
Why are ratings important (esp. to broadcast?)
--TV ratings are the most dominant decision-making data in commercial television. --Those numbers help establish advertising rates and aid "executives" in making programming decisions by methods of comparison. --Ratings also help teams and leagues determine a "dollar value" for their television rights. --RATINGS are impt to broadcast because they depend on ads for $$.
Why sports flourished on radio and tv
--WEAF in New York began selling "commercials" and proved that radio could make money. 1920s--baseball, boxing, horse racing. --Technical and economic factors helped solidify the early relationship between sports and television. --In the early days, TV cameras were heavy, large and cumbersome. They also needed bright light to produce a decent picture. Sporting events, particularly those staged outside, were perfect for those cameras. --Sports were cheap to produce - no sets, no writers, no actors.
Reasons sports make good tv
--entertainment- 7/8 Americans; twice spent on sports tickets Sports affect civic pride- OUR team. We BIRG. --sense of belonging. --impact community development and economy--$18 million for ND community, 900k people. football is almost worth 600 million. --unite, provide outlet for progressive social change. -- metaphor for society, impact children, and provide opportunity. --SPORTS ARE BIG BUSINESS-19 bil in revenue, --Sports provide a scenario for what television does best...live, dramatic, suspenseful action.
Rights fees
-Whoever owns, creates or stages a sporting event determines who gets to televise and/or broadcast that event via broadcast, cable, satellite or local television, radio, the Internet and/or pay-per-view. -No entity can telecast or broadcast a sporting event without securing those rights. -Between 2012-2014, television networks spent $72 billion in new sports rights' fees. -Sports fees paid by cable, satellite and telco TV companies will increase 12 percent this year to over $17.2 billion - double the rate paid for nonsports programming.
Why some teams resisted coverage on media early on
-ticket sales?
econ of espn
ESPN's monthly average cable fee is $6.04 -almost four times the charge for the next most expensive cable network (TNT: $1.48). Average fee for a basic cable network is $0.26. ESPN is worth $50 billion, one of the most valuable media properties in the world. Only media companies traded at higher value on Wall Street are Time Warner and Twenty-First Century Fox. ESPN generates nearly half of all operating profit for Disney. ESPN and Disney Channel generate more profits than the rest of Walt Disney combined. ESPN reaps more than $6 billion in cable fees annually.
reach and influence of ESPN brand
Still, ESPN is an international brand that's as recognizable as Coke, Mickey Mouse and McDonald's. It's the master of self promotion. People actually name their children ESPN (espin).
Recent impact of tv sports on college/pro leagues
The television factor influences the landscape of college athletics - leagues creating own networks - teams jumping ship for a conference with a more lucrative TV contract - football bowl championship series. More exposure helps level the playing field in college athletics. Professional salaries explode - thanks to money from TV rights' fees.
significance of landmark events: Wide World of Sports Munich Olympics MNF moving to primetime
WWS--1961; 750 hours to 1500 from 60s to 85. Jim McKay--world unity and more marginalized sports. Opened up sports world. first to air wimbledon, many others. Munich--Black September group in munich massacre (of israeli athletes) covered by ABC Sports MNF--ABC in 1970. one of the longest-running prime time commercial network television series ever, and one of the highest-rated, particularly among male viewers. Move to Primetime-- world series in 71 moves to PT.
Roles sports play in culture and how tv contributes to those
We create heroes out of athletes--who become celebrities with television. We place undue honor and respect on coaches and players and envy those involved in sports because we glorify them.
tech's impact on sports coverage
instant replay better judging celebrity creation larger audiences--progressive change. unifying force
