https://theconversation.com/does-espn-have-anywhere-to-go-but-down-76843

Just as the rest of the television industry struggles with new competitors and new norms, there is no way for ESPN to go back to its previous position of demanding high subscriber fees and forcing all cable subscribers to subsidize its programming.

Some sports leagues are using internet distribution to cut out broadcast and cable middlemen entirely and now sell directly to their viewers. WWE wrestling switched to this model in 2014. The major sports leagues currently benefit from channels’ willingness to pay high license fees and bear the risk of a changing market. When those fees diminish, they may follow WWE and sell access to their games directly to fans.

Once the leagues identify that there is more revenue in selling directly to fans and selling advertising themselves, sports television could experience a seismic disruption.

Nalod wrote:

GustavBahler wrote:Good article on ESPN. Thought this part was interesting. Wonder which major team sport will be first?

https://theconversation.com/does-espn-have-anywhere-to-go-but-down-76843

Just as the rest of the television industry struggles with new competitors and new norms, there is no way for ESPN to go back to its previous position of demanding high subscriber fees and forcing all cable subscribers to subsidize its programming.

Some sports leagues are using internet distribution to cut out broadcast and cable middlemen entirely and now sell directly to their viewers. WWE wrestling switched to this model in 2014. The major sports leagues currently benefit from channels’ willingness to pay high license fees and bear the risk of a changing market. When those fees diminish, they may follow WWE and sell access to their games directly to fans.

Once the leagues identify that there is more revenue in selling directly to fans and selling advertising themselves, sports television could experience a seismic disruption.

Notre Dame Football has been indepent of conference for years.
League passes are coming more and more into play. We can get just knick games now without all the other league games.

Some sports leagues are using internet distribution to cut out broadcast and cable middlemen entirely and now sell directly to their viewers. WWE wrestling switched to this model in 2014. [b]The major sports leagues currently benefit from channels’ willingness to pay high license fees and bear the risk of a changing market. When those fees diminish, they may follow WWE and sell access to their games directly to fans.

GustavBahler wrote:

BRIGGS wrote:I'll write this down and we can come back to it in 5 years. Pro sports(all of them) are in a financial bubble. Teams and players have pressed on salaries ticket costs and tv rights for to long.
Those days are now done. With Espn who is the biggest gorilla of them all simply firing main staff with dramatic and increasing viewer decline-- you are at the apex of a bubble which just had it's first pin inserted. Now watch what happens over the next decade

I have 2-3 ESPN channels that never show anything. Sometimes shows are preempted, and they dont use the empty channels to show them.

They've spent a lot of money to grow the audience, the bill is due. They also take a good idea and do it do death.

What will cause the pro sports bubble to burst is prices that no one can afford. Its already pretty damned expensive to go see most pro teams in the US.

Prices are already at unsustainable levels. As millenials rack up more debt and their cash flow gets crunched so will their discretionary spending. Boomers are already losing their buying power. I don't think Briggs is so far off - these will eventually pop, all bubbles do. But even most economists can't get the timing right