Quote:
Originally Posted by Strange Brew
Is there any evidence that rights fees are actually decreasing? While viewership is on a decline, broadcasters seem to be very focused in securing the content from what I gather.
|
Where's the evidence the money is still there? The NFL doesn't count because they have ratings to back up their deals. I think reality hit late in 2018, when Disney couldn't find a buyer for all those Fox RSNs. Ad revenue for a national NHL TV package would be well less than 100 million and almost all of that would be from playoffs. I just don't see that the sports networks are going to be seeing the upside of adding NHL games, when all these cable sports networks are losing subscribers.
Cord cutting was already hitting critical mass around 2018/2019, and has picked up a lot of steam in COVID, and most of those subscribers are not going back. The NHL's timing is terrible on shopping for a new deal.