In the past week, a few highs and lows have again confirmed that how fans consume sports on TV has changed.
Games no longer matter as much -- unless it's the NFL (in almost any form) or playoff series (preferably Game 7) in another sport. Interest in start-to-finish game action has given way to events and personality driven programming.
That's why 12.3 million people watched LeBron James make his decision. More people watched that made-for-TV event than watched 95 percent of all NBA games last season. Even though the promised announcement came 27 minutes after the show started as opposed to the promised 15, people watched.
That's also why 12.1 million people watched the Major League Baseball All-Star Game. It was the least-watched and lowest-rated "Midsummer Classic" ever. The slow stick-and-ball showcase, bogged down by too many unfamiliar players and no drama despite the home-field-for-the-World Series stakes, has not been a classic or must-watch television for years.
It became less meaningful when interleague play began in 1997, when 16.7 million people watched, and ratings have fallen since then. It was in trouble even before that, though.
Cable TV's prevalence and a more diverse, growing U.S. population have impacted all sports viewing habits. Back in the days of three network channels and PBS for many homes, in the 1970s and 1980s, the All-Star Game drew as many as 36 million viewers with nearly half of all TVs in the country tuned into the game.
No sporting event, aside from the Super Bowl, merits such interest these days. So it's logical that many regular-season events would struggle on TV. Plus, with almost every possible game on TV these days, no real urgency exists to watch one over the other.
Still, it's not all bad news for broadcasters and sports conferences and leagues. Because of the explosion of channels and viewing options, diversity and niche events can find good homes. Plus, cable TV -- which can supplement advertising revenue with income from subscribers' monthly bills (on average ESPN gets about $4 of a family's monthly bills) -- can make those broadcasts profitable.
That's where events and personalities fit. So the Home Run Derby can find an annual home on ESPN, even if it is boring, long and devoid of A-list stars. Likewise, leagues can diversity -- as the NFL has done -- and create programming for any number of partners. Last year it was a reality series for truTV and this year the league has a cartoon series ready to launch to appeal younger viewers.
If a league and a network can find the right program, a popular series can be profitable -- even if it does not draw the viewers associated with a major event. That's why the MLB Network this weekend (8 p.m. Sunday) will unveil "The Club," a reality series following the front office personnel from the Chicago White Sox. It's a similar approach to what MLBN did last year with "The Pen," which followed the Philadelphia Phillies' bullpen.
The recipe of finding a trademark show (or two) for a channel has been well-documented on cable. From "Deadliest Catch" on Discovery Channel to "Jersey Shore" on MTV, many original programs or reality shows have become cash cows and visible entry points for any number of channels.
Not surprisingly, sports leagues, teams and broadcast partners have followed that model. As a result, we get things that appeal more to short attention spans as well as more entertainment and personalities.
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