Or they offer a contract to Bucci for the hockey tournament only and see if he'll bite. Especially if it's just a non-renewal of his contract and not a layoff, he might be able/amenable for that.
We're seeing the first moves on this, aren't we? NFL network self-televising games, Yahoo/Amazon streaming, MLB Extra Innings package are all ways to manage the above risk, I think.This is what is holding the dam together. When the bidding prices from networks start plummeting and the market for a la carte/streaming for live sports becomes more viable, the full implosion will occur. Same thing applies to cable news, although I think they have more of a shelf life than sports networks.
The fixed cost for ESPN to bring sports programming to their airwaves is the cost of the contracts with the sports leagues. And the cost for a bare-bonus production staff. On-air talent, bloggers, beat writers, and all the other stuff surrounding the coverage trying to squeeze additional stickiness out of the (compelling) basic product of actual sports are all discretionary expenditures that are speculative in nature. If they're able to sell ads for $X against their NFL or MLB games, they can bid up to ($X - $2M) or so without actually losing money. If the on-air talent doesn't bring in more money than it costs them, they can and should jettison it. It doesn't mean their business model is being threatened, just that their margins are squeezed a little and their largesse to former athletes and professional yellers is under siege.I read a book on the history of MTV about 10 years ago. The book referenced that by the late 80s they knew they had to change because they did not make one dime playing videos. When MTV began the shift with Remote Control and the Real World, it was like throwing spaghetti on a wall to see if something stuck before they shut off the lights.
That's not ESPN's problem. Their problem is that they've gone from printing money to losing subs. This all happened during a time when they have loaded up on massive guaranteed broadcasting contracts. ESPN has finally reached a point where it cannot pass all of those costs thru to tv providers/customers.
The interesting thing going forward is that we have never seen a decline in television contracts for major sports, but logic says that it should happen. I guess in theory, the leagues could tell their broadcast partners that they don't care that they are losing money on what they are selling them - just make sure their next bid is higher than the last.
"I Want My MTV". This was a terrific book, probably one of the best oral histories that I've read. If you watched MTV in the 80s or 90s, you should read this. Like right now. Go to Amazon through the SoSH link and order it.I read a book on the history of MTV about 10 years ago. The book referenced that by the late 80s they knew they had to change because they did not make one dime playing videos. When MTV began the shift with Remote Control and the Real World, it was like throwing spaghetti on a wall to see if something stuck before they shut off the lights.
I've seen this a few times and I have to just shrug my shoulders. Who cares? ESPN barely gives a shit about baseball too. ESPN was on at the gym three weeks ago and instead of covering Opening Day, they literally spent 45 minutes on Tony Romo's retirement. All ESPN gives a crap about is football (college and pro) and hoops. That's it.They aren't even trying to pretend to care about hockey anymore
Finally, the bloodbath impacts someone who wasn't good at their job.Jim Bowden was fired as well.
Jim Bowden @JimBowdenMLB 12m12 minutes ago
I feel blessed & privileged to have worked @ESPN and most importantly work w/ so many great people.Thank you. I look forward to what's next
Seconded. Fantastic book. I'm wanting a sequel called When The Viacom Suits Took Over And Killed The Party."I Want My MTV". This was a terrific book, probably one of the best oral histories that I've read. If you watched MTV in the 80s or 90s, you should read this. Like right now. Go to Amazon through the SoSH link and order it.
Karma for a guy who consistently mocked those schools left behind in realignment. He's a real doucheVeteran CFB writer/reporter Brett McMurphy.
Brett McMurphyVerified account @McMurphyESPN 2m2 minutes ago
After 5 great years, I’ve been laid off by ESPN. It was a tremendous opportunity & I enjoyed working w/a lot of really, really good people
I agree. I haven't gone to ESPN for anything other than live games for over a decade. It's just crazy that the largest sports network doesn't care at all about one of the 4 major sports."I Want My MTV". This was a terrific book, probably one of the best oral histories that I've read. If you watched MTV in the 80s or 90s, you should read this. Like right now. Go to Amazon through the SoSH link and order it.
I've seen this a few times and I have to just shrug my shoulders. Who cares? ESPN barely gives a shit about baseball too. ESPN was on at the gym three weeks ago and instead of covering Opening Day, they literally spent 45 minutes on Tony Romo's retirement. All ESPN gives a crap about is football (college and pro) and hoops. That's it.
Get your hockey or baseball info elsewhere. It will be better AND you won't have people screaming at you.
The days of ESPN being a one-stop-shop for sports have been over for years.
Thanks for the call back."I Want My MTV".
I bet Dave Portnoy is refreshing Mort's twitter non-stop, getting ready to celebrate.It will be sad if Mort still has a job.
It's probably not good business for most of the people to trash their employer on the way out if they want to get hired by somebody who probably once worked for ESPN back in the day. I have to imagine the industry is relatively small, all things considered.Seems like ESPN is writing these goodbye tweets. All very complimentary of the mother-ship.
Agreed. Sean McAdam still doesn't have a full time gig yet.It's probably not good business for most of the people to trash their employer on the way out if they want to get hired by somebody who probably once worked for ESPN back in the day. I have to imagine the industry is relatively small, all things considered.
They are also presumably subject to non-disparagement obligations under their severance packages.It's probably not good business for most of the people to trash their employer on the way out if they want to get hired by somebody who probably once worked for ESPN back in the day. I have to imagine the industry is relatively small, all things considered.
So basically ESPN is writing the tweets. Trust me I get the dance they have to play on the way out the door. Wasn't looking for anything that would be negative, but some that just say, "I'm looking forward to the next chapter of my life..." or something neutral.They are also presumably subject to non-disparagement obligations under their severance packages.
Ah, that sucks. His "Bubble Watch" was one of the few things I still actually read on ESPN.com every tournament season. Hopefully he's able to take it with him or do something similar wherever he ends up.Eammon Brennan, college writer, has been let go.
Maybe they somehow actually enjoyed working for ESPN or something.So basically ESPN is writing the tweets. Trust me I get the dance they have to play on the way out the door. Wasn't looking for anything that would be negative, but some that just say, "I'm looking forward to the next chapter of my life..." or something neutral.
While I don't agree with everything they produce, that would indeed be a loss---there's very few people at ESPN who are doing true journalism and reducing that to zero would, I think, not be good for the brand overall.Jim Miller saying that should be prepared for hits to journalism side of espn. I laughed at the premise then realized Jeremy Schaap and bob ley are probably whom he was referring.
Bob Ley getting canned via layoffs would be Earth shattering news. He is the longest tenured employee there. I doubt he goes out this way but maybe his role is further "reduced" like a few others.Jim Miller saying that should be prepared for hits to journalism side of espn. I laughed at the premise then realized Jeremy Schaap and bob ley are probably whom he was referring.
I'm actually surprised this type of implosion hasn't happened with more frequency. The whole subscriber fees---> ad revenue-->crazy sport rights fees---->huge player contracts model has been pretty wobbly for a while. With viewing habits changing, it's just falling apart. You look at what happened in LA between Direc TV and the Dodgers, and the entire model just looks rotten somewhere.This is what is holding the dam together. When the bidding prices from networks start plummeting and the market for a la carte/streaming for live sports becomes more viable, the full implosion will occur. Same thing applies to cable news, although I think they have more of a shelf life than sports networks.
He seems like a guy that can fit into multiple roles, so I'd imagine the Patriots would find a role for him pretty quick - assuming he'd be willing to take a pay cut.I wonder if Mike Reiss is in danger here. He's on a similar tier than a lot of these people being cut.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/techcrunch.com/2016/07/03/ap-sports-is-using-robot-reporters-to-cover-minor-league-baseball/amp/The Associated Press on Thursday announced that it is now covering Minor League Baseball games nationally using artificial intelligence and software from Automated Insights, and data from MLB Advanced Media (MLBAM), the official statistics provider for Minor League Baseball.
Automatically generated stories cover games that AP Sports’ human writers weren’t reporting on or traveling to anyway, including: Triple-A, Double-A and Class A games, across 142 MLB-affiliated teams and 13 leagues.
I'd bet money he'll be hired in some kind of consulting role by the Niners.trent Dilfer...not a surprise, he hasn't been on the air at all
The game report articles are pretty useless, they're basically summaries we can get in half the time from the box score and a video highlight. It's intelligent analysis I want to get, and that is hard to come by.This will be the future of reporting. ROBOTS instead of humans.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/techcrunch.com/2016/07/03/ap-sports-is-using-robot-reporters-to-cover-minor-league-baseball/amp/
I would take 1 Jayson Stark over 100 Harold ReynoldsMan, I really like Jayson Stark. Hope he finds a home on MLB network or their .com so he stays with a national baseball voice.