Cable, DBS, PPV, Internet siphon viewers from sports programing
Tiger Woods won the coveted green jacket two weeks ago at the Masters and broke some TV records in the process. He won for CBS Sports its highest rating in more than 20 years for a single golf tournament broadcast; in viewers, it was the most watched golf telecast ever. If Woods can keep up his game, the sport's ratings are expected to rise to inconceivable levels.
Although golf may prosper from Woods's drawing power, almost every other major sport is hurting where it counts--in the ratings. The National Football League, National Basketball Association, National Hockey League, Major League Baseball, horse racing, the majority of auto racing events and professional tennis have steadily declined in viewership.
Some top programers say that the ratings are not down but that Nielsen's numbers are inaccurate. Most sports programers concede the downward trend, however, and are looking for ways to reverse it. It's a daunting task, as cable, satellite and pay-per-view services chip away at network ratings. Media analysts say the Internet is stealing viewers in mass numbers as well. Cable networks that carry professional sports on a national level-- ESPN, TBS and TNT-- also face competition from regional and local programing.
'There is no question that the networks have been impacted by all the alternatives out there,' says ABC Sports' Mark Mandel. 'And sports are not immune to that. But that doesn't mean in the marketplace that these shows are not valuable to advertisers and that people don't watch them.'
In 1996, Fox, NBC and ABC's Monday Night Football took hits in ratings. Of those three networks, NBC's AFC coverage lost the highest percentage of viewers. NBC's ratings declined from 12.5 in 1994 to 11.1 in 1995 and to 10.9 last year. Fox fell from a 12.5 rating in 1995 to an 11.3 in 1996. And Monday Night Football has dropped from 17.0 to 16.2 during the past two years.
'Too many people look at the numbers from one year to the next and draw these generalizations and conclusions without looking at the bigger picture,' Mandel says. 'Monday Night Football is a top 10 show year-in and year-out. The ratings may be off one year, and the next they will be up.'
According to Nielsen numbers, almost every sporting event on CBS took a dive last year, as the network saw ratings slip for its college football, auto racing, tennis and golf coverage. Since 1983 the U.S. Open tennis tournament has lost 50% of its viewership. In 1983 the tournament had a 5.0 rating, and last year it reached only a 2.5.
Major events such as the Indianapolis 500 and the Kentucky Derby also have lost viewers. In 1995 the Indianapolis 500 brought ABC an 8.6 rating; last year it earned a 6.6. Analysts say the drop was a result of competition from another race the same day.
All of the Triple Crown horse races barely placed in 1996. ABC's coverage of the Kentucky Derby hit an all-time low of 7.3; in 1983 it scored a 14.5. The Preakness and the Belmont Stakes also fell to all-time lows with 3.7 and 2.9, respectively.
Broadcasters say that although the numbers are down, sports still carry an undeniable quality that advertisers want--almost a must for advertisers.
'Yes, there has been a general erosion of network ratings on the whole, and a small erosion of sports ratings for sure,' says Fox Sports' Vince Wladika. 'The fact is, sports is still a last bastion of live-event television that is not scripted, that is not played out, and that you can watch only once.'
Officials of some of the top cable networks believe sports programing is important, as well. This is particularly true for Turner's TBS and TNT, which are trying to become the first cable to catch their broadcast counterparts in viewership.
Turner has been adding original programing and buying top theatrical releases for both networks, and Turner officials say that sports adds to its broadcastlike formats.
'While everyone wants to be as financially responsible as possible, it is true that for both network and cable, rights fees have continued to be pretty sizable; in many cases, that's because there is an added value beyond the ratings and revenue to having those principal sports,' says Kevin O'Malley, senior vice president, sports programing, Turner Broadcasting Systems.
Will advertisers follow'? Analysts say that some will stay and some likely will find other outlets for their message.
But the one fact on which analysts agree is that sports is far and away the best place to reach men using television.
'Sports dominates male viewing,' says Wladika. 'It's still the number-one place to get males 18 to 34, 18 to 49 and 25 to 54. It's the only place to reach them.'
Paul Kagan and Associates recently conducted a study of male and female viewing habits. The results showed that women tend to watch a larger variety of shows, while men return to the same type of programing.
'Fox is the only one of the six broadcast networks that actually achieved higher male than female demographics in the last November sweeps,' says analyst Jeff Flathers of Kagan. 'If Fox were to lose football, it would lose its dominance of coveted male viewers. Sports programing is very valuable for a network, especially Fox.'
One broadcast programer who does not want to be identified says that advertisers will continue to buy sports time, regardless of the cost, 'because it's the only way to reach men.'
Others are not so sure.
'I know rights fees are going up, but how much more is the advertiser going to pay before they price themselves out of the market?' asks Tom DeCabia of Paul Schulman & Associates, a New' York media-buying firm. 'If you are a beer or automobile [manufacturer], and if you have to be in sports, you are going to pay. But if you are a fringe advertiser that has the [choice] of being in sports or not in sports, they are going to start pulling out.'
NBC Olympics Coverage Shines at Sports Emmys
NBC's Centennial Olympic coverage cleaned up at the 18th annual Sports Emmy Awards last week at New York's Marriott Marquis Hotel.
NBC won 12 Emmys, 10 for its Atlanta Olympic coverage. ESPN followed with seven awards, including two for Speedworld. Fox and TNT each took home three Emmys. ABC and NFL Films garnered two apiece. Outdoor Life, CNN and HBO won one each, and CBS was shut out for the fourth time in the event's history.
NBC's Olympic coverage won for Outstanding Live-Event Turnaround, Team Technical Studio, Film Cinematographers, Writing, Graphic Design, Music Composers/Directors/Lyricists, Innovative Technical Achievement, Program Achievement, Individual Achievement and for its Olympic Close. NBC's Bob Costas won for top sports personality and the network also received an Emmy for its Superbowl XXX pre-game tease.
ABC's Frank Gifford, who was chosen by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences as its Lifetime Achievement recipient, also acknowledged that it was NBC's night.
'I'm just proud to be a part of Dick Ebersol's night,' Gifford said of NBC's sports president.
Besides two Emmys for Speedworld, ESPN won for its technical remote team for the X Games. Its Outside the Lines: Aids in Sports won for sports journalism, and the network received two additional Emmys for its promotion of NCAA men's basketball and Sportscenter. Sportscenter also was named top studio show.
Fox won for its NFL on Fox promotion and coverage of the 1996 World Series, Howie Long was given an Emmy for best sports analyst. TNT won for its NBA at 50 special and two for its collaborations with NFL Films. ABC's Keith Jackson took home the award for Outstanding Sports Personality/Play-By-Play announcer.
Gifford, ABC's longtime Monday Night Football announcer and NFL Hall of Fame inductee joins Howard Cosell, Pat Summerall and Vin Scully as winners of the Lifetime Achievement honor. Gifford was introduced by fellow Monday night commentator Dan Dierdorf, and the award was presented to Gifford by NATAS Chairman Charles Dolan.
'Frank Gifford is one of sports television's most unique personalities, as well as being one of the all-time professional football greats,' says John Cannon, the academy's president.
Award presenters included NFL Hall of Famer Joe Namath, ex-NBA star Darryl Dawkins and baseball Hall of Famer Joe Morgan.
