SPORTS MIGRATION TO CABLE
Will Sports Become All About Cable Money?
A harbinger of the balance could come as the NBA negotiates its next TV contract, where ESPN and Turner are the incumbents. Nearly all playoff games are on cable, though the finals have remained on ABC. If ESPN offers the NBA substantially more to move them off-broadcast entirely, will the league say yes? Or, would it forfeit the dollars as sort of a public service, keeping them available to all TV homes. Yes, there are still millions of Americans who don’t have cable.
