Future of the ACC Network

[shandeezy7]

Will ESPN cost-cutting kill ACC Network? 2 expert opinions on channel's future

 

[MaxwellCuse]

Great. Fodder for the mouth breathers from West Virginia. Yesterday they were back on their barefoot heels due to Finebaum's remarks about Oklahoma wanting the B1G. Now it is the ACC Network taking it on the chin and the Realignment/kill the ACC crowd is back in business.

 

[NKR1978]

Great. Fodder for the mouth breathers from West Virginia. Yesterday they were back on their barefoot heels due to Finebaum's remarks about Oklahoma wanting the B1G. Now it is the ACC Network taking it on the chin and the Realignment/kill the ACC crowd is back in business.

Ha the conference that produced two football championships in the time we've been in it? Clemson and FSU see that they have a legit path to a championship and just have to get through each other and Louisville to do it. No way will the ACC break up.

Though perhaps I'm giving the WVU people too much credit assuming they'll see that.

 

[HtownOrange]

Things people need to keep in mind before jumping from office ledges:

1) ESPN is NOT going broke. They have a reduction in their revenue and profits, to counteract the reduced revenue and profits, ESPN is trimming fat. Disney rarely loses money and knows how to balance the desire for profit with revenue streams. ESPN is still making the most revenue and profit for Disney.

2) ESPN has the rights to many sports leagues and conferences, they could sell off a few if they were in real trouble.

3) Most sports media personnel are overpaid. Any of us would do the job for a livable salary and expenses just because we love sports. Paying people 5X, 10X 20X average salaries is excessive especially compared to local TV/radio/print personalities who work for far less than their ESPN counterparts.

4) ESPN will enjoy a new revenue stream, though not likely as much, once they learn how to market directly to sports fans who cut the cable. HBO is doing it. Several others are doing it. Give it some time.

5) ESPN could actually get sports talk back on their broadcasts and lose some more fat.

6) The SECN is making money. The ACCN will make money. The BTN makes money. Only the LHN will not make money and when the deal is over, ESPN will not lose any more money on it. (It's hard to explain this to a UT fan, but ESPN guaranteed UT money, they get paid whether the LHN makes money or not, while ESPN is losing money on the deal).

 

[gbo]

I don't know about the ACC network as a stand alone channel on cable but I do know that I'd love it if it was a stand alone app.

 

[TheCusian]

ESPN isn't hemmoraging money. They need to cut costs due to non-live/sport content. The live stuff still drives viewership.

 

[HtownOrange]

ESPN isn't hemmoraging money. They need to cut costs due to non-live/sport content. The live stuff still drives viewership.

Which is the key to the revenue and profits they are generating.

 

[WickedOrange]

I WANT MY ACC TV!

 

[OrangeXtreme]

 

[texascpa]

So, which administrator or Director leaked this? LOL

 

[creatorsgam]

Caught a moment of "Adam and Joe," which airs right after David Glenn down here in Raleigh. They seemed to believe that either ESPNU or ESPN News will be the sacrificial channel to accommodate the ACC Network.

 

[Hoo's That]

Caught a moment of "Adam and Joe," which airs right after David Glenn down here in Raleigh. They seemed to believe that either ESPNU or ESPN News will be the sacrificial channel to accommodate the ACC Network.

"News" is pretty worthless since it's basically a 24-hour SportsCenter that only gets watched when a game on one of the other ESPNs runs long.

 

[Orijinal]

I seriously don't get why any piece of news means the sky is falling for the ACC. The reports of the ACC's demise come out of the woodwork. Even our own people purport this stuff (ahem, Syracuse.com and Nunes Magician). I think half the people are just paranoid and parrot what others say, and the other half are scared (dare I say jealous?) of the potential power of the ACC and want to see it come to ruin.

 

[creatorsgam]

"News" is pretty worthless since it's basically a 24-hour SportsCenter that only gets watched when a game on one of the other ESPNs runs long.

Agreed, but I wouldn't lower News to SC. News is a relic, a throwback to a lost time when SC was about sports rather than worthless NBA/NFL H0T Takes.

 

[orange79]

Caught a moment of "Adam and Joe," which airs right after David Glenn down here in Raleigh. They seemed to believe that either ESPNU or ESPN News will be the sacrificial channel to accommodate the ACC Network.

"News" is pretty worthless since it's basically a 24-hour SportsCenter that only gets watched when a game on one of the other ESPNs runs long.

Yeah, I hope it's not ESPNU. News? Take it.

 

[sutomcat]

Yeah, I hope it's not ESPNU. News? Take it.

ESPN's John Skipper has allegedly given "total confirmation" of linear ACC Network launch in 2019

 

[HtownOrange]

ESPN's John Skipper has allegedly given "total confirmation" of linear ACC Network launch in 2019

Good find. The writer, as well as many others, miss the point that ESPN has a vested interest in the success of the ACCN and that that interest is lucrative (largest media footprint), higher than average wage earners, etc., along with with re-brandable useless networks that will literally cost nothing to convert and can generate new revenues. Live sports generate the most revenue, the ACC has plenty of live sports to offer, ESPN has a few networks that are flailing, it makes sense to try something else, especially a prove model (see SECN, BTN).

Comparing the PACN any of the 4 P5 deals is non-sense as they are doing the "go-it-alone" route and, if successful, could reap rewards across the pacific as well as west coast. Even a modest success rate in Asia could be very beneficial to the western schools.

Further, all the gloom and doom prognosticators forget the simple fact that even cord cutters will want something to watch. Sports nuts will pay for their teams/conferences/sports in general. ABC and Disney have been around a very long time and weathered many storms while making money. ESPN has been making money for some time. The three will weather this storm and make money, maybe not as much, but still making money.

 

[Orijinal]

If only I had a dollar for every time I read the phrase "cord cutters/cord cutting," I'd be making more than ESPN right now

 

[JimBoston]

Things people need to keep in mind before jumping from office ledges:

1) ESPN is NOT going broke. They have a reduction in their revenue and profits, to counteract the reduced revenue and profits, ESPN is trimming fat. Disney rarely loses money and knows how to balance the desire for profit with revenue streams. ESPN is still making the most revenue and profit for Disney.

2) ESPN has the rights to many sports leagues and conferences, they could sell off a few if they were in real trouble.

3) Most sports media personnel are overpaid. Any of us would do the job for a livable salary and expenses just because we love sports. Paying people 5X, 10X 20X average salaries is excessive especially compared to local TV/radio/print personalities who work for far less than their ESPN counterparts.

4) ESPN will enjoy a new revenue stream, though not likely as much, once they learn how to market directly to sports fans who cut the cable. HBO is doing it. Several others are doing it. Give it some time.

5) ESPN could actually get sports talk back on their broadcasts and lose some more fat.

6) The SECN is making money. The ACCN will make money. The BTN makes money. Only the LHN will not make money and when the deal is over, ESPN will not lose any more money on it. (It's hard to explain this to a UT fan, but ESPN guaranteed UT money, they get paid whether the LHN makes money or not, while ESPN is losing money on the deal).

Yes, ESPN is not losing money, but their profit margins are under pressure. And, the future doesn't look great for their current business model. Basically, they make money 3 ways: Total subs, price charged per sub, and advertising. Well, subs are declining, price per sub will probably be difficult to increase going forward, and ratings have been mixed. On the expense side, ESPN has locked in escalating media rights costs for the long term. The cost savings of the recent job cuts are minimal compared to costs of media rights and you can't cut too much talent or ratings will decline.

So, ESPN could have flat to declining revenues with rising costs for media rights.

What could happen to an ACCN? ESPN could convert ESPN Classic to the ACCN as ESPNC has been losing subs and shifting to VOD, so it could be a way for ESPN to turn around a declining asset. (ESPN Classic has less than 25 million subs today) The real issue is will the carriage of an ACCN be jammed down the throats of cable companies like the BTN was? In today's world where cable companies are losing subs to cord cutting due to the high cost of the cable bundle, I think it's doubtful.

 

[CuseLegacy]

 

[Orijinal]

What could happen to an ACCN? In today's world where cable companies are losing subs to cord cutting due to the high cost of the cable bundle, I think it's doubtful.

Take a drink

 

[HtownOrange]

Yes, ESPN is not losing money, but their profit margins are under pressure. And, the future doesn't look great for their current business model. Basically, they make money 3 ways: Total subs, price charged per sub, and advertising. Well, subs are declining, price per sub will probably be difficult to increase going forward, and ratings have been mixed. On the expense side, ESPN has locked in escalating media rights costs for the long term. The cost savings of the recent job cuts are minimal compared to costs of media rights and you can't cut too much talent or ratings will decline.

So, ESPN could have flat to declining revenues with rising costs for media rights.

What could happen to an ACCN? ESPN could convert ESPN Classic to the ACCN as ESPNC has been losing subs and shifting to VOD, so it could be a way for ESPN to turn around a declining asset. (ESPN Classic has less than 25 million subs today) The real issue is will the carriage of an ACCN be jammed down the throats of cable companies like the BTN was? In today's world where cable companies are losing subs to cord cutting due to the high cost of the cable bundle, I think it's doubtful.

You discuss real issues, though in somewhat of a vacuum. ESPN has higher profit margins than average. They are not close to losing money, they have a reduction in profits. While I agree that the cuts to date are small compared to the rights they have purchased, there are more cuts to come and the word is out that people need to perform of will be cut and the giant salaries are going the way of the dodo (ESPN will probably still pay well for on-air talent, but the idea of making a fortune doing what we would do for a moderate living is no longer on the table which will have a long term effect of keeping salaries in check for a while).

The subscribers ESPN is really losing are those unwilling to pay for sports. In a free market, this is desirable for all. ESPN is feeling the pinch that not everyone enjoys sports. Fans who no longer have cable will not stop watching sports altogether, they use different platforms to get their sports. Thirty yeas ago, most fans had to go to a sports bar to watch their team play, if it was covered by TV. Now, nearly every game is broadcast, even smaller colleges can get coverage.

The net result is that there is money in sports, probably not as much as Rutgers fans dream of, but more than enough to make money. ESPN is owned by Disney, who has had an eye on their costs since purchasing ABC/ESPN. The timing is right to begin controlling costs for an industry that has had 3-4 decades of continuous growth and is now entering into the mature stage. The idea that ESPN is about to fold (only a slight exaggeration of what some ACC haters think) is far from accurate. Regardless, even if ESPN folded, the ACC would regain their rights and sell them to another alternative and generate monies. The paradigm is shifting but the old model will not become extinct for decades, if then.

If we assume, arguendo, that your scenario of rising costs goes far enough that it forces renegotiation of rights deals, that in turn would lead to renegotiating coaches salaries, staffing, etc. The schools will not lose as much as everyone thinks, there will still be revenue to be had. The only schools that will be hurt are those that mortgaged their futures on the miraculous promise of forever increasing TV money to the conferences. In truth, your scenario would benefit Syracuse more than most schools as the school has been prudent and has not to fallen into the traps of the monster schools (Gotta have 100,000 seating - which is hurt by TV), more facilities are necessary to attract best talent (read-the kids we recruit are too stupid to attend class so we have to entertain them), building facilities that are never filled (Rutgers, aside from the B1G's top schools that bring their own crowds), facilities that they cannot afford (far too many schools), etc.

I like the idea of converting ESPN Classic or one of other channels. ESPN-C would have the benefit of already having a lock on many subscribers, much easier for ESPN to market without strong arming every cable/satellite provider. Playing the game like the BTN did probably will not work in this economy right now, besides, it is bad for long term relationships. I don't worry as much about the cable providers, they will be the ones providing the bundles for those not subscribing to cable and they will be the internet providers,they will survive.

I think that ESPN will look to the HBO model, take a hit on their subscriber fees - which would benefit the cable providers and offering packages (monthly-season-conference-team) to the sports nuts and junkies, at a nice premium. This would keep them in good relatoins with cable providers and move them forward into their own streaming market. Just a guess, but HBO has clearly made the transition well and a company like ABC/ESPN/Disney will surely exploit it.

 

[HtownOrange]

If only I had a dollar for every time I read the phrase "cord cutters/cord cutting," I'd be making more than ESPN right now

Take a drink

Not sure you intended this, but if someone played the drinking game, their liver would be shot after a week. Just a thought that came to me at work - must be working to hard...

 

[Orijinal]

Not sure you intended this, but if someone played the drinking game, their liver would be shot after a week. Just a thought that came to me at work - must be working to hard...

Yup. You absolutely caught my drift ...

 

[NKR1978]

I seriously don't get why any piece of news means the sky is falling for the ACC. The reports of the ACC's demise come out of the woodwork. Even our own people purport this stuff (ahem, Syracuse.com and Nunes Magician). I think half the people are just paranoid and parrot what others say, and the other half are scared (dare I say jealous?) of the potential power of the ACC and want to see it come to ruin.

I sometimes forget Nunes exists. I checked it last week for the first time in forever and saw the doom and gloom and remembered why I don't read it.