Sports, unlike all other genres, have the power to attract large, consistent TV viewership—and on set schedules. You’d have to have been living under a rock this past year to have not been exposed to the whirlwind NFL season, which culminated in record viewership for Super Bowl LVII. Regardless of the appeal, however, the immense competition for sports rights amid an increasingly fragmented media landscape makes it challenging—and frustrating—for fans to find the games they’re looking for.
Meskipun tidak semua penerbit mampu mengajukan penawaran untuk hak siar olahraga, bidang tujuan konten jauh lebih luas dibandingkan empat tahun lalu-dan hak siar olahraga terus mengarah ke layanan streaming, termasuk pertandingan playoff NFL tertentu yang terkenal.
And at the same time, some publishers that once expressed little interest in live sports have changed position and are now staking claim to what remains the most watched content on TV. Netflix, for example, has hosted two live sports events since November, ending an extensive period of previously abstaining from entering the space.
Not every event, however, has the notoriety of the Super Bowl, Thursday Night Football and Netflix’s recent Netflix Slam tournament—an important consideration as the new MLB season kicks off, which features 30 teams that each play 162 games. Die-hard fans of the New York Yankees, for example, will need access to three traditional TV networks (YES Network, ESPN, FOX) and three streaming services (Apple TV+, Amazon Prime Video, MLB TV) if they want to catch all of the season’s on-screen action. On the west coast, fans of the Los Angeles Dodgers have even more to navigate, as their 2024 season will be televised across ABC, CBS, ESPN, FOX, FOX Sports 1, SportsNet LA and Apple TV+.
Pemirsa TV menyaksikan hampir 330 miliar menit aksi pertandingan MLB musim lalu.
And outside of major markets like New York, Boston and Philadelphia that can sustain regional sports networks (RSNs) because they have major teams across the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL, teams and leagues in smaller markets have started striking over-the-air broadcast rights deals with local TV stations while simultaneously offering games direct-to-consumers via streaming apps.
Intinya dalam pasar yang sangat terfragmentasi ini adalah bahwa siaran langsung olahraga dapat menarik banyak penonton, tetapi hanya jika penonton dapat menemukan pertandingannya. Pencarian web baru-baru ini, misalnya, mencatat bahwa pertandingan NHL baru-baru ini antara Arizona Coyotes dan Washington Capitals ada di ESPN+, tetapi hasilnya ternyata tidak benar-pengalaman yang membuat frustasi bagi siapa pun di luar pasar lokal yang ingin menonton pertandingan.
Ini bukanlah contoh yang unik, dan juga tidak akan menjadi yang terakhir. Berkembangnya layanan dan dorongan untuk monetisasi dengan konten yang terkenal menunjukkan bahwa masa depan akan semakin terfragmentasi.
When Nielsen launched The Gauge, for example, streaming accounted for 26% of our total time with TV, and only five services had enough viewership to warrant being independently reported. Two of the services also didn’t include advertising. In January 2024, by contrast, streaming accounted for 36% of TV usage and 11 services are independently reported (and all either include ads or have ad-supported subscription tiers). And what’s more, four have exclusive rights to select sporting events, as do ESPN+ and Apple TV+.
Pada tingkat yang sangat tinggi, satu musim dari lima liga olahraga utama di AS mencakup ribuan pertandingan. MLB, misalnya, memiliki hampir 2.500 pertandingan dalam satu musim. Secara historis, penonton dapat menemukan daftar pertandingan lengkap di TV Guide mingguan, tetapi saat ini, bahkan internet tidak dapat mengikuti informasi program untuk jadwal siaran langsung olahraga. Dan di sisi lain, para penerbit biasanya berfokus untuk menyediakan informasi hanya untuk kontes yang mereka selenggarakan.
Di sinilah para pembuat elektronik konsumen (OEM), MVPD, dan penyedia layanan digital dapat memimpin-dan pada akhirnya memenangkan hati para penonton dan pemegang hak siar. Dengan pemahaman yang jelas tentang kekuatan siaran langsung olahraga, yang tetap menjadi pendorong terbesar bagi para penonton, organisasi-organisasi ini dapat memberikan informasi tentang siaran langsung olahraga dan konten terkait di seluruh platform over-the-top, sehingga memberikan informasi yang komprehensif dan real-time kepada para penonton untuk lanskap media yang mengutamakan streaming.
A version of this article originally appeared on sportsbusinessjournal.com.
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1Services are independently reported once usage represents at least 1% of TV usage.
