Kings release broadcaster, switching to simulcast, could Detroit copy this?
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Alex Faust is out as the King’s broadcaster in a move that could be a blueprint for the rest of the league. To be fair, this happened a week ago. I changed some of my search parameters and found this gem. This could lay the groundwork for a major shift in several markets.
Essentially, Nick Nickson and his crew (Jim Fox, Darryl Evans). So, it sounds like the game you listen to will be the exact same commentary as the game you watch. From the article:
This severance occurred amid myriad uncertainties in the local sports broadcasting landscape around the country, largely due to developments in the bankruptcy proceedings of Bally Sports’ parent company Diamond Sports Group. Recent rulings regarding the company’s agreements with Major League Baseball might have been the strongest signal yet that broadcasts rights to 45 franchises across four leagues – including the Kings, Ducks and Clippers – are in peril for Diamond. Major League Baseball already assumed control of the San Diego Padres’ rights, a potential harbinger of similar flux for the other Bally-affiliated franchises.
So, this is a bit of a throw back in some ways. Around 2009 my wife and I were on the road back and forth to Minnesota. If a game was on, you could switch between “home or away… broadcasts (you still can). Once in a while, it would be the radio team.
Fiscally, this kind of move could save a lot more that it appears at first. One telecast goes from 4 personalities to 2 during again (Ken Kal and Paul Wood vs Mickey Redmond and Ken Daniels). You also save on the number of engineers and show runners. When Larry Murphy used to do the post game at the Joe, he was on an elevated platform. When he was done, he and 3 other people came down (really cramped). Camera, lights and sound all had to be there.
This kind of consolidation gives me pause, but may be the lesser of two bad scenarios. It was recently released thatDarren Pang left over a lowball offer from Bally Sports. IF Bally is allowed to continue to broadcast, they’re going to go the corporate route. “Who can do this for less money?…
Low ball offers are usually indicators that a company wants to save face instead of having to let someone go or fire them. Bally is still looking to give a strong market presence all the while they are being sued by at least 4 MLB teams for missed payment.
Here’s what I hate about this. If Detroit goes the simulcast route, someone has to go (possibly several people). I know a few of you don’t care for Redmond’s contribution, but he draws people. Ken Danielson too. So, of Paul Wood and Ken Kal, who would stay? Possibly neither.
There is an appetite to see former players on broadcast. Osgood gets a lot of heat, but people line up to see him. His acumen for the sport has grown by leaps as he now knows what it’s like to be an owner as well as doing intermission interviews. Trevor Thomas does an excellent job with his player interviews and breakdown of plays. Regardless of who (if anyone) goes, someone is going to be upset. There are fans who like all of these contributors, as well as fans who want a change.
The missed portion of this may be savings in bandwidth. Streaming internet radio vs. terrain based cuts even more cost out of the broadcast equation. You no longer have to have a link up to a station with an antenna, you can just stream the audio. If you’re unaware, stations pay the FCC for their bandwidth. AM760, 1130, 97.1 etc. if the simulcast model is getting looked at, radio deals will expire and not be there. If you have a smart phone, you’ll just use the app as per usual and pick “listen online…. Fairly simple process, but could cost dozens of jobs.
Ad partnerships are going to be interesting in the coming year. Multi year deals in huge markets are probably fine. But, if you had a drop in viewership of around 100k (very curious to see final numbers on playoffs) companies are going to see that limited reach. When this happened with a streaming service, refunds were issued or applied to a discounted rate. The “ad tier… for Disney+, Hulu, Netflix and others who have tried it have found a lot of pushback. The model was underpriced with the intention of raising it. Disney went from around $7 to $10 (5.99 ad tier) and on the last earnings call another rise in subscriptions were talked about.
Bally is in a mess. They’ve admitted that they only have about half the subs they projected. ESPN plus, for me and others in the area around Detroit just isn’t worth it. Yeah, you miss 4 -6 games but paying for a month of service to watch one game isn’t a lot of fun. People are still tightening their spending and former ad partners have lost significant revenues as people are less inclined to pay out for multiple services. I’m getting ready to “cut the cable… myself at this point. DirecTV has a slightly less expensive streaming model, and Comcast is trying to start a price war. Content is being pulled and cancelled as the Force Majeure Clause is being prepped. Disney dropped 12 or so original shows and shuttered a hotel in the park in Florida. Now they’ve dropped ticket prices to the park for in state residents from $170 to around $56. Meanwhile, Universal is packed. Reports came out that on the Memorial Day weekend, Disney had waits of less than 20 minutes for rides that used to take an hour or more but Universal Studios had an enormous weekend.
At the end of the day, Bally wants to save face. In reality, Sinclair wants to save face so Diamond sports is the buffer and will be the focus of the shut downs. If Bally’s strategy is to “low ball… on air talent across the board, it may be to show positive movement in expenditures to the bankruptcy judge. I’ll keep you posted as I learn more about this but am really excited for draft day and pre draft trades. Finally, getting back to the sport and not counting beans.