ESPN reportedly slated for another huge round of layoffs

[Eleazar]

ESPN is reportedly preparing for another round of cost-cutting — and this time, the cuts could be even more significant, at least in terms of name recognition.

Michael Rand
March 6, 2017

http://strib.mn/2lPzMix



News of layoffs in the media industry have become all-too-familiar in recent years, owing to declining user rates and hollowed out advertising revenue.

Even sports media behemoth ESPN hasn’t been immune to the trend; we’re barely a year removed from a round of layoffs during which the company shed about 300 employees.

And now ESPN is reportedly preparing for another round of cost-cutting — and this time, the cuts could be even more significant, at least in terms of name recognition. SI’s Richard Deitsch has some of the details in a recent column:

SI has learned that ESPN will have significant cost-cutting over the next four months on its talent side (people in front of the camera or audio/digital screen). Multiple sources said ESPN has been tasked with paring tens of millions of staff salary from its payroll, including staffers many viewers and readers will recognize.

The reasons offered by Deitsch are familiar: ESPN’s subscriber base is shrinking — from 100 million early in 2011 to less than 88 million in a February estimate. Every lost subscriber costs the company more than $8 a month in lost revenue between ESPN and ESPN. That’s roughly $100 a year per subscriber. Multiply that by 12 million lost subscribers in the last six years and you see a $1.2 billion (per year) deficit from where ESPN could have been if the subscriber base had stayed flat.

Combine that with declining ad revenue — which caused the stock of Disney, ESPN’s parent company, to tumble at its last reporting date last month — and you have a dangerous mix that leads to layoffs.

That said, the reported layoffs also seem a little disingenuous — a move designed to appease shareholders more than something truly necessary in the moment.

I say that because even though ESPN’s subscriber base has declined steadily in recent years, their fee per user has gone up significantly in the same span. As of mid-2016, the fee for ESPN alone was $7.21 per month — up more than a dollar from 2014 and more than double what it was in 2007. Basically, ESPN is offsetting lost revenue from lost subscribers by making those who still get the network pay more.

This math is over-simplified with round numbers, but it’s still relevant: 88 million subscribers paying $7 a month ($616 million) is more revenue than 100 million subscribers paying $6 a month ($600 million).

Continuously cranking up that fee might be a dangerous game to play since there is a risk of accelerating the spiral of those ditching cable (and therefore ESPN) because of high fees. But sports are a major part of the reason subscribers stick with cable/satellite packages. What’s another dollar or two to die-hard fans? We’ll find out.

[ThaVirus]

Originally Posted by Frazod

The only time I watch ESPN now is if one of my teams is actually playing in a game they're broadcasting. I watch MLB Network for baseball news and NFL Network for football news, and I don't give a **** about anything else. Especially their horseshit liberal agenda pushing.

They can kill the whole damned thing as far as I'm concerned.

I'm really wondering about this. Maybe I just don't watch enough ESPN, but what agenda?

[Chief Pagan]

Originally Posted by O.city

I watch alot of live sports on ESPN, but I can't think of the last "show" I watched on there. Mostly due to being at work during that time, but it seems to be played out.

I enjoy some of their xm shows

ESPN has shows?

I didn't realize it had anything other than Monday Night Football and

Jayhawk basketball...

Who would have thunk?

[Coach]

Fine by me. Too much East/West coast bias. Can also toss in SEC bias as well.

Good riddance.

[MahiMike]

Can't believe they went with Michael and Jemele for prime time sportscenter. Guess they are going full Winn Dixie/KFC over there.

[KChiefs1]

Originally Posted by Frazod

The only time I watch ESPN now is if one of my teams is actually playing in a game they're broadcasting. I watch MLB Network for baseball news and NFL Network for football news, and I don't give a **** about anything else. Especially their horseshit liberal agenda pushing.



They can kill the whole damned thing as far as I'm concerned.

Agree on all points.

Live sports is the only reason to watch ESPN.

MLBN & NFLN have killed ESPN as far as I'm concerned. Breaking news I go to them instead of ESPN.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[KChiefs1]

Originally Posted by Mr. Laz

Still not sure what this means.

Since being direct is in my nature: KChiefs1, are you trying to imply that Espn is too liberal for American Sports broadcasting? Or was your comment just a CPlanet lexicon-ish type comment?

A little of both. ESPN tends to push their agenda a little too hard for my taste.



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[raybec 4]

They USED to be my go to watch way back in the day when I worked nights. I always enjoyed watching the worlds strongest man competition, Aussie Rules football and they used to show a lot of boxing. I can't even watch SC anymore. It's not sports driven anymore, it's star athlete driven. If you want to hear about something other than the biggest most popular or most controversial athletes ESPN isn't the place to go.

[WhawhaWhat]

Maybe spending $125 million on that new set wasn't such a good idea.

[KChiefs1]

Originally Posted by ThaVirus

I'm really wondering about this. Maybe I just don't watch enough ESPN, but what agenda?

Giving Bruce(Caitlyn)Jenner the Arthur Ashe Courage Award for heroism, endorsing militant pressure group Black Lives Matter at the ESPYs, firing Curt Schilling for not being more supportive about transgender bathrooms and awarding President Obama a spurious “First Fan” award as part of its MLK Day tribute.

There was also the NFL-National Anthems controversy in which ESPN seemed to sympathize with the anti-American actions of Colin Kaepernick, and when the network turned a blind eye when panelist Kevin Blackistone called the national anthem a “war anthem.”


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[MahiMike]

Originally Posted by raybec 4

They USED to be my go to watch way back in the day when I worked nights. I always enjoyed watching the worlds strongest man competition, Aussie Rules football and they used to show a lot of boxing. I can't even watch SC anymore. It's not sports driven anymore, it's star athlete driven. If you want to hear about something other than the biggest most popular or most controversial athletes ESPN isn't the place to go.

This is exactly what they need to do; show the obscure stuff.

[WilliamTheIrish]

Cable

KODI

[Easy 6]

Originally Posted by MahiMike

Chris Berman timed the market perfectly!

Was just about to say that without Berman hosting the Countdown/Primetime shows, I now have zero reason to watch any ESPN programming at all... I hope they go bankrupt

[Pasta Little Brioni]

The new 6 pm Diversity!!! sportscenter is an abomination

[Frazod]

Originally Posted by KChiefs1

Giving Bruce(Caitlyn)Jenner the Arthur Ashe Courage Award for heroism, endorsing militant pressure group Black Lives Matter at the ESPYs, firing Curt Schilling for not being more supportive about transgender bathrooms and awarding President Obama a spurious “First Fan” award as part of its MLK Day tribute.

There was also the NFL-National Anthems controversy in which ESPN seemed to sympathize with the anti-American actions of Colin Kaepernick, and when the network turned a blind eye when panelist Kevin Blackistone called the national anthem a “war anthem.”


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Exactly. If you're not some urbanite metrosexual drone who has a Tom Brady jersey hanging next to a Stephen Curry jersey next to a Kris Bryant jersey next to LeBron James jersey next to a Peyton Manning jersey, thinks soccer is great, buys into the notion that Bruce Jenner and Colin Kaepernick are ****ing heroes, roots for Kansas or Kentucky in basketball even though you couldn't find either state on a map, and thinks that Coors Light is the best beer in the world, they do not seek your business.

[Eleazar]

Originally Posted by Frazod

Exactly. If you're not some urbanite metrosexual drone who has a Tom Brady jersey hanging next to a Stephen Curry jersey next to a Kris Bryant jersey next to LeBron James jersey next to a Peyton Manning jersey, thinks soccer is great, buys into the notion that Bruce Jenner and Colin Kaepernick are ****ing heroes...

This is a big part of their problem. ESPN has positioned itself as a network for (a) people who religiously follow the NBA and (b) people who aren't really sports fans, like millennial SJWs

Cable TV is what it is, it's a dying business, but ESPN is doing themselves no favors by pissing off every workaday sports fan out there.

Remember when it was all highlights and stats and it didn't seem like you'd tune in and ever see the same thing twice? When they showed sports besides basketball more than every once-in-a-while?