N.F.L. Considers Reducing Ads and Length of Games

[Stinger]

As Ratings Plummet, N.F.L. Considers Reducing Ads and Length of Games

By KEN BELSONNOV. 10, 2016


N.F.L. Commissioner Roger Goodell said on Thursday that the league was looking at a variety of ways to shorten game broadcasts, including trimming some advertising, to keep the action moving.

The league has seen its television ratings plunge this season, something that Goodell has said is related to a number of factors, including the intense interest in the presidential election, as well as shifts in the way fans have been watching games.

Though television ratings are down by double digits so far this season, Goodell said that N.F.L. ratings had risen 27 percent in the past decade even as ratings for prime-time television had fallen 36 percent. Speaking on Thursday at the annual DealBook conference hosted by The New York Times, he called this year’s decline “cyclical.”

Goodell noted, though, that the pace of games could also be a factor in the ratings decline. Fans have complained for years that games are too long, and they frequently express annoyance at the number of commercial breaks and video reviews. Last season, the average length of regular-season games, from kickoff to final whistle, was 3 hours 8 minutes, six minutes longer than in 2008.

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Goodell said the league was considering a number of potential solutions to improve the pace of games, including running fewer advertisements and changing when they run. The league is also looking at ways to speed up video reviews by its officials as well as the time it takes referees to announce penalties on the field.

“We want to take as much what we call dead time, non-action out of the game, so that we can make the game more exciting,” Goodell said.

The league has expanded the number of games it plays on Thursday nights and overseas, leading some to speculate that the N.F.L. may be reducing interest in the game. Goodell said he was mindful of that possibility.

“Every game counts, so that makes our inventory incredibly valuable,” he said, adding that the league has to be careful not to saturate the market.

Goodell said he was aware of a surge of complaints that officials were botching calls on the field. He said the league was looking at how best to use technology to improve officiating without slowing down the game. “I was at Giants Stadium in the parking lot last weekend, and I got a lot of feedback from fans,” he said.

Goodell was uncertain how the election of Donald J. Trump — who brought a lawsuit against the league three decades ago — would affect the N.F.L. He noted that Trump favored less regulation, but he said that the primary concern for the league was its ability to reach fans through the media and technology. It was unclear what changes, if any, a Trump administration might make that would affect those industries.



http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/11/sp...mmercials.html

[KCTitus]

Originally Posted by Buck

...I've been saying, put the games on the internet for free and they'll make more money than they could possibly imagine.

They're already on the internet for free...have been for years.

[Dayze]

i would love an option to watch a broadcast w/out the commentary but still hear the crowd and field noise.

the announcers are a large part of what ruins the experience for me. Constantly getting idiots like Wilcotts, Lynch, Cross, Fouts etc. makes me not even want to watch the game at all. and a big reason why I don't, other than Chiefs games.

in fact, I would probably pay like a $50 fee every year to have this option

[loochy]

Originally Posted by KCTitus

They're already on the internet for free...have been for years.

Yup. I watch it like that every Sunday because the Chiefs are never on here.

[KCTitus]

The NFL's problems go way deeper than the kickoff or commercials or length of game. The officiating is so horrible that it calls into question the legitimacy of the competitions. When fans, hardcore or otherwise, think the games are tilted a certain way, they're going to stop watching.

I watch the KC games, but rarely watch anything else anymore. And I've given up watching KC 'primetime' games be it Monday/Thursday or Sunday night because they ALLWAYS crap the bed. I used to watch every game I could and I guess I'm not alone if it's becoming noticeable in the ratings.

[Valiant]

It is funny. The time of the game is not what turned me away. Though they could shed some commercials out.

If anyone else is similar the cost of going to the game started it. Ince that happened I became less inclined to watch on tv.

Then add in European games? Neutering defenses, babying star qbs. Constant bad calls by refs. Fining for celebrations. Goodell decisions from the owners.

Shit. Even in Missouri there are better things to do with my day.

[Pasta Little Brioni]

The horribly slanted officiating has turned many away. When an officiating crew blows FIFTEEN calls like they did in favor of GB over the Jags, you have a serious problem with people taking results of games seriously. Throw in the Super Farce and fans are jumping ship fast.

[Dayze]

what's the number of legit Super Bowl contenders each year...3? 4? Maybe 5?

The rest is just a waste of time. like the preacher in Blazzing Saddles offering up a prayer when building a fake Rock Ridge, and asking god a rhetorical question

"O Lord, do we have the strength to carry off this mighty task in one night? Or are we just jerking off?"

are we going to have a legit shot at a Super Bowl?...or are we all just......ya know.

[Pasta Little Brioni]

Well there must have been none last year

[bevischief]

It's the bringing in politics into a entertainment that is pissing people off. Otherwise we watch the news.

[KCTitus]

Originally Posted by bevischief

It's the bringing in politics into a entertainment that is pissing people off. Otherwise we watch the news.

That too...I'm tired of the preaching and I stopped watching ESPN entirely because of it.

[splatbass]

This is what they should do if they want people to watch (IMO):

1. Stop changing the rules all the time. Players can't celebrate and a finger wag gets a penalty. They've taken the fun out of the game.

2. They are oversaturated. Too many days. They don't need Thursday night games - they usually suck anyway. They don't need Sunday night games. 9+ hours of football on Sunday is too much. Two games on Sunday plus Monday night is all they needed for decades, and it is all they need now.

3. Force Tom Brady to retire. Ok, this one is just kidding. Maybe.

[rabblerouser]

Originally Posted by splatbass

This is what they should do if they want people to watch (IMO):

1. Stop changing the rules all the time. Players can't celebrate and a finger wag gets a penalty. They've taken the fun out of the game.

2. They are oversaturated. Too many days. They don't need Thursday night games - they usually suck anyway. They don't need Sunday night games. 9+ hours of football on Sunday is too much. Two games on Sunday plus Monday night is all they needed for decades, and it is all they need now.

3. Force Tom Brady to retire. Ok, this one is just kidding. Maybe.

Addendum to #2 : all games must be on broadcast TV. No more NflNet/ESPN exclusive bullshit.

[rabblerouser]

Originally Posted by bevischief

It's the bringing in politics into a entertainment that is pissing people off. Otherwise we watch the news.

Exactly!! **** all you ASSHOLES kneeling on the sidelines. You make millions to play a ****ing game. Suck it up, be grateful for what you have, stand up FOR YOUR COUNTRY, and act like you have a ****ing backbone.

[KCTitus]

The Thursday night games are just bad...if the NFL truly cared about player safety, they wouldnt play on Thursdays after only 3 days rest. That's absurd. Frankly, they need a second bye week and extend the season one more week, thus having the Superbowl on Presidents Day, Sunday, thus giving most of us a holiday the following day.

[Mr. Laz]

Originally Posted by bevischief

It's the bringing in politics into a entertainment that is pissing people off. Otherwise we watch the news.

What political stuff other than kaepernick?