NBC Archives - Boardroom https://boardroom.tv/tag/nbc/ Sports Business News Thu, 14 Mar 2024 03:59:06 +0000 en-US hourly 1 Kelly Clarkson, Peyton Manning, Mike Tirico to Host Olympics Opening Ceremony https://boardroom.tv/headline-to-go/03-14-2024-olympics-opening-ceremony-kelly-clarkson-peyton-manning-mike-tirico/ Thu, 14 Mar 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?post_type=headline-to-go&p=88697 Kelly Clarkson, Peyton Manning, and Mike Tirico will team up for NBC's Opening Ceremony coverage for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

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]]> Kelly Clarkson, Peyton Manning, Mike Tirico to Host Olympics Opening Ceremony

The countdown to the Olympics Opening Ceremony is on. Ahead of the July 26 event in Paris, Kelly Clarkson and Peyton Manning joined NBC Sports’ Mike Tirico on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon to confirm that they will host the introductory installment of NBC‘s Olympics coverage. The announcement is part of an ongoing series of reveals by NBCUniversal. Additionally, Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb will take to the banks of the Seine for their daily Today Show responsibilities.

Under Armour Brings Back Founder Kevin Plank as CEO

Kevin Plank is returning to Under Armour as CEO, the company announced on Wednesday. Stephanie Linnartz, who held the position since February 2023, is stepping down but will remain with the company through April. Plank previously served as CEO after founding the company in 1996 but stepped down four years ago. He’s remained on board this entire time as the company’s chairman. With the move, Plank will be forfeiting his chair position to Mohamed El-Erian.

David Beckham has a new partnership to add to his lengthy portfolio. The former footballer and current Inter Miami CF exec is linking up with Stella Artois for the beer brand’s newest campaign. Beckham fronted a new ad for the Anheuser-Busch brand, in which bar patrons are more smitten with the beverage than Beckham himself, leaving him humbled and a bit confused. Market analysts point to the partnership as part of a broader play on behalf of A-B to rebrand after a difficult couple of years. An executive for Anheuser-Busch lauded the partnership, deeming Beckham as the “epitome of premium values,” in an interview with CNN.

Allen Iverson, Pepsi Team Up for March Madness Bracket Challenge

It was nearly 30 years ago that Allen Iverson got his first taste of March Madness when he led the Georgetown Hoyas to the Sweet 16, followed by a run to the Elite Eight in his final collegiate season. And now, he’s ready to help you with your upcoming bracket — well, sort of. Ahead of this year’s men’s tournament, Iverson has partnered with Pepsi for the second straight year on the “Zero Right Bracket Challenge.” Starting Thursday, fans can visit the Pepsi social media channels for links to sign up for the promotion run on DraftKings, paying $100,000 to anyone who picks every game wrong. Brackets must be submitted by March 21.

Roger Federer Launches Eyewear Line with Oliver Peoples

Roger Federer is tennis’ $1 billion man. Now, the retired superstar has a new venture in his ever-growing portfolio. Federer teamed up with eyewear brand Oliver Peoples to launch their first collaborative line. After debuting the model on the Oscars red carpet, the new collab kicked off with a star-studded event in Los Angeles, which featured Maria Sharapova, Jay Ellis, Trevor Noah, and many more. Oliver Peoples unveiled the planned line at the Met Gala in May 2023, where Federer was a co-host.  The collection is available for purchase in stores and online.

Megan Thee Stallion Announces ‘Hot Girl Summer’ Tour

Megan Thee Stallion is hitting the road. The Houston rapper announced her upcoming “Hot Girl Summer” tour, which is set to kick off in May. While she hasn’t revealed the official route of the tour, it will include stops in New York City, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Chicago, Dallas, and more. Official dates will be revealed on March 20. The news comes on the heels of Meg’s new line with Nike and ahead of what many believe will be a new album, her first with Warner Music Group since leaving 1501 Ent. and 300.

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]]> The NFL’s Super Wild Card Weekend Problem https://boardroom.tv/nfl-super-wild-card-weekend-problem-viewership/ Tue, 16 Jan 2024 18:42:47 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?p=85951 Since the NFL expanded its playoffs in 2020, the Super Wild Card Weekend games haven't been the most competitive. But with viewership up, does it matter?

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]]> Since the NFL expanded its playoffs in 2020, the Super Wild Card Weekend games haven’t been the most competitive. But with viewership up, does it matter?

If you’re a fan of closely contested NFL playoff games, you were largely disappointed over the long holiday weekend.

Aside from the Detroit Lions‘ thrilling 1-point win over the Los Angeles Rams in their first postseason game at home in 30 years, the Super Wild Card round wasn’t competitive. Houston blew out Cleveland, Kansas City froze out Miami, Green Bay destroyed Dallas on the road, Buffalo had little trouble with Pittsburgh, and Tampa Bay cemented Philadelphia‘s nosedive.

Since the NFL expanded the playoffs from 12 to 14 teams in 2020, only nine of the 24 Super Wild Card games were decided by a touchdown or less, 37.5%. That’s nearly 10 percentage points less than the number of close games during the 2023 regular season, when 128 of the 272 games were decided by 7 points or less, a 47% clip.

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The bottom line is that, on the field, the NFL’s Super Wild Card Weekend has resulted in a Subpar Wild Card Weekend. Off the field, however, it’s no surprise that the two extra playoff games have been a financial boon for the league.

Having six games in the first round instead of four allows the NFL to placate its four linear TV partners — CBS, NBC, Fox, and ABC/ESPN. It also gives the league more room to experiment and innovate, taking $110 million from NBC to broadcast Saturday night’s Chiefs-Dolphins ice bowl on Peacock, the first exclusive streaming playoff game in NFL history.

The plan clearly worked.

Nielsen said that 23 million viewers tuned into the blowout, the most streamed live TV event in US history, though that number includes linear viewers in the two local markets and the NFL+ audience. That number was up 6% from last year’s NBC-only playoff game, with a likely jump in subscriber growth that will make every streamer salivating at the thought of getting in on the action.

It won’t be long before more playoff games are on Paramount+, ESPN+, and Amazon’s Prime Video, as it’s a win-win situation — the two extra games make it vastly easier for the NFL to say “yes” to its media partners, and the league keeps everyone happy.

Eyes Always on the NFL
History shows that people will tune in to the NFL, as the league dominates the list of most-watched US sporting events ever.
Check it out!

Having one more playoff team per conference gives more teams hope during the regular season and provides a greater incentive to gun for the top seed with just one bye total per conference. But the current postseason structure is coming at the expense of the Wild Card round.

While the seventh-seeded Packers were a great story that wouldn’t have had the opportunity in the previous playoff system, they were the only road team to win over the weekend. In the 14-team playoff era, home teams won 16 of the 24 Super Wild Card games. The numbers would suggest that, competitively, going back to 12 teams would make first-round games better.

Given how much more money the league makes now during the current format, reducing playoff teams will never happen. But if the playoffs remain the same as currently constructed, four years of data shows that you’re just not going to get great Wild Card round games.

Viewership remains sky-high. Dallas’ flop on Sunday got 40 million viewers on Fox, up 20% from its similar window last year. Streaming-only playoff games gives the NFL yet another nine-figure source of revenue while spreading the inventory among its media partners.

The games on the field may not be competitive compared to the regular season, but the NFL isn’t really incentivized to care. The Subpar Wild Card Weekend era is here to stay, and it doesn’t seem like the NFL’s tens of millions of fans really mind at all.

Business is booming, good games be damned.

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]]> Loading NFL Wild Card Weekend: All Eyes on Peacock’s Exclusive Chiefs-Dolphins Stream https://boardroom.tv/nfl-wild-card-weekend-nbc-peacock-incentives-betting/ Fri, 12 Jan 2024 20:25:02 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?p=85899 Will the stream on NBC's Peacock become the new norm? Also, top betting trends, player incentives, and more ahead of NFL Wild Card Weekend.

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]]> Will the stream on NBC’s Peacock become the new norm? Also, top betting trends, player incentives, and more ahead of NFL Wild Card Weekend.

There’s no shortage of key storylines as the NFL kicks off the playoffs with six games over three days as part of its holiday Wild Card Weekend.

We’ve got Tyreek Hill playing his former team in the playoffs as the Miami Dolphins visit the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs. The Detroit Lions won a division title for the first time in 30 years, and their reward is a battle against longtime former Lions QB Matthew Stafford, now leading the Los Angeles Rams. Mike McCarthy won a Super Bowl with the Green Bay Packers and now has to face them as Dallas Cowboys head coach.

Weather will also play a major factor in a pair of AFC matchups. Temperatures are forecasted to be in the single digits Saturday night in Kansas City, with a wind chill well into the negatives. In Buffalo, a state of emergency is in effect with a snowstorm expected to hit the area and winds gusting to 50 miles per hour leading into Sunday’s Bills home game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

From media to betting, mixed with a few important incentives, here’s everything you need to watch out for Wild Card Weekend in the NFL.

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NBC, Peacock Making History

For the first time in NFL history, a playoff game will be exclusively broadcast on a streaming service. NBC reportedly paid $110 million for Saturday night’s Chiefs–Dolphins Wild Card matchup to only be on its Peacock streaming service, except for the involved local markets. Like its December regular-season exclusive between the Bills and Chargers, the fourth quarter will be commercial-free (perhaps more time to pan the cameras Taylor Swift‘s way).

NBC clearly hopes the game will drive permanent subscribers, or perhaps at least people who sign up for a free trial and forget to cancel the subscription later on. Other networks will be closely watching how many tune in Saturday night, with ESPN‘s ESPN+, CBS‘ Paramount+, Fox‘s Tubi, and Amazon Prime Video likely itching to be the next streamer to get a postseason game.

And if this works in the NFL, where there are fewer playoff games, you can imagine that Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max and ESPN+ will angle for exclusively streamed NBA playoff games soon, perhaps with baseball and hockey not far behind. It seems hard to slam the streaming playoff door shut unless Saturday’s experiment yields disastrous results.

Without going too far into the weeds, here are some betting splits and trends to watch courtesy of our friends at FanDuel SportsBook:

  • An overwhelming 80% of the money is on the Cleveland Browns to cover 2.5 Saturday afternoon in Houston against the Texans. Bettors love a David Njoku anytime touchdown at +180.
  • In frigid temperatures, 83% of the money is on the Chiefs -230 to beat the Dolphins. Isiah Pacheco over 64.5 rushing yards is one of FanDuel‘s most popular player props.
  • With Buffalo favored by 10, the largest spread this weekend, a lot of money is on Pittsburgh at favorable odds. Steelers +400 moneyline is getting 41% of the money, and Pittsburgh +10 is at 44% as bettors see strong value.
  • While a whopping 69% of bets are on Green Bay at +265 to upset Dallas, 64% of the money is on Dallas to hold serve at home at -335. A CeeDee Lamb anytime touchdown at -160 and Jordan Love over 22.5 pass completion are popular player props here.
  • Monday night’s game of the free-falling Philadelphia Eagles visiting the Tampa Bay Buccaneers has bettors split on the outcome. While 63% of the money is on Philly to cover the 3-point spread, 55% of the money is on Tampa to pull the home upset at +134.

3 Key Monetary Incentives

After a slew of players cashed in on contract incentives in Week 18, three quarterbacks have a little extra individual motivation to win this weekend, per Spotrac. Joe Flacco earns an extra $250,000 if the Browns win at the Texans, Love would receive $500,000 if Green Bay wins and he plays 65% of the offensive snaps, and Baker Mayfield gets $250,000 if Tampa beats Philadelphia and he plays 75% of the offensive snaps.

Enjoy this weekend’s games!

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]]> Loading Snoop Dogg Signs on as Olympics Reporter with NBC https://boardroom.tv/headline-to-go/jan-3-2024-snoop-dogg-summer-olympics-reporter-nbc/ Wed, 03 Jan 2024 14:00:00 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?post_type=headline-to-go&p=85454 The post Snoop Dogg Signs on as Olympics Reporter with NBC appeared first on Boardroom.

]]> The post Snoop Dogg Signs on as Olympics Reporter with NBC appeared first on Boardroom.

]]> 10 Sports Business Predictions for 2024 https://boardroom.tv/10-sports-business-predictions-for-2024/ Mon, 01 Jan 2024 15:00:00 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?p=85055 Laying out 10 predictions for the new year, including massive NBA media rights, MLB expansion, in-season tournaments, soccer, F1, and the Olympics.

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]]> Laying out 10 predictions for the new year, including massive NBA media rights, MLB expansion, in-season tournaments, soccer, F1, and the Olympics.

As the holiday season leads to the calendar turning from 2023 to 2024, there are certain tentpole events in the sports business world that we’re already greatly anticipating.

The NBA is expected to sign a new media contract that would begin in 2025 and be worth vastly more than the $2.67 billion it makes on its current deal. After the Finals in June, local TV contracts for 15 NBA teams under Bally Sports will expire, ushering in a summer of media-free agency we haven’t seen in a long time. That same month, soccer’s highly anticipated European championships in Germany will be followed shortly thereafter in late July by the Summer Olympics in Paris, where the US men’s basketball team will look to avenge a fourth-place finish at this year’s World Cup.

A college football national champion will be crowned in January, the last title in the four-team College Football Playoff era before it expands to 12 in 2025. In February, the Super Bowl comes to Las Vegas for the first time. It could make the final year Vegas doesn’t have an MLB team, with the Oakland A’s set to move when their Oakland Coliseum lease expires next October. It’s an exciting time for a city that hosted its first-ever Formula 1 race in 2023 and houses the two-time WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces.

Enough talk, let’s look into the Boardroom crystal ball and make 10 sports business predictions for 2024!

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Amazon, NBC, and Peacock will gain NBA media rights deals.

The NBA can’t afford to lose ESPN and Turner as television partners, and vice versa. While they’ll eventually come to an agreement to extend their respective rights deals, both deals will come with fewer games as the league’s price tag will be a limiting factor given the networks’ need to spend on other sports media rights.

A streaming partner will be a necessity for any league moving forward — Amazon will get games at least weekly in their newest breakthrough deal to complement the NFL in the US. There’s going to be a fierce battle for Thursday night, with TNT wanting to keep its traditional slot and Amazon wanting to make Thursdays its signature live sports night to go with football.

And finally, who doesn’t love the ’90s NBA on NBC nostalgia? NBC and Peacock will get a few games per month, primarily for streaming non-exclusive local games like the NHL with Hulu and MLB with ESPN+. Disney won’t be happy with ABC not being the only traditional broadcast network getting games, but times change, and having the NBA back on NBC 5-10 times a year will feel so right.

After the deal gets done, the league will get more serious about expanding from 30 to 32 teams. Las Vegas and Seattle are the overwhelming favorites to land the new franchises.

The 12-team CFP will lead to further conference realignment and turmoil.

Expanding the College Football Playoff from four to 12 teams will make things more fair and equitable, right?

Wrong!

Just take a look at the top 12 in this year’s final CFP rankings. As of next season, Florida State will have been the only team outside the SEC and Big Ten in the top dozen. While each major conference champion will get automatic spots, the SEC and Big Ten will inevitably gobble up all the at-large bids. That will only lead to more big-time schools like Florida State and Clemson pressing to leave to the behemoths.

The big question is whether the Big 12 and ACC will stay competitive enough in a 12-team playoff era to sustain itself. I’m betting it won’t, leading to the two major conference models we’re seemingly destined to enter, with NIL further separating the haves and the have-nots.

Baseball expansion talks will gain some serious steam.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred‘s said for years that when the A’s and Rays get their stadium situations sorted, the league will start thinking about expansion. Late this year, the A’s got league ownership approval to move the team to Las Vegas, and the Rays reached an agreement to build a new stadium in St. Pete that will lead to decades more of dismally embarrassing attendance.

Cities like Nashville, Charlotte, Portland, Montreal, and Salt Lake are ready to ratchet up expansion discussions with MLB. For the first time in decades, the league will finally be open and receptive to expand for the first time since 1998.

Jude Bellingham will be regarded as the world’s best soccer player.

Maybe it’s the surreal brace I witnessed in Barcelona at El Clásico in October. Perhaps it’s the 17 goals in 20 games across all competitions for a 20-year-old in his first season at Real Madrid. But I believe 2024 is the year attacking midfielder Jude Bellingham becomes known as the best soccer player on the planet.

That designation will be sealed in June and July when Bellingham leads Madrid to the Champions League title over Erling Haaland and Manchester City, and Jude paces England to the Euro 2024 title over Kylian Mbappé and France. Mbappé will then star for the French at the Paris Olympics and turn around and spurn Paris Saint-Germain to join Bellingham at Real Madrid. But a year from now, we’ll be looking at Bellingham as the world’s top player, opening up a slew of marketing and portfolio-building opportunities for the youngster.

Barcelona & Real Madrid Need Each Other
Boardroom went behind the scenes in Spain to break down the business behind El Clásico.
Check it out!

MLB and NHL will seriously consider in-season tournaments of their own.

After seeing the NBA’s In-Season Tournament spice up its early season and increase national and local TV ratings by 26 and 20%, respectively, baseball and hockey will get on the cup bandwagon for 2025.

For MLB, this is a no-brainer. Have one Tuesday or Thursday game per week for a month in April and May count as Selig Cup matches, with the top eight heading to a single-elimination tournament at a warm neutral site over Memorial Day weekend. The NHL can do something similar, with the semifinals and finals replacing or adding to the Winter Classic on New Year’s Day.

It’s time we gave those sports some more early regular-season juice and conversational journey. All they need to do is simply follow the NBA’s lead. The NFL season is too short for a tournament, but we’ll soon see every team playing one neutral site, international game within the next 3-5 years.

The 2024 US men’s Olympic basketball team will rival the Redeem Team and the Dream Team as the best Team USA squads ever.

The last time a senior US men’s basketball team had a showing as poor as its fourth-place finish at the 202 World Cup, we got the legendary LeBron, Kobe, D-Wade, and Melo-led Redeem Team for the 2008 Olympics. I predict the projected roster for the 2024 team in Paris will end up being better than 2008, challenging the 1992 Dream Team for the best USA Basketball team ever.

LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Joel Embiid, Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Jayson Tatum, Anthony Davis, and Damian Lillard? Plus, other All-Stars waiting in the wings, such as potentially Kawhi Leonard, Jaylen Brown, Paul George, Bam Adebayo, Draymond Green, and many others? The 2024 US team will be out for revenge in Paris and could emerge as the best basketball team ever assembled.

Bonus Olympics predictions: Look for the US women’s soccer team to avenge its poor World Cup showing, with Sophia Smith emerging as a household name. Another name to watch out for? Give me Sha’Carri Richardson dominating on the track.

The biggest women’s NCAA tournament ever will lead to the best WNBA rookie class ever.

With record crowds and television ratings, women’s college basketball has never been more popular. The game’s biggest stars like Caitlin Clark, Cameron Brink, Paige Bueckers, and Angel Reese will not only lead women’s March Madness to outshine the men once again but will also bring with it the best WNBA draft class ever.

Clark teaming with Aaliyah Boston with the Indiana Fever? Brink or Bueckers bringing the LA Sparks back to greatness or leading the Phoenix Mercury or Seattle Storm into their next eras? Sign me up!

On that note, the WNBA Draft needs more shine. Let’s put it at an arena where fans can bring the live energy. Even better? Hold it the night of or the night after the Final Four in the host city — ratings and buzz bonanza.

Look out for a company like Amazon or Netflix to try to get into the RSN game.

With Sinclair’s Diamond Sports in bankruptcy proceedings, more and more teams will follow the lead of the Phoenix Suns, Utah Jazz, and others to put their games on free TV with an added direct-to-consumer subscription product. But the opportunity is wide open for a streamer like Amazon or Netflix to gobble up Diamond deals across the NBA, NHL, and MLB.

Amazon is reportedly already in talks with Diamond for an investment to do just that with a multi-year Prime Video streaming partnership. But if that fails, streamers should try to pick teams up a-la-carte to bring more premium sports content to their subscribers. The RSN model is clearly dead, and 2024 will be when seismic change occurs in how local fans watch their sports.

As F1 interest levels off stateside, the league will try to pursue a fourth US race … in NYC.

While Formula 1 remains incredibly popular in the US, its average television viewership of 1.11 million per race is down from 1.21 million in 2022. It’s the first major sign of F1 popularity peaking in the US despite three American races on the schedule in Miami, Austin, and Las Vegas.

As 2024 progresses, noise will grow louder about moving the Austin race to New York City in the future, whether at Central Park, the Brooklyn waterfront, or a more remote location like Randall’s Island.

Who are the Highest-paid F1 Drivers?
With all the familiar names at the top — led by reigning champ Max Verstappen — Boardroom outlines the highest-paid F1 drivers in 2023.
Check it out!

“Racing in New York, in Manhattan, if that were ever to be possible, that would be great without discounting all the other venues,” Mercedes principal and part owner Toto Wolff told me earlier this year. “We’ll find a way around that’s spectacular. I don’t know where it would be, but racing on Fifth Avenue? It would be amazing.”

New York City would continue the sport’s momentum that may have finally leveled off in 2023.

Volleyball will separate itself as the next big women’s sport.

Women’s sports has never had more momentum. The WNBA is expanding and growing. The NWSL signed a record-breaking media deal, cementing its well-earned ascent. And after seeing the success of college volleyball, capped by Texas upsetting Nebraska in the national championship game, it’s clear to see that volleyball will emerge as the next big women’s sport.

Pro women’s volleyball leagues like League One Volleyball (LOVB) and Athletes Unlimited will take advantage of that in ways softball couldn’t, promoting the top college stars, combining them with the top global pros, and gaining more visibility. It’s a long, drawn-out process to gain relevance and popularity — look at pro women’s basketball and soccer— but volleyball is next.

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]]> Loading Candace Parker, Jayson Tatum Join Kevin Durant in Backing League One Volleyball https://boardroom.tv/headline-to-go/09-28-2023-parker-tatum-durant-lovb-lillard-giannis-bucks-usher-tour/ Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:00:00 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?post_type=headline-to-go&p=78421 Candace Parker, Jayson Tatum Join Kevin Durant in Backing League One Volleyball League One Volleyball (LOVB), the largest brand in youth volleyball and the first professional full-season volleyball league in the US, has raised $35 million

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]]> Candace Parker, Jayson Tatum Join Kevin Durant in Backing League One Volleyball

League One Volleyball (LOVB), the largest brand in youth volleyball and the first professional full-season volleyball league in the US, has raised $35 million in Series B funding, it announced Wednesday. Some of the famous faces backing the firm are Olympic gold medalist Lindsey Vonn, two-time WNBA MVP Candace Parker and her daughter Lailaa Williams, Olympic volleyball gold medalist Jordyn Poulter, actress Amy Schumer, 1991 FIFA Women’s World Cup champion Amy Griffin, Fenway Sports Group Partner Linda Henry, and Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum. This follows initial support from LOVB’s existing Series A investors like Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman‘s Boardroom Sports Holdings and comedian Chelsea Handler, all of whom endorse LOVB’s special community-up ideology. LOVB will use the funding to strengthen both pro and club operations, hire more athletes, coaches, and trainers, build out its branding, and more.

Boardroom’s Vinciane Ngomsi has more details on LOVB’s latest multimillion-dollar funding group.

Damian Lillard to Join Giannis, Bucks in Reported Trade; Holiday & Ayton Also Moved

After 11 seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers, Damian Lillard is headed to the Midwest. The Trail Blazers agreed to trade the veteran guard to the Milwaukee Bucks in a three-team trade also involving the Phoenix Suns, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Wednesday. As part of the deal, Jrue Holiday, Deandre Ayton, and Toumani Camara are going to the Blazers, as well as the Bucks’ 2029 unprotected first-round pick and unprotected swap rights in 2028 and 2030. Meanwhile, the Suns land Jusuf Nurkić, Grayson Allen, Nassir Little, and Keon Johnson. Prior to the announcement, the Bucks’ odds of winning next year’s NBA Finals were at +600. Now, they stand at +360. In his first remarks post-trade, Lillard said he was “excited to get to work.”

Usher Reportedly Going on Global Tour Following 2024 Super Bowl Show

In addition to his new gig as the headline of the upcoming Super Bowl‘s halftime show, Usher‘s adding to an already busy 2024. The eight-time Grammy Award-winning musician plans to embark on a worldwide tour next year, Billboard reported on Wednesday. The official announcement is expected to come during his SBLVIII performance in February. The report also alleged that Usher‘s team has been placing holds on international arenas, further heightening suspicions of a global jaunt. The “My Way” singer hasn’t been on the road since The UR Experience Tour in 2015 but has been keeping audiences plenty entertained with his sold-out residency in Las Vegas.

WNBA Expansion Expected to Hit Bay Area with Help From Warriors

The Golden State Warriors have achieved monumental success in the Bay Area. And now, with the help of the seven-time NBA champions, the area is hoping to recreate the same magic with a women’s professional basketball team. The Athletic reported Tuesday that while a deal hasn’t been finalized yet, a WNBA team in the Bay is expected to soon. The team will also play at the Chase Center and will be operated by Golden State. The most recent WNBA franchise team is the Atlanta Dream, which began playing in 2008.

Colbert, Fallon, Meyers, Kimmel Shows to Return on Oct. 2 After WGA Strike Ends

The WGA strike is officially over, so when will your favorite shows make their returns to the screen? While it’s unclear for scripted programs, we do have insight into when late-night television will be back. CBS’s Stephen Colbert, NBC’s Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers, and ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel announced that their late-night shows will return on Monday, Oct. 2. For other late-night hosts, John Oliver‘s HBO late-night program will return on Sunday, Oct. 1, while Bill Maher said on X that his HBO show will be back Friday. To support their respective writers during the 148-day protest, Colbert, Fallon, Meyers, Kimmel, and Oliver hosted a joint Spotify podcast beginning in August called Strike Force Five — named after their personal text chain.

Boardroom’s D’Shonda Brown breaks down all the details of the WGA’s finalized deal.

Meta Unveils Updated Headsets in Quest to Become Metaverse-first Company

When Mark Zuckerberg addressed employees at the Meta Connect conference on Wednesday, the company’s CEO unveiled two new high-tech headsets: the AR/VR-powered Meta Quest 3 and the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. As it continues efforts to become a metaverse-first enterprise, the gadgets are reflective of the advances made to achieve those goals. Priced at $499, the Meta Quest 3 features a thinner design and sharper visuals compared to its predecessor. The $299 Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses debut with a new silhouette and upgraded cameras for better photo and video capture. The Quest 3 is available online and in brick-and-mortar stores on Oct. 10, while the glasses go on sale Oct. 17.

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]]> Writers Guild of America Announces Tentative Agreement to End Strike https://boardroom.tv/wga-writers-strike-agreement/ Mon, 25 Sep 2023 14:40:22 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?p=78051 After 146 days, the WGA, AMPTP, and Hollywood studios have come to an agreement to end the writers strike. It appears that the writers strike is finally coming to an end. The Writers Guild

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]]> After 146 days, the WGA, AMPTP, and Hollywood studios have come to an agreement to end the writers strike.

It appears that the writers strike is finally coming to an end.

The Writers Guild of America has reached a tentative deal with Hollywood studios that the WGA says provides “meaningful gains” for its members.

The WGA, which represents approximately 11,500 screenwriters, has raised countless issues impacting the television and film industry. Such concerns included, but were not limited to, new minimum staffing formulas, generative AI for screenwriting, the right for its members to honor strikes and picket lines of other unions, streaming transparency, and viewership-based compensation.

Why Did the WGA Strike?

Though the strike may have seemed abrupt, it was anything but an out-of-the-blue scandal. With negotiations beginning on March 20 between the WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), the sparked labor debates surrounding reasonable compensation, residuals, staffing requirements, and protections from artificial intelligence job interference began to catch fire.

The strike officially began on May 2 with 97.9% of the WGA voting to approve. While only 79% of eligible WGA members cast their ballots, 9,020 ruled in favor and 198 opposed.

“These results set a new record for both participation and the percentage of support in a strike authorization vote,” WGA said in a statement. “Our membership has spoken. You have expressed your collective strength, solidarity and the demand for meaningful change in overwhelming numbers. Armed with this demonstration of unity and resolve, we will continue to work at the negotiating table to achieve a fair contract for all writers.”

Back in 2017, guild members voted 96% in favor of a strike authorization, but did not move forward with the strike. Just ten years prior, 90% voted for a strike authorization, and the guild proceeded with striking.

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How Did It Escalate?

Almost immediately, the work stoppage kicked in and late-night shows including Saturday Night Live, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and The Late Show With Stephen Colbert halted production. Major Hollywood studios such as HBO, Apple, Hulu, Amazon Studios and ABC Signature began to suspend TV overall deals and first-look agreements amid the strike.

Other notable names in Hollywood — as well as public figures in politics, civil engagement, and entertainment — who demonstrated their support on the picket line include Tina Fey, Quinta Brunson, Pete Davidson, Flavor Flav, Susan Sarandon, Colin Farrell, Cynthia Nixon, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Mark Ruffalo, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kerry Washington, America Ferrera, Mariska Hargitay, Lil Wayne, Chris Pine, and Barack Obama.

“Hopefully, it’ll provide more opportunities,” Insecure star Issa Rae told Elle.com. “And that Black creators are being kept in mind. I remember the last strike [of 2007-2008], that was my biggest fear. [Because] post that strike, we just had a dearth of Black content.”

In support of her fellow creatives on strike, Rae has postponed the second season of her HBO show Rap Sh!t.

“I think what’s admirable about this strike and strikes of the past is that they have literally set the precedent for how the industry appreciates us monetarily. There are so many things that, even [in] the ’07 [and] ’08 strikes, they fought for, that they had the foresight to see, in terms of internet royalties that are obviously compounded now,” she said during a Teen Vogue interview in August. “What they’re fighting for now, we don’t even have the capacity to understand how much it’s going to impact our industry and how necessary it is. So I hope that people understand that this fight is necessary and it’s only for their benefit to be respected as writers and to make a living as writers in the future.”

What’s Next?

Excitement began to rise recently after word spread of Hollywood’s biggest CEOs, senior leaders, and executives appearing at negotiations. Those names included leaders from Disney (Bob Iger), Netflix (Ted Sarandos), NBCUniversal (Donna Langley), and Warner Bros. Discovery (David Zaslav).

The WGA has not yet disclosed the details of the agreement, which is still subject to a board vote before officially passing. It did, however, confirm in a press release that the deal has been reached and the organization feels it will benefit every writer in its membership.

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]]> Loading WWE ‘Smackdown’ Makes $1.4B Return to USA Network https://boardroom.tv/headline-to-go/09-22-2023-wwe-smackdown-usa-network-will-smith-lil-wayne/ Fri, 22 Sep 2023 13:00:00 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?post_type=headline-to-go&p=78056 WWE ‘Smackdown’ Makes $1.4B Return to USA Network WWE‘s SmackDown is returning to USA Network in October 2024 in a five-year agreement with NBCUniversal, according to The Wall Street Journal. The deal is estimated at approximately $1.4 billion, a 40% increase

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]]>
WWE ‘Smackdown’ Makes $1.4B Return to USA Network

WWE‘s SmackDown is returning to USA Network in October 2024 in a five-year agreement with NBCUniversal, according to The Wall Street Journal. The deal is estimated at approximately $1.4 billion, a 40% increase from Fox’s deal for the program. Fox has been the home for SmackDown since 2019. Additionally, WWE will produce four yearly primetime specials for NBC’s broadcast network. The specials will air on NBC starting in the 2024-25 season.

Will Smith Throws it Back with ‘Class of 88’ Podcast

Will Smith is hosting a limited podcast, Class of ’88, celebrating one of the most defining years of hip-hop. Produced by Wondery, Audible, Westbrook, and Awfully Nice, the show will feature the likes of Queen Latifah, Salt-N-Pepa, Darryl ‘DMC’ McDaniels, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Rakim, and Chuck D. Guests will pay homage to the music, fashion, and film that left a mark on the genre at the time and are still recognized today. The Oscar-winning actor and DJ Jazzy Jeff enjoyed commercial success in 1988 with their hit single “Parents Just Don’t Understand.” The track made history as the first to win the Grammy for Best Rap Performance at the 1989 awards. All eight episodes of the Class of ’88 will come out on Oct. 26 exclusively on Amazon Music and Audible.

Lil Wayne Announces ‘Tha Fix Before Tha VI’

Tha Carter VI is on the way, but Lil Wayne doesn’t want his fans to wait for the new project to be completed before hitting them with new music. The New Orleans rapper announced that he will drop Tha Fix Before Tha VI via his social media accounts. Weezy has stayed busy recently, leading out Deion Sanders and the Colorado football team last weekend in Boulder and making routine appearances on Skip Bayless’ Undisputed, for which he also recorded a new theme song.

Quavo Visits the White House to Discuss Gun Violence

Quavo is turning the grief he experienced after losing his nephew and fellow Migos member Takeoff to gun violence into activism. The Atlanta-raised emcee was in Washington, DC, on Wednesday for a panel discussion on gun violence prevention. Partnering with the Community Justice Action Fund, the 32-year-old met with members of Congress and, afterward, met privately with Vice President Kamala Harris. Quavo and his family — including his sister, Titania Davenport, Takeoff’s mother — have launched The Rocket Foundation to honor the late rapper’s legacy and support programs that save lives through community-based solutions to prevent gun violence.

Rupert Murdoch is Leaving Fox, Hands the Reins to Son

Billionaire media exec Rupert Murdoch is stepping down as chairman of Fox Corporation and News Corporation, effective mid-November, the 92-year-old announced Thursday. In a memo to staff, Murdoch said, “For my entire professional life, I have been engaged daily with news and ideas, and that will not change. But the time is right for me to take on different roles, knowing that we have truly talented teams.” In the note, Murdoch added that his son Lachlan, who already serves as chief executive of Fox Corporation, will become the sole chairman of both companies.

Microsoft Unveils New Surface Device, AI Software at NYC Event

Microsoft is preparing for its next generation of computing products. The tech giant hosted an event in New York City on Thursday that spotlighted its newest devices and its newest software, Windows 11. The company unveiled the Surface Laptop Studio 2 and the Surface Laptop Go 3. Additionally, Microsoft announced the enterprise availability of Microsoft 365 Copilot, which features AI software to help enhance the Word and Excel experiences. CEO Satya Nadella expressed his excitement at the innovative product, the company’s first in many years. Each model will hit the market on Oct. 3, but preorders are currently open.

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]]> WGA Strike: Writers Put Down the Pen in Hollywood Labor Standoff https://boardroom.tv/wga-strike-hollywood-writers-amptp/ Tue, 02 May 2023 15:31:56 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?p=68472 After previously passing a strike authorization by overwhelming margins, the first WGA strike since 2007 has officially begun — here’s what you need to know. On April 17, the Writers Guild of America announced

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]]> After previously passing a strike authorization by overwhelming margins, the first WGA strike since 2007 has officially begun — here’s what you need to know.

On April 17, the Writers Guild of America announced that 97.85% of its members had approved a strike authorization, signaling that film and television writers’ ongoing labor standoff with Hollywood producers was nearing an untenable impasse. Key issues at play include residual pay in the streaming era, staff cutbacks in writers’ rooms, and ethical questions concerning the use of artificial intelligence.

At 12:01 a.m. ET on May 1, with no new labor agreement in place, the first WGA strike since 2007 officially began.

“Your WGA Negotiating Committee spent the last six weeks negotiating with Netflix, Amazon, Apple, Disney, Discovery-Warner, NBC Universal, Paramount, and Sony under the umbrella of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP),” read an official statement from the WGA dated May 1, 2023. “Though we negotiated intent on making a fair deal — and though your strike vote gave us the leverage to make some gains — the studios’ responses to our proposals have been wholly insufficient, given the existential crisis writers are facing.”

Click here to read Boardroom’s full overview of the April 17 WGA strike authorization and what’s at stake between writers and the AMPTP.

As the WGA strike announcement continued:

“Over the course of the negotiation, we explained how the companies’ business practices have slashed our compensation and residuals and undermined our working conditions. Our chief negotiator, as well as writers on the committee, made clear to the studios’ labor representatives that we are determined to achieve a new contract with fair pay that reflects the value of our contribution to company success and includes protections to ensure that writing survives as a sustainable profession.”

For what it’s worth, the AMPTP insisted in its own statement that it had offered a “generous” pay bump to writers. They had previously argued during negotiations that the WGA’s intent was always to strike and that those conversations were therefore not taking place in good faith.

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This event now marks the first WGA strike since 2007, which began in November of that year and lasted more than three months. The guild notably approved a separate strike authorization as recently as 2017, only to come to terms with Hollywood producers in time to avoid an official work stoppage.

While a half-dozen years may not sound like a ton of time to you, massive industry changes in that time include the explosive growth of streaming platforms, the shortening of season-by-season episode orders across countless television networks, and the mounting implications of emerging technologies like generative AI.

“The companies’ behavior has created a gig economy inside a union workforce, and their immovable stance in this negotiation has betrayed a commitment to further devaluing the profession of writing,” the WGA said. “[T]hey have closed the door on their labor force and opened the door to writing as an entirely freelance profession. No such deal could ever be contemplated by this membership.”

So what happens now? A few things to know:

  • Late night shows like NBC’s The Tonight Show and Late Night, CBS’ The Late Show, and ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live are expected to halt production immediately
  • It is unclear how daytime talk shows like ABC’s The View will be affected, if at all
  • Variety shows like NBC’s Saturday Night Live may decide to shut down before its next scheduled show on May 6
  • Scripted series may be forced to consider either scaling back episode orders or halting production

Stay tuned — and from this non-union writer to his striking brothers and sisters, stay strong.

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]]> Loading Sports Leagues, Media Partners Double Down on Responsible Sports Betting Advertising https://boardroom.tv/coalition-for-responsible-sports-betting-advertising-news/ Wed, 19 Apr 2023 14:37:48 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?p=67262 The Coalition for Responsible Sports Betting Advertising consists of the NFL, NBA, WNBA, MLB, MLS, NHL, NASCAR, Fox, and NBCUniversal. The top American sports leagues and a pair of media partners announced on Wednesday

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]]> The Coalition for Responsible Sports Betting Advertising consists of the NFL, NBA, WNBA, MLB, MLS, NHL, NASCAR, Fox, and NBCUniversal.

The top American sports leagues and a pair of media partners announced on Wednesday the formation of a new project meant to increase the emphasis on safety and responsibility in the growing world of sports betting. This pertains specifically to the way sportsbooks advertise their services.

Welcome to the Coalition for Responsible Sports Betting Advertising. Members include not just the NFL, NBA, WNBA, MLB, MLS, NHL, and NASCAR, but media giants NBCUniversal and Fox, who own broadcast contracts from several of those leagues and organizations in the US.

As the newly formed group said in an official statement:

“As the legalization of sports betting spreads nationwide, we feel it is critical to establish guardrails around how sports betting should be advertised to consumers across the United States. Each member of the coalition feels a responsibility to ensure sports betting advertising is not only targeted to an appropriate audience, but also that the message is thoughtfully crafted and carefully delivered.”

Jonathan Nabavi, NFL Vice President of Public Policy and Government Affairs, will lead the effort.

According to a joint news release, the Coalition will focus on six key areas. As noted verbatim:

  • Sports betting should be marketed only to adults of legal betting age
  • Sports betting advertising should not promote irresponsible or excessive gambling or degrade the consumer experience
  • Sports betting advertisements should not be misleading
  • Sports betting advertisements should be in good taste
  • Publishers should have appropriate internal reviews of sports betting advertising
  • Publishers should review consumer complaints pertaining to sports betting advertising

This project arrives amid the ongoing and explosive expansion of legal of sports betting, particularly on mobile devices, in an increasing number of US states. While the three largest states in the country by population (California, Texas, Florida) have yet to legalize mobile betting, the nature and timing of the announcement suggests that the opening of those final floodgates is a matter of when, rather than if.

As Kenneth Gersh, Executive VP of Media and Business Development for Major League Baseball, added on the occasion:

“Forming this coalition with fellow leaders in sports and entertainment is another important step for our industry as legal sports betting continues to grow. While providing new fan engagement opportunities to enjoy our sport in more ways, we have to continue to be mindful and deliberate with how these sports betting options are presented and to whom they’re directed. Layering this coalition’s work in the advertising arena on top of our efforts to promote responsible gambling and address problem gambling challenges will lead to more thoughtful planning and implementation across the board.”

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]]> Stephen Curry to Star as Himself in New NBC Comedy Series https://boardroom.tv/stephen-curry-tv-nbc-series-mockumentary/ Wed, 05 Apr 2023 17:21:28 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?p=65779 Mr. Throwback will be produced by Universal Television in association with Curry's Unanimous Media. This marks the first production between the NBA champ's company and NBCUniversal.

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]]> Mr. Throwback will be produced by Universal Television in association with Curry’s Unanimous Media. This marks the first production between the NBA champ’s company and NBCUniversal.

Stephen Curry is an NBA Finals champion, successful businessman, and soon … television actor. The Golden State Warriors star has been tapped to join Adam Pally in Mr. Throwback, a mockumentary series ordered by NBC. The comedy is said to come from Happy Endings creator David Caspe and writing partners Matthew Libman and Daniel Libman.

“The series about a down-on-his-luck memorabilia dealer looking for redemption by reuniting with his sixth-grade teammate, NBA legend Steph Curry,” Peter White of Deadline reports. “The project is in development at NBC, which is known for mockumentaries such as The Office and Parks and Recreation.”

Also a Happy Endings alum, Pally is known for his roles in The Mindy Project and 101 Places to Party Before You Die. Caspe and the Libman brothers previously teamed up for together on Showtime’s Black Monday and Kenan on NBC. Producing the program is Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group, in association with Curry’s own Unanimous Media. This marks the first production since the Davidson alum and his Unanimous Media reached a global partnership with NBCUniversal in 2021. Curry serves as co-founder and co-CEO. ABC gameshow Holey Moley and the Apple docuseries Underrated are also both series from Unanimous Media, which launched in 2018.

“Making the natural transition from behind the camera to center stage opposite Adam Pally, we can’t wait for the world to see what we have in store,” Curry said of the announcement.

“We’re thrilled to continue our work with NBC and UTV to develop a project as fun and entertaining as Mr. Throwback,” Erick Peyton, Chief Creative Officer, of Unanimous Media added.

Curry also executive produced The Queen of Basketball, a documentary on the life of Lusia Harris that picked up the Oscar for Best Documentary Short Subject in 2022.

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]]> NFL TV Ratings: Despite Dip, Football Stays on Top https://boardroom.tv/nfl-tv-ratings-2023-prime-video/ Thu, 12 Jan 2023 20:21:34 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?p=56229 NFL TV ratings slipped by 2% in 2022, but there’s no doubting the league’s strength on TV and in streaming. Don’t get it twisted: the NFL is still the hottest show on TV. That

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]]> NFL TV ratings slipped by 2% in 2022, but there’s no doubting the league’s strength on TV and in streaming.

Don’t get it twisted: the NFL is still the hottest show on TV.

That doesn’t change the reality that the league’s accumulated viewership across CBS, FOX, NBC, ESPN, and Amazon took a 2% dip in 2022. Seeing NFL TV ratings drop could be a head-scratcher for those not used to ever seeing the NFL falter when it comes to popularity, but one culprit appears to be in its foray into the streaming world via Prime Video‘s Thursday Night Football, where numbers didn’t meet projected figures.

Is it surprising? Sure. Is there any reason to be worried? Nah.

The product was incredible this season. Every game mattered and every team seemingly had a chance. Look no further than the Jaguars, who went from 3-7 to 9-8 with a Wild Card game against the Chargers on Saturday. That leads us to the parity effect — out of 271 regular season games this season, 45% were decided by six points or fewer, which is the most since 2002. As reports indicate, that’s nearly seven games per week decided by a touchdown or less, and a record-tying 25 teams with a regular season winning percentage better than .400.

The league set all sorts of records this year and it’s already established itself as the king of TV. The NFL occupied 82 of the 100 most-watched TV shows in ’22, and more than tripled the NBA on Christmas Day’s viewership, despite playing only three games. FOX’s America’s Game of the Week was the most-watched window on TV for the 14th straight year. And the Super Bowl always serves as a dagger, owning 30 of the 32 most-watched broadcasts in television history — the M*A*S*H series finale in 1983 and the 2016 Presidential Debates are the only other entries on the list.

So how did each individual network fare after the NFL signed a $110 billion media rights bill? Let’s take a look.

Prime Video

Here’s why the overall numbers dropped. Prime Video fell short of its projections, as Nielsen finalized Amazon’s average TNF viewership at 9.6 million people, compared to preseason projections of 11.3 million. Compare that to last season, when TNF garnered 13.4 million viewers, and it’s a 28% drop year-over-year.

While internal metrics projected a higher figure, it’s worth noting that for many, this is a relatively new means of watching sports. The idea of streaming is a foreign concept among some in older demographics, and as streaming becomes normalized, especially for sports, this trend should shift.

Amazon has already nabbed the younger audience, which is a great sell to advertisers — Amazon’s average viewership among those aged 18-34 was 2.1 million, an 11% increase from last season. Furthermore, the median age among TNF viewers this past season was 47, which is seven years younger than the average age of viewers on linear networks.

Short-term, it hurt the overall viewership numbers. Long-term, it’s going to pay off — especially as the streaming giant adds more sports content. Don’t forget: Prime Video splurged to poach Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit from their respective networks.

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CBS Sundays

CBS had its best season since 2015 (19.1M), luring an average 18.5 million viewers in 2022.

  • The 18.5 million figure is a 3% increase from last season.
  • CBS’s 10 Sunday afternoon national windows averaged 23.5 million viewers — up from 21.6 million last season.
  • Their 22.7 million from Pats-Bills in Week 18 was their best finale in 11 years.

Unlike Prime Video and ESPN, CBS didn’t make any splashy hires in the booth. Still, “The NFL Today” pregame show averaged 3.3 million viewers, which is the program’s best figure in six years.

FOX Sundays

FOX averaged 19.42 million viewers this season, the network’s highest figure since 2016, when it brought in 19.43 million.

  • The network saw a 4% increase from last season.
  • Sunday national windows — known as “America’s Game of the Week — brought in 24.1 million viewers, the 14th straight year in which it was the best average for any TV program.
  • “FOX NFL Kickoff” (11am-12pm ET): 1.3 million viewers, its best since 2019 and up 9% from 1.2 million last year.
  • “FOX NFL Sunday” (12pm-1pm): 4.5 million viewers, also its best full season since 2019. 

FOX pays roughly $2.025 billion per year in the new media rights deal. It lost Joe Buck and Troy Aikman to ESPN, but Kevin Burkhardt and Greg Olsen did just fine taking their respective roles. Will Tom Brady be part of that booth next year?

NBC Sunday Night Football

NBC led all networks with 19.9 million viewers for Sunday Night Football, a 3% uptick from the 2021 season and its highest figure since nabbing 20 million in 2019.

  • For a 12th-straight TV season, NBC leads all primetime TV shows in viewership.
  • Remember that parity thing we mentioned? NBC recorded an all-time high 13 one-score games.
  • The night program finished as TV’s No.1 primetime show in 16 of 18 weeks for a second straight year.

Pregame and postgame show “Football Night in America” averaged 7.24 million views — a 1% increase from the 7.19 they brought in last season. With Michaels leaving for Prime Video, NBC took Mike Tirico out of the studio and into the play-by-play chair, alongside color commentator Chris Collinsworth.

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ESPN MNF

ESPN brought in an average of 13.4 million viewers this season, which is down from last season, but the third-best average since 2010. The network saw a 5% dip from 2021 with a number of factors coming into play here.

  • They played a doubleheader during Week 2, which took audience numbers from both games.
  • Without Week 2, the average would’ve been 13.8 million — a 2.3% decrease versus 5%.
  • ESPN did not capitalize on perhaps its biggest game of the season (Bills-Bengals) after Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field.

A couple things worth noting here: Firstly, ESPN should probably never play two games at the same time. Just a thought. Secondly, Nielsen said the suspended Bills-Bengals game had an average of 23.78 million viewers, which would’ve been the most-watched MNF broadcast since it moved over to ESPN in 2006. As mentioned, the game did not count toward its viewership numbers.

And finally, there’s certainly an allure to ESPN with how it operated this past year. ManningCast started a new trend for alternate telecasts, and the network spent $167.5 million on analysts Buck and Aikman, who were both a breath of fresh air in terms of credibility and familiarity.

Moving Forward

Whether you like it or not, the NFL is the King of TV. Now, it’s their job to get more folks to adjust with the times and stream.

Prime Video aired just 14 games this season and only four games featured matchups between two playoff teams. And even with that hiccup, their debut broadcast in Week 2 generated record numbers of new Prime signups. Next year, they’ll get a special Black Friday game — yet another innovative strategy on the NFL business side.

The decrease in TNF viewers and MNF viewers were nearly a direct result of experimenting with streaming and airing two games at once. Otherwise, get ready for more records as the league builds a three-week playoff cake topped with the Super Bowl cherry on Feb. 12.

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]]> Loading Loading Loading Sam Bankman-Fried Arrested in the Bahamas https://boardroom.tv/headline-to-go/dec-13-2022-sam-bankman-fried-ftx-arrested/ Tue, 13 Dec 2022 14:23:01 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?post_type=headline-to-go&p=52914 The post Sam Bankman-Fried Arrested in the Bahamas appeared first on Boardroom.

]]> The post Sam Bankman-Fried Arrested in the Bahamas appeared first on Boardroom.

]]> How the NFL Came to Own Thanksgiving https://boardroom.tv/how-the-nfl-came-to-own-thanksgiving/ Wed, 23 Nov 2022 17:00:00 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?p=50615 The annual NFL Thanksgiving games are a holiday staple — but it wasn’t always this way. Boardroom explores how they grew to be an institution unto themselves. Thanksgiving is a day for loved ones

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]]> The annual NFL Thanksgiving games are a holiday staple — but it wasn’t always this way. Boardroom explores how they grew to be an institution unto themselves.

Thanksgiving is a day for loved ones to gather around, eat food, enjoy some laughs, and watch the NFL. It’s a fixture in American culture that dates back to 1934, and 88 years later, it’s still growing.

Whether you’re a football fan or not, someone present at your dinner this year is more than likely to be interested in the annual Thursday NFL slate based on tradition, love for the games and teams themselves, and/or newfound betting interests as the practice becomes increasingly legalized.

And not for nothing, it may as well go without saying that the NFL is the king when it comes to US television. As of Nov. 15, Fox’s “America’s Game of the Week” telecast in the 4 p.m. ET window is consistently the No. 1 show on TV with an average of 22,463,000 viewers. With this in mind, it’s no surprise that the Dallas Cowboys — the most popular NFL franchise and the most valuable sports team on earth — always plays a Thanksgiving game. (For the record, so do the Detroit Lions.)

These games are peaking for several reasons, but tradition is tradition. This year, the league rolled out the red carpet for the day’s slate with the Lions hosting Super Bowl favorite Buffalo Bills, the Cowboys and New York Giants duking it out for the No. 2 seed in the NFC East, and the 5-4 New England Patriots visiting the Minnesota Vikings, who currently own the second-best record in football.

There isn’t one thesis that encapsulates exactly why the NFL is such a staple on the fourth Thursday of the month, but we’ll do our best to contextualize this phenomenon by starting right at the beginning.

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The History of NFL Thanksgiving Games

The first major football game played on Thanksgiving Day was actually within the Intercollegiate Football Association in 1876. By 1893, more than 45,000 people gathered to watch the Yale and Princeton football teams meet in New York when the New York Herald deemed Thanksgiving the official holiday for watching football.

The NFL was established fewer than 30 years later in 1920, and began its own November holiday trend in 1934. Thanksgiving Day games have traditionally included one game each hosted by the Lions and Cowboys since 1966. Over time, the Cowboys would soon achieve the status (love it or hate it!) of “America’s Team.” Jerry Jones went on to buy the franchise for $150 million in 1989 — that equates to $302.5 million in 2022 dollars — while Forbes estimates them to be worth an incredible $8 billion. Don’t think the consistent Thanksgiving spotlight has nothing to do with their uniquely powerful reach as a brand.

The Lions and ‘Boys have owned the day for decades and there’s no reason to believe that will change, but even more importantly for the league, piggybacking off the success of their games led to the creation of a third Thanksgiving game in 2006 in primetime.

The Product 

The on-field product is booming. Team valuations and player contracts are higher than they’ve ever been. The league just snagged $110 billion in their media rights deal. And there are seeds being planted in other countries (England, Germany) to build the game globally.

The demand is growing as the game becomes faster-paced behind a pass-first style. There’s never a shortage of highlights or big plays — as NFL RedZone host Scott Hanson told Boardroom: “ The NFL always zigs when you think it’s gonna zag.” And overall, there’s a level parity we so rarely see in sports, especially after the league expanded the regular season to 17 games and the playoffs from 12 teams to 14 in 2020. More specifically:

  • More than half of the NFL is .500 or better (17 teams).
  • Only two wins (or less) separate 13 teams from a playoff spot.
  • The NFC East’s .703 winning percentage (26-11) is the highest ever through Week 10.
  • The AFC East and NFC South divisions’ No. 1 and No. 4 teams are separated by two wins.

With that in mind, the idea of the NFL expanding the Thanksgiving Day slate even further one day is anything but out of the question.

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Media and the Future

The NBA and NHL don’t even bother playing games on Thanksgiving. The Association stopped hosting them in 2005, one year before the NFL first added a primetime game. Last year’s Thanksgiving Day games attracted an average of 29.7 million viewers, highlighted by the Cowboys-Raiders, which brought in peak viewership of 38.3 million.

Put it this way: The NBA Finals’ best viewership year was in 1998 — Michael Jordan and the Bulls’ Last Dance — with a peak of 29.7 million. The NHL’s Stanley Cup Finals peak was 5.76 million in 2013. Combine those two and you still fall short of the NFL’s 38.3 million… for a regular season game. Comparing sports leagues can be an apples-and-oranges situation, but the NFL is king no matter what, and Thanksgiving only adds more fuel to its cross-platform media and marketing bonfire.

(It’s pretty astounding when all things are put into perspective: The Super Bowl occupies 30 of the 32 most-watched broadcasts in television history — the M*A*S*H series finale in 1983 and the 2016 Presidential Debates are the only other entries on the list.)

Looking ahead, the NFL has added several new components to its media rights package that could shape Thanksgivings to come. Amazon Prime Video jumped in as the exclusive home of Thursday Night Football, joining ESPN, FOX, CBS, and NBC this year as weekly NFL broadcasters. Oddly enough, Prime Video doesn’t have Thanksgiving night despite it being a Thursday — the slot was guaranteed to NBC this year as part of its own deal. Expect that to change, however, if and when the league decides to add a fourth game.

It makes sense, too. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade is hosted in the morning on free TV (NBC) and has consistently brought in 25 million viewers over the past three years. Streaming might not be traditional enough — yet — but before long, it’s likely to be an increasingly easy transition to embrace.

An Ode To John Madden

Few things are more synonymous than John Madden and Thanksgiving football. The NFL will honor the late legend beginning this year with the “John Madden Thanksgiving Celebration,” a yearly, multi-faceted salute to his indelible legacy.

“No one cared more or contributed more to our game than John Madden,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said earlier this month. “Honoring his memory and impact on the NFL is important and Thanksgiving Day brings all of the elements significant to John to life — family, football, food, and fun.”

The inaugural “John Madden Thanksgiving Celebration” will feature special broadcast tributes on CBS, FOX, and NBC. Special “John Madden Thanksgiving ” logos will be placed at the 25-yard lines of each field. And teams will feature stickers on the back of players’ helmets depicting the iconic image of Madden with his fist up in the air.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone, and enjoy the day however you please — though we’d imagine you’re one of many tuning in for this three-game slate.

Just remember to pace yourself. You don’t want to have to miss out when those pies are still hot.

NFL Thanksgiving Games 2022

Buffalo Bulls @ Detroit Lions

  • 12:30 p.m. ET, CBS

New York Giants @ Dallas Cowboys

  • 4:30 p.m. ET, Fox

New England Patriots @ Minnesota Vikings

  • 8:20 p.m. ET, NBC

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The post How the NFL Came to Own Thanksgiving appeared first on Boardroom.

]]> Loading Loading Loading Julio Rodríguez, Mariners Ink Massive Extension https://boardroom.tv/headline-to-go/aug-27-2022-julio-rodriguez-mariners-ink-massive-extension/ Sat, 27 Aug 2022 14:05:19 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?post_type=headline-to-go&p=40232 J-Rod was the shining star of this year’s MLB All-Star events. Now, the Mariners are making sure that Julio Rodríguez calls Seattle home for years to come. The 21-year-old inked a new deal with

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]]> J-Rod was the shining star of this year’s MLB All-Star events. Now, the Mariners are making sure that Julio Rodríguez calls Seattle home for years to come. The 21-year-old inked a new deal with the team that will guarantee him at least $200 million over the next 14 years, with that number possibly inflating to as high as $400 million.

Fueled by Serena Williams, Meghan Markle Takes the Top Spot in Spotify Podcast Rankings

What do you do when you renounce a title as a princess? Meghan Markle is finding out. The former member of the British royal family and Prince Harry signed a deal with Spotify in 2020. In her first podcast Archetypes, Markle is sitting down with women who are changing the game. The first episode dropped this week and features her good friend Serena Williams. Markle shot to the top of the Spotify streaming charts, dethroning Joe Rogan. 

Sue Bird and Sylvia Fowles Front New Top Shot Collection

The WNBA is on the rise. As the playoffs break viewership records, the game is bidding farewell to two of the best to ever do it. Top Shot revealed two upcoming drops dedicated to the two icons. First up, the Metallic Gold Limited Edition, which will feature Sylvia Fowles. Then Sue Bird will front the Game Recognizes Game pack. In addition, Dapper Labs will donate $100,000 to the National Women’s Law Center.

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NBC Exploring Possibility of Cutting 10PM Programming 

Live sports are driving the major networks, but at what cost? The Wall Street Journal reports that NBC is exploring the option of cutting original programming during the 10 o’clock hour due to budgetary constraints. The network has disproportionately invested in live event coverage in recent years, but the expanded sports slate is cutting into the overall budget. As a result, the Peacock is considering substantial changes to the network’s operations in the months ahead. 

Lil Nas X Tapped as US Ambassador for YSL Beauté

Lil Nas X is an industry baby. The 23-year-old singer and rapper has made a career out of being unapologetically himself. Now, he has signed with YSL Beauté as the brand’s US ambassador. In a statement to Variety, Lil Nas X confirmed the news, saying, “Shout out to YSL for embracing me and my campness and for inspiring change for the next generation of beauty.”

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]]> Loading Loading Commentator Carousel: The Wild, Expensive Free Agency of NFL Announcers https://boardroom.tv/nfl-broadcaster-free-agency-moves/ https://boardroom.tv/nfl-broadcaster-free-agency-moves/#respond Thu, 24 Mar 2022 14:27:20 +0000 https://boardroom.tv/?p=24971 From Buck and Aikman’s migration to Amazon’s Thursday night takeover, the 2022 NFL season will sound like none we’ve ever witnessed before. You can call it the silly season. You can chalk it up

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]]> From Buck and Aikman’s migration to Amazon’s Thursday night takeover, the 2022 NFL season will sound like none we’ve ever witnessed before.

You can call it the silly season. You can chalk it up to “market forces” (whatever that means). You can wonder out loud why football fans find it all so intriguing. But there’s just something about free agency this offseason.

No, not the one with Von Miller and Chris Godwin and almost Davante Adams. Forget the players entirely — we gotta talk about all the NFL announcers who changed teams this spring.

This is more than just a rearranging of deck chairs; the way in which fans consume their football has changed. And several networks paid absolutely eye-popping sums to make it happen.

It’s the end of an era at NBC and FOX. It’s yet another change for ESPN. And it’s a new frontier entirely at Amazon. Let’s explore everything you need to know about the biggest, most expensive free agency ever for NFL announcers.

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Al Michaels

Departs: NBC
Joins: Amazon
Role: Play-by-play commentator, Thursday Night Football

The Collinsworth Slide will never be the same.

Al Michaels, one of sports media’s most steadfast presences for more than four full decades, was a rumored target of ESPN’s before they opted to go in a different direction in replacing 2021 play-by-play man Steve Levy. Instead, the man who’s spent the past 15 years with NBC Sports as the voice of Sunday Night Football embarks on a new adventure with Amazon, whose exclusive Thursday night deal kicks in this season on Prime Video. We don’t know exactly how much Michaels will get, but Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reports his deal is for three years and in the neighborhood of what Joe Buck will make. More on that below.

Things won’t feel totally foreign at Amazon — longtime SNF producer Fred Gaudelli is coming along, too.

Troy Aikman

Departs: FOX
Joins: ESPN
Role: Color commentator, Monday Night Football

It’s been a busy past few months for Troy Aikman. In addition to departing FOX to join ESPN’s Monday Night Football in what was effectively a package deal with longtime booth partner Joe Buck, the Hall of Famer and three-time Super Bowl champ also found the time to start up his own beer company.

Marchand reports that Aikman’s deal with ESPN is worth $92.5 million over five years, putting him in line with what CBS pays No. 1 color commentator Tony Romo.

Kirk Herbstreit

Joins: Amazon
Role: Color commentator, Thursday Night Football

Count Kirk Herbstreit among those competing for the “Busiest Human Being in Sports Media” crown. Yes, he’s joining Amazon’s Thursday Night Football broadcasts opposite the legendary Michaels, but unlike his new partner, he’s not doing so at the expense of his former employer.

The longtime College GameDay co-host, primetime college football color guy, and NFL Draft analyst isn’t leaving ESPN. In fact, Mickey Mouse inked him to a three-year contract extension Wednesday.

Marchand reports that Amazon will pay him $10 million per year.

Joe Buck

Departs: FOX
Joins: ESPN
Role: Play-by-play commentator, Monday Night Football

The man synonymous with FOX’s Sunday “Game of the Week” and its MLB Postseason and World Series coverage alike has a new home, but he’s not about to mess with a good thing. Joe Buck and Troy Aikman will remain a tandem, but they’ll do so on Monday nights starting this fall.

Marchand reported Buck’s deal with the Worldwide Leader to be five years and $75 million.

Other NFL Media Moves

  • Mike Tirico is widely expected to relocate from NBC’s SNF studio desk to the broadcast booth to replace Michaels as play-by-play man alongside Collinsworth.
  • Michele Tafoya departs as NBC’s lead sideline reporter for Sunday Night Football to serve as campaign co-chair for Minnesota gubernatorial candidate Kendall Qualls
  • Sports Illustrated’s Jimmy Traina notes Kevin Burkhardt and Greg Olsen are the most likely picks to take over Buck and Aikman’s respective play-by-play and color roles in FOX’s No. 1 booth.
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