The case between superstation WGN and the NBA is examined by
Peter Vecsey of the N.Y. POST. The suit, over how many Bulls
games WGN is allowed to show on its superstation, has cost the
NBA teams and owners around $20M to "fight a battle Commissioner
David Stern refuses to lose." After a reversal by the U.S. Court
of Appeals in Chicago that sends the case back to the courtroom,
Stern and league owners "now have the upper hand" and it has
"given them renewed confidence they will prevail in the end."
Bulls Owner Jerry Reinsdorf: "It's imperative for us to be on WGN
in Chicago. I don't care about outside the city. I have no
control over that. ... All I know is that it would be a major
loss for the league if the Bulls can't be on in Chicago." NBA
Chief Legal Officer Jeffrey Mishkin: "We never had a problem with
the Bulls televising their games locally. ... Our only concern
has been the national telecasts" (N.Y. POST, 9/20).
RIGHT STUFF IN CANADA? TSN will not have an NBA package for
the second straight season, according to Rob Longley of the
TORONTO SUN. TSN management "spent considerable time at the
negotiation table with the NBA during the past two years," and
TSN said it had increased its offer for league rights, but their
"prime concern was that the NBA has yet to prove it was worth the
big money because strong Canadian TV audiences have yet to
emerge." TSN Programming Manager Phil King: "We felt they tend
to overvalue their product in Canada." The SUN's Longley writes
it is "expected" that the new regional sports channel S3, owned
in part by CTV, will "make the NBA its cornerstone property"
perhaps as early as next year (TORONTO SUN, 9/20).
