Fox Sports Net CEO David Hill said of the new national
Fox/Liberty sports network announced yesterday: "The
behemoth that has been created is going to be so attractive
to advertising across the board ... that we believe we will
see floods of advertising money that has never been involved
in home team sports in the marketplace." Cablevision CEO
James Dolan: "Advertisers will finally be able to make sense
out of regional sports and how to buy them." In N.Y., Jon
Elsen writes that "some of that ad revenue could easily come
out of ESPN's pocket," and that ESPN "might respond by
lowering ad rates" (N.Y. POST, 6/24).
OTHER THOUGHTS: One "leading" sports TV exec tells the
WASHINGTON POST of the Fox/Liberty reach: "[Y]ou can sell
nationally and locally, you can sell their sports newscasts.
... Now, essentially, [Murdoch] has no competition in any of
those regions" (Farhi & Shapiro, WASHINGTON POST, 6/24).
Smith Barney's Spencer Grimes: "One of the true benefits of
the deal is the increased simplicity of this for
advertisers. In the past, they've had to buy a network that
was missing key parts of the country, now with the addition
of New York, the network is able to sell it more on a
national network basis." Amhold & S. Bleichroeder's Richard
Read: "The combined power and sports rights contracts that
these 17 [RSNs] have is tremendous. ... You add to that the
collegiate rights that these networks own and I think you
can hit a very strong 18-45-year-old demographic" ("Business
Tonight," CNBC, 6/24). BJK&E Media Group Senior Partner
John Lazarus is happy to have new competition for ESPN and
their "premium" ad rates. Lazarus: "I would love to be able
to say to ESPN, 'Gee, you are a little too expensive'" (L.A.
TIMES, 6/24). But in N.Y., John Lippman writes: "Although
Fox Sports Net and ESPN are approaching the same market with
opposite strategies, observers nonetheless think it will be
difficult for Mr. Murdoch to compete for national
advertisers and viewers against such an established
competitor as ESPN" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 6/24).
