ESPN will move back the start time of its Sunday night NFL games from 8:15pm ET to 8:30pm ET beginning next season. Additionally, "NFL Primetime" will return to an hour-long show, starting at 7:30pm ET (ESPN). USA TODAY reports that ESPN's NFL ratings increased 11% after the start time was moved back from 8:00pm ET last season (USA TODAY, 5/16). But NEWSDAY's Steve Zipay notes the games will now end "closer to midnight and given the spate of subpar games in recent seasons, fans may exit early" (NEWSDAY, 5/16). ROY SEEKS MORE $$ FROM HBO: In N.Y., Richard Sandomir notes that "only one fight remains" on boxer Roy Jones Jr.'s contract with HBO Sports and that fight "must be on TVKO [PPV], for which Jones is guaranteed no money" (N.Y. TIMES, 5/16). In Biloxi, James Jones noted that Jones's four-year deal with HBO had ended, meaning the boxer is without a TV contract "for the first time" since '93. Jones, whose previous HBO contract paid him $4M per fight, wants HBO to double that amount in order to extend the contract: "I've given off the best images for HBO. I'd get the highest rankings and I'm not a heavyweight. What more do I need to do? It doesn't matter who I fought. People wanted to see The Roy Jones Show" (Biloxi (MS) SUN HERALD, 5/15). "TWIB" RETURNS: The SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL's Andy Bernstein reports that "This Week In Baseball" will return on May 27 after a one-year hiatus. The show will be hosted by a different MLB player each week and will "focus on player profiles, behind-the-scenes peeks and features on what players do with their spare time." Pepsi will be the presenting sponsor. The show will be produced by MLBP in conjunction with Fox Sports, with 19 episodes on Fox before its "Game of the Week" (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 5/15 issue).
