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| Ebersol Says NBC Gave Up
Fair Market Value In Deal |
As part of the deal permitting Al Michaels to sign with NBC, ESPN has acquired numerous programming and promotional rights from NBC. ESPN will pay NBC $3M per year, $12M total, for cable rights to live Friday coverage of four Ryder Cups through 2014, as well as highlights and rights to re-air NBC weekend coverage. NBC will still produce the Friday coverage. ESPN also gets additional video highlights for the Olympics, beginning with Turin and continuing through 2012. Outside of the sports industry, the Walt Disney Co. acquires rights to the ’27 cartoon series featuring Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. Walt Disney lost the rights in the ’40s, and Universal Pictures ended up with them later (
THE DAILY).
MONEY TRAIL: In N.Y., Paul Tharp reports while Michaels “re-upped his $4[M] a year contract” last summer to stay at ESPN, at NBC he is “expected to earn less, $3[M] a year, but he gets a corporate jet and a starring role on broadcast TV” (N.Y. POST, 2/10). Also in N.Y., Andrew Marchand reports Michaels “still wanted to collect his $2[M] to call the NBA for ABC this season.” But sources said that ESPN/ABC Sports execs were “sick of dealing with Michaels” and that they “felt so strongly,” they agreed to pay him “slightly less than $1[M] not to do the NBA” (N.Y. POST, 2/10).
FAMILY MAN: On a conference call Thursday, NBC Universal Sports & Olympics Chair Dick Ebersol said he offered ABC Producer Fred Gaudelli the same job at NBC when he attended the Packers-Ravens “MNF” game December 19. Later that night, Ebersol said, he told Michaels that he was going to hire Gaudelli. Ebersol: “I think that’s when it really hit him.” Michaels, who emphasized his comfort with Gaudelli and Dir Drew Esocoff, both of whom are moving to NBC, said he initiated his move to NBC. Michaels: “I think that John Madden is the most extraordinary talent in the business, ever. ... When Fred Gaudelli was hired ... that was huge” (THE DAILY).
DEAL POINTS: Ebersol said ESPN/ABC Sports President George Bodenheimer wanted to discuss letting Michaels go to NBC. Ebersol: “He said he was wrestling with a decision of whether or not to let Al out, that Al had indeed asked out of his deal, and one of the things that he had to have was something from us. And I said fine, as long as it’s non-financial, I’d be willing to discuss that with you.” Ebersol, on the rights NBC gave to ESPN: “We came up with a fair market price, which is no less than we’ve ever taken for the cable rights in the past. [Bodenheimer] wanted some rights to increased footage from the Olympics. I jumped to offer that to them because I think they have the best sports news service in the world, and those highlights can’t begin until our last show is off the air.” Bodenheimer later requested the rights to Oswald. Ebersol: “I had no idea what that was. ... [Bodenheimer] told me this incredible story that [Disney’s] first really big production as a cartoonist for the cinema had been a character called Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, which was before Mickey” (THE DAILY).
WHAT WAS: Michaels, on his decision to sign an extension with ESPN/ABC last summer: “There was a deadline in July, and it was a very awkward situation because the league had announced in April what they were going to do. So we were going into a lame duck year, which is crazy and it was very, very tough. ... Everybody was going in different directions at that point, and I know that John had already gone, and at that point I had to make a call.”
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Michaels Move Allows Disney
To Reacquire Rights To Oswald |
When asked if a multi-platform responsibility was the impetus for leaving ESPN, Michaels said, “That was really not an issue.” Ebersol said he was “completely committed to go” with Cris Collinsworth as the play-by-play announcer if Michaels stayed at ESPN. Michaels added of potential other duties at NBC, “I have to talk to Dick about maybe being part of my favorite show, which is ‘Squawk Box’ on CNBC” (
THE DAILY).
RABBIT HUNTING: In L.A., Kim Christensen cites sources saying that Disney’s acquisition of the Oswald rights “was motivated by Disney [CEO] Bob Iger’s desire to preserve Disney’s legacy and make nice with Disney’s heirs” (L.A. TIMES, 2/10). The WALL STREET JOURNAL’s Flint & Marr note Disney a few years ago “tried to buy Oswald back from NBC Universal, but they couldn’t agree on a price.” Recently, the rabbit “played a top role in creative pitches at Disney for various projects” (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 2/10).
