The directive in the fall of 2001 from ESPN President George Bodenheimer was pretty simple: grow ratings.
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| Bodenheimer |
The network's prime-time ratings were enduring a double-digit slide for a second straight year. Bodenheimer told the network's new head of programming, Mark Shapiro, and every other employee that increasing ratings was the highest priority.
He got what he asked for.
ESPN closed out 2003 up 10 percent for total day ratings and 5 percent in prime time. It was the second straight year ratings were up. ESPN2's ratings also increased.
With ESPN facing a showdown with Cox Communications and other cable operators regarding its rate increases, the growing audience has given the network important ammunition.
Bodenheimer, who was named the most powerful person in sports last week by The Sporting News, said ESPN won't throw the ratings numbers at Cox in its negotiations with the company. But he said the larger audience has helped strengthen all parts of ESPN's business and led to an improved financial performance.
"We made it a priority to boost ratings," he said. "Our 3,400 employees can see their hard work manifesting itself."
The ratings growth won't necessarily alter ESPN's posture when it comes to programming acquisitions, Bodenheimer said, as everything will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. But the forward momentum certainly allows ESPN to build on success in certain areas and to walk away from proposed deals if they don't make sense.
"I would say the ratings growth is encouraging us to continue to innovate because certainly a portion of our recent success has been due to [ESPN Original Entertainment]," he said. "Our fans are giving us license to continue to innovate in programming."
Just last week ESPN confirmed that it will produce a made-for-television movie about Dale Earnhardt that will premier this summer.
The major rights deal expiring for ESPN this year is the NHL contract, which Bodenheimer said he thinks will be renewed. But he said ESPN is in a position where nothing is a "must have."
"We don't need to own everything," he said. "Currently we have the top four professional [team] sports. It's unlikely that can continue forever."
Part of last year's ratings bump can be attributed to the addition of the NBA, which helped ESPN grow average ratings for live event programming by 9 percent. But "SportsCenter," which encompasses about 45 percent of ESPN's schedule, was also up 9 percent, and the "other" category, which includes taped shows and ESPN Original Entertainment, was up 18 percent.
ESPN remained the No. 1 network on cable across all male demographic groups and pushed up from No. 7 to No. 5 in overall prime-time ratings. It ranked eighth, down one spot, in overall total day ratings.
ESPN and ESPN2 both faced challenges retaining men 18 to 34. While ratings among that cohort were up 3 percent for ESPN as a whole, they were down by the same margin during prime time, and also off on ESPN2 (5 percent total day, 9 percent prime time).
But ESPN's stronghold with male viewers is unchallenged.
Artie Bulgrin, ESPN's senior vice president of research and sales development, said an annual internal study has found year after year that ESPN is the favorite television channel, broadcast or cable, among men. It also ranked as the second-favorite channel overall behind only NBC in a study conducted last September, he said.
