Bally Sports RSNs Are Reportedly Preparing For Bankruptcy

[Yespage]

I think as we start to move away from the RSNs, we'll see cost cutting in production and filler content, which will help with that $43M number.

RSNs are almost exclusively filler content! Personally, I don't care about pre-game / post-game. I watched the game, there were commentators talking during the game.

For instance, when I tune into my local team, there's a pre-game show for an hour, then a 30 min warmup show that leads into the game, then a 30 min postgame, followed by a 1 hour deep analysis show.

When you move to streaming, none of that extra fluff is going to get aired, much less viewed.

But for Peacock, they include the Indycar practice sessions and NXT races. The equipment and field talent are already on site, why not use it?

 

[navychop]

New math: 11 becomes 7!

 

[Yespage]

According to reports, Bally Sports Regional Sports Networks (RSNs) are getting ready for bankruptcy. The financial situation of these networks appears to be concerning, and the bankruptcy preparations are likely a response to their economic challenges.

Applaud the Bot post, and getting through the filters.

Getting ready for bankruptcy? They filed months ago.

 

[navychop]

Perhaps there is a new Chapter in their filings….

 

[SamCdbs]

Perhaps there is a new Chapter in their filings….

Nah. Sinclair still thinks that it can yield a profit with some teams if it can sell it a la carte. The math, and common sense, say otherwise, but they want to try. Look for Diamond to come out of bankruptcy, and then fail again in a couple of years.

 

[Yespage]

A la carte was part of the plan, getting a cut of the gambling was the other. That fell through when apparently they learned they can't just do that. So back to just a la carte and financial doom.

 

[Bruce]

Look for Diamond to come out of bankruptcy, and then fail again in a couple of years.

This is one of the few things we again on, they are not going to get streaming rights from the MLB for all those other teams, also does not matter because no one has any interest in their streaming service-

Bally Sports+ launched late last year and offers direct-to-consumer streaming packages starting at $19.99 a month. However, The Hollywood Reporter states the sports streaming service only has 203,000 subscribers.

Just rip the band aid off now and declare Chapter 7, so we can get to the future faster regarding the MLB.

https://cordcuttersnews.com/bally-sports-streaming-service-reportedly-has-only-203000-subscribers/

 

[Bruce]

Today was the deadline for Diamond to agree with creditors on the business plan and Diamond requested a 120 day extension to file a Chapter 11 plan.

 

[Bruce]

Now Diamond has moved on to the NHL/NBA to sign ( some TV deals are up or almost up), renegotiate or drop-

The NBA teams affect by these talks include the Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic, Indiana Pacers, New Orleans Pelicans, Minnesota Timberwolves, Cleveland Cavaliers, Oklahoma City Thunder, Los Angeles Clippers, Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Memphis Grizzlies, Dallas Mavericks, San Antonio Spurs. Miami Heat, and Milwaukee Bucks.

The NHL teams affected by these talks include the Arizona Coyotes, Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers, St. Lous Blues, Minnesota Wild, Columbus Blue Jackets, Anaheim Ducks, Carolina Hurricanes, Nashville Predators, Dallas Stars, Tampa Bay Lightning, and the Los Angeles Kings.

https://cordcuttersnews.com/bally-s...hl-teams-before-the-start-of-the-2023-season/

 

[SamCdbs]

This is one of the few things we again on, they are not going to get streaming rights from the MLB for all those other teams, also does not matter because no one has any interest in their streaming service-

That is correct. People that cord switched did so to get away from the "sports tax". People with interest in the local baseball team, self-selected to stay where they are, so the numbers are low.

But, you are correct, even in a world where there is no cable, et al, and the only way to watch the home team every night is to buy it a la carte, the number that will do so it very small. That is the hard to understand but true, thing about, particularly, baseball. It is a HIGHLY regional sport, the most regional by far. The local team's game is often the single highest rated thing on TV, every night, all summer. But, that is still just 2 or 3 or 4 % of people. That is how many people who, if they could afford it, pay for the local team. They seem settled on about $120/season. 4% of any market, even NY or LA, times $120 is 10s of millions less than the teams were getting from the RSN model.

Just rip the band aid off now and declare Chapter 7, so we can get to the future faster regarding the MLB.

Problem is, I don't know what model works going forward. A la carte is discussed above. It cuts revenues massively. OTA? I really don't see it, again, that is just giving the games away. Local TV ads are really not that expensive. That is why most RSN ads are car dealers and ambulance chasers.

And, since mlb.tv is just selling out of market games the in market sales caused to be covered in the first place, that is also in doubt.

Now Diamond has moved on to the NHL/NBA to sign ( some TV deals are up or almost up), renegotiate or drop-

The NBA and NHL are a different story. First, both are WAY less regional than baseball. You will find, not that far from the core cities, fans of random teams who watch those sports on national services. And you will find, large swaths of the country where if you asked "what is the local NBA/NHL team here" the most popular answer would be "none". And, on a REGIONAL level, the NBA and NHL are just not as popular. Yes, the ratings for national games on national services for MLB and NBA are close, with the NHL being behind, but on the RSNs, the local baseball game pulls in the ratings I discuss above, the NBA and NHL do not.

If forced to I would dip down and pay for my local baseball team. I don't care a whit about the NBA. I would have to let the NHL slide, there is too much NHL for "free" on TNT and ESPN and ESPN+ for me to pay for a team that says its my home team.

 

[Bruce]

More bad news for Diamond/Bally.

DIRECTV announced its contract with Bally Sports ended this year and that it is looking to pay less going forward as Bally Sports has lost several MLB teams recently.

Since Dish dropped them, they have lost less subscribers then DirecTV.

YouTube TV has actually gained subscribers since dropping them and is the only Live TV provider to gain subs.

So Diamond does not have a good hand in this, since DirecTV has 9 Million satellite subs, streaming version 1.5 million and uverse at 2 million, that is lot of per sub fees it could lose.

https://cordcuttersnews.com/directv...ns-this-year-if-a-lower-deal-cant-be-reached/

 

[navychop]

I just got word Diamond will start their own sports teams and control the lot! Huge profits forecast!

Combat Tiddlywinks and Curling for Dollars.

 

[Bruce]

Not news about Ballys/Diamond, but related -

AT&T SportsNets RSNs Will Shut Down By The End of 2023

Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company behind AT&T SportsNet has confirmed that they intend to shut down their RSNs by the end of 2023. This was announced during today’s Q2 earnings call.

https://cordcuttersnews.com/att-spo...e-end-of-2023-warner-bros-discovery-confirms/

 

[Bruce]

Back to Diamond, deals are up this year with both DirecTV and Comcast, found out the deal with Charter/Spectrum is up in February 2024.

That is 43 Million of the current 55 Million Cable/Satellite ( including DirecTV streaming and Uverse) Providers’ subscribers.

I wonder if there is a little bit of collusion going on between the 3, either to get a much better deal or to help and shut them down so they can deal straight with the leagues.

From here-

In a July 11 filing with the court, Diamond stated that the three legacy deals “collectively provide the substantial majority of [its] distribution revenue,” before adding that the third such arrangement “will be up for renewal before the end of February 2024.”

https://sports.yahoo.com/diamond-rsn-fall-tv-plans-195203569.html

 

[ShawnHill1]

Sports Illustrated recently spoke with the new majority owners of the Charlotte Hornets, as their contract with Bally expires in 2026 (three more seasons, including this upcoming one), and they're uncertain as far as their future with the RSN going forward. They said they may have alternative plans, as far as TV coverage, but nothing more was said.

https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/news/new-hornets-ownership-talks-future-with-bally-sports

 

[meStevo]

The Bloomberg article it cites is paywalled, so here's the CC coverage of it:

https://cordcuttersnews.com/local-n...le-tv-espn-or-amazon-according-to-new-report/

Today Bloomberg reported that it has confirmed that Disney, Apple, and Amazon have all held talks with the NBA to stream local in-market NBA. This comes as Bally Sports which is currently in bankruptcy, may lose more NBA TV rights.​

​

At issue here is Diamond Sports Group, the parent company behind Bally Sports, requested an extension of the exclusivity period of 120 days to create a go-forward plan. Now the creditors want that time limited and want Bally Sports to finalize its talks with the NBA and NHL teams as part of its business plan in its Chapter 11 proceedings. If the creditors get their way, Bally Sports would need to finish talks with the NBA and NHL before the season starts.​

​

Bally Sports needs to decide if it will pay NBA and NHL teams their full contracts or try to renegotiate unprofitable contracts. This is very similar to what we just went through with MLB teams, which resulted in two teams losing their TV deals with Bally Sports.​

​

The NBA teams Bally Sports currently has contracts with the Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic, Indiana Pacers, New Orleans Pelicans, Minnesota Timberwolves, Cleveland Cavaliers, Oklahoma City Thunder, Los Angeles Clippers, Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Memphis Grizzlies, Dallas Mavericks, San Antonio Spurs. Miami Heat, and Milwaukee Bucks.​

 

[Bruce]

Today was the deadline for Diamond to agree with creditors on the business plan and Diamond requested a 120 day extension to file a Chapter 11 plan.


View attachment 164001

As I wrote above, Diamond wanted a 120 Day extension to present a business plan, Judge has given them 80 Days.

NHL and NBA are both making noise, saying they needs these plans done, especially since the NBA starts up in October.

DirecTV took a shot at Diamond and said this to the court-

In an Aug. 2 court filing, the satcaster declared that the debtors “should not assume that DirecTV will renew its various distribution agreements with [Diamond].”

https://www.sportico.com/business/media/2023/diamond-sports-bankruptcy-extended-nhl-nba-1234734038/

 

[Bruce]

new filing-

"the Debtors have been hard at work on an updated business plan to right-size their business and balance sheet given the tectonic shifts impacting the entire cable industry due to increased cable subscriber churn"

"The Debtors believe that the time for appointment of a mediator or mediators is now as the Debtors are operating under a tight timeline and any mediators will need to immediately get up to speed and be in a position to assist the parties on the Debtors’ timeline, which requires that substantial plan progress occur prior to the start of the upcoming NBA and NHL seasons."

https://www.reddit.com/media?url=ht...bp&s=5c36fbb9d7d4ac33c49bbc21f6e3461fa3aee6b4

 

[navychop]

They have no cards to play.

 

[Bruce]

Looks like Diamond wants a little more help-

On Tuesday, the regional sports network has asked the judge overseeing the case to appoint mediators as it tries to negotiate TV contracts with DIRECTV, Comcast, Spectrum, NBA, NHL, and its debters. This comes from a report by Front Office Sports that says negotiations are underway with all of these parties.

They already tried this, by asking the Court with help in negotiations with MLB to get better terms and streaming rights, Court said no , that is not what it does, it was up to Diamond and MLB, we all know how well that worked out.

I believe we are in the last few innings and Diamond is way behind and about to lose ( go bye bye).