The Hollywood writers strike is crippling the television industry, but could be a boon to sporting events such as Mixed Martial Arts, and even the NBA.
Wayne Friedman of TV Watch predicts “ABC will decide to finally air a bunch of NBA games on Saturday nights in January“, as a result of the strike. There had been rumblings about ABC airing Saturday night NBA games since last year, though no games are currently scheduled. Because of the writers strike, NBA and other sporting events going primetime on broadcast is a real possibility. In a television marketplace where the well of programming could very well run dry soon, sporting events — even those that draw relatively small national audiences, could be good enough for networks overrun with reruns.
Already Mixed Martial Arts is benefiting from the writers strike; depending on the length of the strike, NBC “may link with one of the many operators of MMA events to air either prime-time specials or slot the few-holds-barred programming in late-night.” The cream of the MMA crop, the UFC, is “in advanced negotiations to air specials on CBS in the first quarter if the strike continues.”
It is too early to tell whether or not MMA or the NBA would be successful in prime-time. NBA games averaged a 2.0 rating on ABC last season, all airing in the afternoon. The last time NBA games aired regularly on Saturday nights was during the 1999-2000 season; the six games, all aired by NBC at 6:00 PM ET or later, averaged a 3.1 rating.
