As had been whispered in sports media circles for months, the end is near for NBCSN.
NBC said in an internal memo Friday that it plans to shut down NBCSN by the end of the year and move “key elements” of the network’s programming to USA Network and Peacock. In the memo, NBC Sports chairman Pete Bevacqua said USA will begin airing or simulcasting major NBCSN properties — specifically mentioning Stanley Cup playoff games and NASCAR — as soon as this year.
Per Sports Business Journal, smaller events “will have to find new linear TV outlets.” IndyCar, which is entering the final season of a three-year deal with NBC, released a statement Friday saying that its 2021 schedule would be unaffected by the decision and that it would discuss its “future broadcast arrangements in the late spring.”
The move comes as NBC is prioritizing its new streaming service Peacock. Per SBJ, NBC has told the NHL that it plans to put some NHL games on Peacock — in addition to NBC and USA — if it renews its expiring media rights deal.
NBCSN launched in 1995 as the Outdoor Life Network and was still known by that moniker when it acquired rights to the then-strictly indoor NHL in 2005. It rebranded as Versus in 2006. Shortly after parent company Comcast acquired NBC Universal, it rebranded again as NBC Sports Network in 2012, later shortened to just NBCSN.
For a brief period of time, NBCSN tried to compete with ESPN by launching its own original programs. Shows included the Bob Costas vehicle Costas Tonight, Michelle Beadle’s short-lived The Crossover, an attempt at a stripped-down SportsCenter called The ‘Lights, and an attempt at a traditional SportsCenter called NBC Sports Talk. The network was for several years the TV home of The Dan Patrick Show.
NBCSN has largely restricted its focus to live events in recent years, and as the home of NASCAR, IndyCar, the NHL, Premier League and Olympics, was competitive with the other sports cable networks. Last year, it averaged 108,000 total day viewers — placing fourth behind ESPN (564K), FS1 (119K) and NFL Network (113K) and ahead of ESPN2 (107K), Golf Channel (83K), MLB Network (40K) and NBA TV (26K).
[News from Sports Business Daily 1.22; WSJ 1.22; Hollywood Reporter 1.22, Nielsen cable ranks from SBD 1.14, IndyCar statement from Maury Brown/Twitter 1.22]
