"In the early 1980s, the National Basketball Association (NBA) faced a crisis. Television ratings were plummeting-the 1981 NBA finals were among the lowest of all time. Spurred by failing franchises, low game attendance, and declining corporate sponsorships, the league's cultural relevance in the United States waned. Then in 1984, the league responded with a structural shift that would change the culture of sports for decades to come."
"Today the NBA, valued at over $160 billion, finds itself at another inflection point. More people are viewing programming on streaming platforms than on traditional television. Toward the end of 2024, the league's ratings dipped by 19% in its early season. Coming into this current season, the NBA recalibrated its media strategy by entering new partnerships with NBCUniversal and streaming platform Amazon Prime."
In the early 1980s the NBA endured falling television ratings, weak attendance, failing franchises, and declining corporate sponsorships that diminished cultural relevance. The 1984 collective bargaining agreement aligned players and owners to grow the game by increasing player access to fans and media. That strategy triggered a business renaissance, elevating the league's value to over $160 billion. Streaming disrupted traditional television viewership, producing a 19% ratings dip late in 2024 before new partnerships with NBCUniversal and Amazon Prime helped viewership rebound to over 60 million. The league now aims to design a tailored global fan experience and launch NBA Europe to capitalize on 270 million European basketball fans.
Read at Fast Company
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]