League Nets Try to Get More Out of Games

Channels Fill Between-Contest Roster With Documentaries, Talk Shows

By Stuart Miller -- Multichannel News, 1/23/2012 12:01:00 AM

Programming a network run by a pro sports league is, on one level, extremely simple: Dedicate time and resources to live coverage of games and surround them with news coverage, previews, updates, live cut-ins and post-game analysis.

Then fill in the gaps with countdown list series, which can be produced cheaply, repurposing footage from the archives. All four major sports league networks — NFL Network, MLB Network, NBA TV and NHL Networks — follow this same basic formula. But even that’s not enough to fill the screen 24/7 in or out of season. So the networks continue exploring new ways to fill out the fringes of their schedules.

Given the recent popularity of sports documentaries for ESPN, HBO Sports and other programmers, producer Eric Drath, who won an Emmy for the HBO boxing documentary Assault in the Ring, said there are opportunities for the league networks to “get a wider audience and grow the fan base.

“There are so many storylines out there with great human interest, he said. “Sports fans like a good story.” But doing such projects right “costs a lot of money,” he acknowledged.

DOCS A STAPLE

All the networks have produced documentaries, like MLB Network’s Behind the Seams, a series of specials that examine such topics as how pitching has changed over time. But most use archival footage and talking heads from easily accessible players. More ambitious documentaries require original footage, cost money and remain in confl ict with the networks’ goals.

“Sure, you can re-run documentaries a number of times and make your money back eventually, but it’s not what the cable operators are paying for,” industry analyst John Mansell, president of John Mansell Associates, said.

Ancillary programming is an afterthought for a reason, according to Mansell.

“Games are where the money is,” he said. “I suppose you could do more original programming, but during the season, the most interest is in live games and surrounding coverage. The other programming garners some interest, but really it’s filler.”

Finding time for series during the season when viewership is highest remains tricky. Games, news and analysis remain the “heart and soul of the network, and there are only so many hours in a day,” NBA Digital senior vice president and general manager Christina Miller, who oversees NBA TV, said.

Lee Berke, president of LHB Sports, Entertainment and Media, agreed, and noted that especially for the National Basketball Association, National Hockey League and Major League Baseball, the main goal of ancillary programming is to “mine the archives in a cost-effective way” because the main job is to “cover the time between games.”

Network executives concede the games are the big draw. “We want to spend our money where the most viewers are watching,” NHL Network executive vice president of content Charles Coplin said.

NFL Network senior vice president for production and programming Mark Quenzel added, “The owners and the league are incredibly supportive, but you can’t ask for everything, and the games get a lot of the budget.”

The National Football League’s channel is something of an exception in all regards. Because the channel has just an eight-game slate of Thursday Night Football contests — and because pro football itself is a once-a-week, 17-week affair for each team — there’s more time to fill between games. However, NFL Films — the league’s legendary documentary unit — offers a vast archive of game films and behind-the-scenes footage, as well as production values to which the others can only aspire.

The NFL Films aesthetic informs such series as the Sports Emmy Award-winning America’s Game, which included an episode profiling each Super Bowl winner, and the new biographical series A Football Life. (That show debuted in the fall with a two-part look at New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick, who spent a whole season wired for sound for the project.)

GETTING INNOVATIVE

Still, while countdown-type shows will remain in the lineup, an evolution is taking place, especially as alternative viewing platforms grow in importance. The networks are looking either internally or to product ion partners such as MLB Productions, NBA Entertainment and Turner Sports for more innovative ideas — and how to make those concepts work on a budget.

“The networks have evolved much like any other network, building out as you gain momentum,” NBA Digital’s Miller said. As distribution grows, so does the demand for more original programming.

NBA TV last year added news magazine True NBA, hosted by CNN’s John King, and this season added a roundtable program (produced by Turner Sports) called Open Court, featuring former stars like Shaquille O’Neal and Reggie Miller.

Miller said that some documentaries — even a multipartner production or a series — could be part of NBA TV’s programming mix in the near future. The network, which also shows hoops-centric Hollywood films, views these programs as “building blocks,” she said.

“We want to get fans used to spending more time watching us when the games aren’t on so we need a balanced mix of programming,” said Miller.

NFL Network may even push into a surprising new daypart, Quenzel said, considering a morning show along the lines of Golf Channel’s Morning Drive. “We want something new and fresh for our fans,” he said.

MLB Network president Tony Petitti says his network’s latest project is Baseball IQ, a game show that debuts this week. He also sees NBA’s Open Court as a concept the diamond network may follow. “I think you’ll see more of that type of roundtable programming here, too,” he said.

Berke said Open Court works because it features big names, but is inexpensive to produce. The networks are also beginning to look for other ways to manage their budgets.

In the fall, the NHL created NHL Original Productions, partnering with former HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg; its first effort is NHL 36, which follows a current star for 36 hours.

However, to make the finances work, NHL 36 runs first on NBC Sports Network (formerly Versus), prior to live games featuring the profiled player, before repeating on NHL Network. Similarly, the reality series Oil Change is produced for Canadian television before reaching the NHL Network.

“It’s a good economic model for us,” Coplin said.

PROMOTION STILL CRITICAL

The need to promote the sport is crucial to keep in mind, Quenzel noted. The NFL’s newest program, NFL Honors, will air on NBC on Feb. 4, the day before that network airs Super Bowl XLVI. NFL Network will weigh in with red-carpet preview programming and news shows looking back at the event.

“I wear two hats,” Quenzel said. “The greater goal is to grow the popularity of the league. That will trickle down to the network.”

Short-form programming is becoming even more valuable, Coplin said, thanks to the rise of the Internet, smart phones and tablets. “Technology is changing the way fans are consuming content,” he said. (Time is “more fungible” on these platforms, he added, meaning that segments don’t have to fit precisely in a specific time frame like long-form programs on linear networks.)

All the networks are trying to tap the reach of the Internet.

“Mobile is the biggest driver of everything now,” Quenzel said. The new platforms create an emphasis on news content, he added, but also provide a new outlet for material that doesn’t fit in a 24-hour linear environment.

For instance, NFL Network’s America’s Game is now available on Hulu, while short, standalone clips from the series can be found on NFL.com.

“Digital and social media are the biggest changes for our networks,” Quenzel added. “We can create a deeper, richer experience for our fans.”