Despite a slight dip in NBA TV ratings this year, commissioner Adam Silver isn’t concerned with new plans for the league coming soon as interest continues to grow.
Adam Silver Not Worried By Dip In Ratings
NBA commissioner Adam Silver spoke this week about some new changes to the league that are coming up, as well as providing an update on NBA TV ratings so far this season.
Before the NBA Cup final on Tuesday night, Silver discussed the ratings which have taken a recent dip, but they aren’t a worry for the commissioner who has big plans for the near future.
“If you look at other data points, in terms of our business, for example, we’ve just come off the last two years of the highest attendance in the history of this league,” Silver said.
“We’re at a point where our social media audience is at the highest of any league and continuing to grow exponentially. So, it’s not a lack of interest in this game.”
NBA viewership continues to decline…
◾️ NBA Cup Viewership: Down 10%
◾️ ESPN Viewership: Down 28%
◾️ 2024 Playoff Viewership: Down 12%
One Major Problem…
Half the league’s fans can’t watch their teams play without buying packages outside of basic cable pic.twitter.com/xImgVDoxEU
— Frank Michael Smith (@frankmikesmith) December 11, 2024
A New Way To Watch The NBA
Although the ratings have dropped, with interest growing within the league, Silver has made the huge decision to make every game in the NBA available on streaming platforms as of next year.
“We’re almost at the inflection point where people are watching more programming on streaming than they are in traditional television,” Silver noted. “And it’s a reason why for our new television deals, which will enter into next year, every game is going to be available on a streaming service.”
It is likely that the streaming service Silver was referencing is Amazon Prime, with a new 11-year, $76billion deal kicking in for the NBA alongside ESPN, NBC and ABC from next season.
“And as we move to streaming service, putting aside how the actual game is played on the floor, it’s going to allow us from a production standpoint to do all kinds of things that you can’t do through traditional television. All kinds of new functionality, all kinds of new options and screens that are available.”
The changes to the way we watch the NBA going forward were announced on the same night that Silver confirmed changes to the All-Star format for February.
