FreddyE1977 said:
I think the bigger threat will come when the CBS Sports Network and the NBC Sports Network
(i.e. Versus) expand to "families" of networks and begin really competing with them in earnest.
They've had the field pretty much to themselves since 1979.
Honestly, the only threat I see for ESPN is once people start ditching cable en masse, which I do believe will happen in the next 20 years. Yes, having access to all that entertainment is great, but every year the channel providers ask for more and more money. At some point, there will be a "breaking point" where people will cry uncle. Because that point is probably different for each family, it may happen gradually over 20 years, but it will happen.
For me, I pay about $150 a month (actually, $113, but my property management pays the rest). This covers my home phone, my internet, Basic, Digital, Starz, and HBO. I won't be paying a dime more, and as the rates go up, I will start paring down my services until they are gone. For me, the value of Internet and television combined is no more than $120 a month out of my own pocket, and I consider myself a heavy user of both.
The problem I see with the theory that CBS or NBC will overtake ESPN is that sports rights cost money, and the way ESPN runs is they just get said money from subscription fees. If NBC and CBS start down the same path, then cable companies are going to have to start making choices between subscribers and content.
