Is ESPN a Monopoly?
The NFL Draft was just this past weekend, and where did all of the interested football fans tune in to watch? ESPN. This sports channel had around-the-clock coverage for the two days that the draft took place. Millions watched the trades with anticipation. These people who spent hours upon hours watching the coverage have ESPN to thank. Or do they? Should sports fans really be thankful for ESPN? According to this author the answer is no. The author argues that ESPN teaches its viewers nothing about sports, it merely shows them highlights. He also argues that ESPN is a monopoly, and that anyone who follows sports can clearly see that. To quote the author, “I call upon the congress to repeal the antitrust exemption... Sports have become a multi-billion dollar industry in the last decade. Nike has Reebok and Adidas, ESPN has no competition whatsoever. Competition is what makes capitalism a great system. Monopolies eventually disintegrate over time. The sport broadcasting industry needs more diversity, more vision, and more class. We can do better”. Do you agree with this man’s claim that ESPN is a monopoly?
13 comments:
I believe that ESPN is a monopoly in certain circumstances. Espn is a monoploy in sports news, but not in the only channel that brodcasts sports. ESPN hardly shows live brodcasts and leaves that for other local channels.
ESPN is not a monopoly, a lot of sports are broadcast on other channels such as FSN and the big public networks... also the NFL has thier own station now, NFL Network. A few years ago when the show playmakers was cancelled it was b/c the NFL threatened to stop letting ESPN air thier games, I think that shows who has the real control over the situation...
For one if ESPN had a monopoly they would not have to bid to get the sports games they have. Also there are other networks that broadcast sports such as NBC and the VS network which are broadcasting the NHL playoffs right now, so the veiwer has their choice of network to watch.
As far as I know, ESPN has been the only choice for sports fans. However, we cannot say that it is monopoly just because it is so popular and successful. For TV channels, I think the way to profit rely on commercials. No matter what kind of channel it is or what kind of field the channel is focused on, they cannot survive without the profit from broadcasting commercials. Therefore, I think the relative market for ESPA should be the market of mass media. From this point of view, ESPN is no a monopoly because it is no taking up all the commercials.
I do not believe that ESPN is a monopoly just because they are the only station that shows sports highlights. Many other stations show different games and highlights as well; atleast what I have been watching. I dont believe that ESPN has any direct competition, it is no dominating the area of sports games.
I don't think that ESPN is a monopoly. It is just the best channel for the sports information. They do make bids for games and are often out bidded, for example with FOX. ESPN is offered for sports highlights and that's what they do, the other stations are what show the actual games. So for that I do not think that ESPN is a monopoly.
As a side note, the NFL Draft was aired on the NFL Network too. So ESPN was not the only network airing the draft.
I do not feel as if ESPN is a monopoly at all. ESPN has many competitors out there. Fox Sports Net, Versus, NBC/CBS/Fox Sports, and CSTV. In the past you could have said that ESPN was a monopoly (before the competitors started really competing). But anymore, ESPN has no more power than anybody else. Fox Sports Net airs tons of baseball games, Versus/NBC have hockey, and CBS has the NCAA tournament in basketball. So, in my opinion ESPN is not a monopoly.
ESPN, is one of the only channels that show highlights of games, but they do also show games, along with other sports channels such as NESN and such. However I do feel that they are some what of a monopoly, they have more than one channel and dominate most of the sports enthusiates TVs. However sports in its self is a monopoly, why have more than one sports league per a sport, that is just going to make seem like everyone can be a pro athlete.
While ESPN is the only channel that is dedicated to sports,any local news channel shows highlights from a game as well. Also, in regards to the NFL draft, it is no different than any other channel showing a tv show exclusively as part of a contract.
ESPN cannot be a monopoly if no other broadcasters are willing to give viewers the same industry-like information ESPN gives. I do not agree with with the author and I believe ESPN does a tremendous job with the sports industry. If it weren't for ESPN, hundreds of events and even some sports would not have become as popular and be making tremendous amounts of money as they are today
ESPN in my opinion is not a monopoly, there are merely the best sports information provider worldwide. Other small, sports information companies do exist, such as the Fox Sports Net, or Sports Time Ohio (which is obviously for the state of Ohio in particular). ESPN is not a monopoly and should not be mentioned as such.
ESPN is definately not a Monopoly. They are not the only network that has sport coverage. They are not the only network who has the highlights. They are just the network who has perfected the presentation of the coverage and highlights.
ESPN is far from a monopoly. Sure, they had the rights to the draft, but they didn't have any rights to the NCAA tournament... that lasted all month. As it has already been mentioned, any news channel will give you sports highlights. Additionally, you can look up scores and highlights on online news sites too. It is a bit silly to think a television network is a monopoly. NBC is the only station on which you can watch "The Office," but that is just how television works.
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