Articles by Levick Experts
No one’s more culpable, according to the cable industry, than sports programmers. Worst of them all is the reigning deity of TV sports, ESPN.
The cable lobby may have a good point, despite their own bad-boy image among consumers. As the number-one-rated cable channel, ESPN ostensibly uses its clout to negotiate untenably higher rates. In turn, cable providers such as Comcast, Cox Communications, Time-Warner Cable, not to mention dozens of smaller companies, are often fairly acquiescent when ESPN, Fox Sports, or other sports programmers call the shots.
For years the programmers’ message was essentially: “Pay up or drop us – and watch your customers drop you in favor of satellite dishes.”
In 2003, however, Cox Communications finally set a different tone when ESPN asked for a 25 percent rate increase per year for 10 consecutive years. That’s worth repeating: 25 percent per year for 10 years.
If Cox had knuckled under to ESPN in the past, this time it fought back – and what made the difference was that Cox adopted as very different strategy by taking its case directly to the public. Their message was simple but irresistible: “Who gets these kinds of price increases? Who gets 25 percent a year for one year, much less for 10 consecutive years?”
Given that other programmers are now considering huge rate hikes – both CBS and Univision (the largest Spanish-language programmer) recently announced aggressive fee-inflation plans – cable companies of all sizes are well-advised to dust off Cox’s stare-down strategy and unleash it now in support of their own current business positions.
Cox set the right tone against ESPN by targeting public opinion through the mainstream media, blogs, online sports fan clubs, and other venues both broad and narrow. Its communications team said, in essence, “We’re sports fans too and we can identify with consumers who should not have to bear the brunt of uncontrolled cost increases. Please email the CEO of ESPN, and your Congressional representative.”
ESPN buckled as the final price of the 10-year contract dropped by $600 million. Communications lesson: Even when you’re up against a popular player, you can properly frame the argument, create a public opinion tide, and win the day.
Indeed, for cable companies, the lessons are more important now than ever:
- Don’t fear the bully. While sports and other entertainment programmers may posture and position, and strut and swagger, they’re not at all invincible. Once you’ve exhausted all reasonable negotiation alternatives, hit first, hit hard, and publicly back the other guy into a corner.
- To plead your case to TV viewers, first understand the audience. Not for one second do they care about the economic impact of whatever it is two media giants happen to negotiate. They care about their cable bills, period, and they want to know why they keep going up.
- Explain in simple terms what your adversary is doing: “ESPN – or Fox Sports – or Univision – is cranking up its rates to us in order to price-gouge you. If they get their way, we can either increase our cable prices or go out of business. We don’t want either of those two alternative outcomes, and we need your help to find a solution.”
- Activate and optimize your website, driving all its content with the classic message, “We’re mad as hell and we’re not going to take it anymore!”
Cable companies can win the communications wars if they realize that their interests and their customers’ are identical and that, at the end of the day, their best allies are the end users.