Peacock Sports

One of the most interesting pieces of sports media news that I've seen in quite a while came out the other day when it was reported that NBC is considering launching a linear channel focused on sports programming.  In this era where everything is moving away from linear to exclusively streaming, it was shocking.  Especially since this is the same network that shuttered both NBCSN and Olympic Channel not too long ago.  At that time, NBC moved some of the content that aired on NBCSN and Olympic Channel to its other cable networks while making all of its sports programming available on Peacock.  The goal, obviously, was to drive Peacock subscriptions.

The timing of this, should it happen, isn't a coincidence, either.  NBCUniversal is in the process of spinning off its cable channels into a new company called "Versant."  Versant will include every cable channel currently under the NBC umbrella with the exception of Bravo.  Most significantly, USA and CNBC, the two main cable channels NBC uses for sports content, as well as Golf Channel (which is self-explanatory), are included in the deal.  NBCUniversal has promised to "fulfill its obligations" with its existing sports properties, but you have to wonder how that relationship will work moving forward if they're two completely separate entities.

Would NBCUniversal even be considering this if it weren't splitting off its cable properties (specifically USA)?  I'm not so sure.  So, I think not having those channels available for NBC Sports programming is definitely coming into play here.  They'll need to have a linear presence for those events somewhere, and the existing options (USA & CNBC) may not necessarily be guaranteed in the future.  So why not create a new option to fulfill those preexisting commitments?

And, of course, the NBA On NBC is returning this season.  As a part of the NBA deal, Peacock will have a pretty significant number of exclusive games that NBC will obviously want to make available to the largest audience possible.  Especially since they paid more for the NBA than they do for Sunday Night Football!  NBC has to pay for its NBA rights somehow (they've already raised the price of Peacock by $3 a month which is not unrelated).

It's worth noting that this new channel (which I'm calling "Peacock Sports" for convenience sake) is intended as a complement to Peacock rather than a replacement.  The idea is that it won't be available in the basic bundle like NBCSN was (and similar channels ESPN and FS1 are).  Rather, it'll only be on a sports-specific premium tier.  The thought process, which is actually a pretty reasonable position to take, is that it'll actually increase the potential audience for Peacock Sports because it would get both those who've made the switch to streaming and those who haven't made the switch because they've remained loyal to the cable bundle.

On paper, this makes a lot of sense.  Sports programming is very heavily featured on Peacock, so there would be plenty of content.  That was one of the problems with NBCSN and Olympic Channel, especially in that last year after NBC lost the NHL rights.  They didn't have enough programming to fill 24 hours, so they ran infomercials overnight, a lot of filler programming, and multiple replays of the same events.  Peacock Sports could easily do that, even if it means not necessarily showing everything live.

Just think about the amount of programming NBC already has that's exclusive to Peacock.  They'll have the NBA in the Fall and the WNBA next summer, as well as an exclusive NFL game each season.  They've had the Premier League for years.  The Big East and Big Ten.  One Notre Dame football game every season.  The Tour de France.  All the Olympic sports.  And, if NBC, as rumored, is in the mix for Sunday Night Baseball, you can add that to the list.

Most of the NBC/Peacock contracts already have dedicated windows for games.  That wouldn't change with a Peacock Sports linear TV channel.  In fact, it would form the foundation of their schedule.  Then, they could fill in the remaining hours with non-live Olympic sports programming (which could also be live for certain major events or if it fits in the schedule) or shows like Pro Football Talk or The Dan Patrick Show (which served as mid-afternoon filler on NBCSN).

Peacock literally has six sports-specific channels in addition to all of their live game offerings.  I haven't even mentioned their extensive library of sports documentaries yet, either.  It seriously would NOT be hard to find 24 hours' worth of programming to put on this channel!  Especially if it's intended to be a supplement for Peacock's offerings.  (All Peacock content is already available both live and on-demand, so if they want to watch something live that isn't on Peacock Sports or won't be on the linear TV channel until later in the day, they still can.)

Between the content that's currently on USA and CNBC, as well as events that are exclusive to Peacock, it's actually pretty easy to envision what a day on Peacock Sports might look like.  A Fall Saturday could have the Premier League in the morning, then a Big Ten football game in the afternoon.  They could have the second half of that Tuesday NBA doubleheader (or the first half for the people getting the West Coast game).  Sunday Night Baseball during football season.  The primary Olympic cable coverage, etc.  (Plus whatever other sports properties NBC may eventually also pick up.)

While streaming is the present and future, the cable bundle isn't dead yet.  Nor is it fading away into the sunset as quickly as some would like to believe.  And it's sports fans who are the most loyal viewers to their existing cable bundle.  This is NBCUniversal's acknowledgement of that.  So, why not make an attempt to reach out to some of them without cannibalizing Peacock (which already simulcasts Sunday Night Football and all other NBC Sports programming anyway)?  It'll only increase your potential audience by appealing to both.

Even with the prevalence of streaming, there are definite advantages to cable that simply don't exist with streaming.  The most significant of which is channel guides.  If it's on TV (as opposed to just streaming), it shows up on the channel guide.  People can either seek it out or randomly stumble upon it.  You can't do that with streaming.  With streaming, if you want to watch something, you have to know when it's on and where to find it.

That's always been my biggest point of contention about streaming.  Especially streaming exclusives.  While they're not a big deal for many people, there are plenty of others who find them extremely annoying.  It's incredibly frustrating when you want to watch the game on TV, but can't!  And, as NBCUniversal has found out, people aren't gonna sign up for Peacock just to watch one game.

Keep in mind, too, that nothing is confirmed yet.  We don't know if it's actually happening or when it'll launch if it does happen.  Although, now that it's being discussed publicly, I'd be surprised if it doesn't happen.  And it wouldn't just be a win for linear TV.  It'd be NBC's subtle acknowledgement that shuttering NBCSN, while it might've seemed like a good idea at the time, was a mistake.