Adam Silver acknowledges TV Ratings are down, says fan interest is not ‘lacking’

Adam Silver acknowledges TV Ratings are down, says fan interest is not ‘lacking’

The NBA’s TV Ratings have been down to begin the 2024-25 season, an ongoing problem the league has faced for the last decade. According to a recently published article by Sports Media Watch, nationally televised ratings are down 19 percent compared to what it was at this point last year.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver recently spoke with Joe Vardon and Sam Amick of The Athletic, acknowledging that ratings are down, but not due to the lack of fan interest.

“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, according to Vardon and Amick. “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.

“We’re almost at the inflection point where people are watching more programming on streaming than they are in traditional television … 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. 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 vast majority of people consume us through media, not in person.”

According to Sports Media Watch, viewership is down for men’s college basketball (21 percent), women’s college basketball (38 percent) and NHL (28 percent). The article, published by Jon Lewis this week, cites that “college football is down across all networks” by an undisclosed single-digit percentage.

Streaming is becoming king in the media community. There’s never been more accessible media than we have today. There’s a lot to compete with–whether it’s written, video or podcasting.

But why do we think the NFL will be streaming on Netflix on Christmas, or that MLB and NFL are playing games on Amazon Prime each week? Why do we think more sports leagues are playing games on Peacock? Sure, it’s all a money grab. But streaming has never been more popular, so if you want to attract the right eyeballs, attracting that audience is one way to do it. After all, there’s a reason why the NBA will be treading in that direction at the start of 2025-26 … it’s the new reality.

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