HBO is stop working with GBP?

[BrotherCane]

As we know, HBO has been losing PPV's and fights to Showtime and now is going to stop doing business with GBP! It's a rather interesting turn of events! Thoughts?


http://sports.yahoo.com/news/boxing--wit...23186.html

[damarvelous1]

This is pretty fucked up!

There is absolutely NO WAY we will ever see Arum fighters fight Golden Boy fighters now.

Damn!

[BrotherCane]

damarvelous1 Wrote:This is pretty fucked up!

There is absolutely NO WAY we will ever see Arum fighters fight Golden Boy fighters now.

Damn!

Well Arum fighters have gone to Showtime as well so not so sure on that! Not more than what normally would be anyhow!

[salvador]

Showtime is going to lose so much money on Floyd that fighters will have to go back to HBO if they want to be on tv - because Showtime isn't going to have any money in the budget for anything other than Shobox and PPVs.

[blackbelt2003]

OK...so either Showtime is gonna man up and become the new home of boxing......or they've bitten off more than they can chew and they end up giving everyone back.



I hope it's the former as competition is healthy and HBO have had it too good for some time.




Black

[Big Slim]

This doesn't really change the current boxing landscape that much, GBP has been taking more and more of their fighters to showtime for a while now. My question is, what's the point of HBO making this official like this? Is this somehow a savvy business move, or just a 'you aren't dumping me I'm dumping you' response? Maybe someone with a better understanding of this sort of thing can help.

A rumor is spreading that Broner may stay with HBO at the expense of his relationship with Golden Boy (who he doesn't have an official contract with I guess), and presumably Al Haymon (whose contract runs out next month). Might be why Schaeffer was so quick to announce Broner going up to face Malignaggi. He knew the announcement from HBO was coming and Paulie was the biggest fight he could make on short notice?

[and the NEW]

damarvelous1 Wrote:This is pretty fucked up!

There is absolutely NO WAY we will ever see Arum fighters fight Golden Boy fighters now.

Damn!

Exactly what first went through my head. This is a bunch of spoiled, ego driven brats running boxing. Even the mighty "Al Haymon", hiding behind the curtains like his some type of phantom of the opera! Unfortunately, he is running a soap opera with all the dramatic BS these clown characters are pulling!

[jlupi]

This is the new brass at HBO deciding not to give in to GB/hayman as the old guard did (and was widely criticized for) GB gambled by taking less exposure and sometimes less money going to showtime to pressure HBO. Now HBO is saying "have a good time", knowing that GB now has limited exposure and dates for its fighters. ESP since Sho prob has no budjet after signing floyd.

HBO may also be gambling that fighters will start to jump ship from GB.

[BGv4.0]

Well...I'm not so sure that it's simply a case of HBO and Showtime being spoiled....I also think there are natural events taking place that are simply NOT condusive for the fight game in general.

With the loss of Merchant and Stewart....love or hate them....the feel of the HBO broadcast has changed, no matter or not if you actually liked those guys....at the very least they were mainstays that added a bit of stability to the braodcast for many years. It's hard to get used to Max Kellerman and Papa when you had Lamps and Merchant and Foreman and Stewart all those years...

I'm not sure if that is a total reason why people might be losing interest in HBO...but I do think it's a factor.

Having said all of this...it's not like Showtime is any better....I cannot even tell you who does their broadcasts...because it's been years since I actually paid attention to a Showbox broadcast.

I also think that HBO might have realized that the fighters today are simply not the stock that the sport once had years ago during their golden age.....I mean look at all of the millions HBO has poured into the 24/7 series, which as we all know does in fact hype each individual event....but at the end of the day the prize for HBO was SUPPOSED to be a Manny/Floyd PPV.....and in that respect...it was a bust.

Also, they lose out for even TRYING to revive the HW division....HBO's last 2 attempts to have decent HW matchups where they spent cash for promos....ended with both fights being cancelled.

You have a sport where the promoters will not work together, the fighters refuse to fight one another....why spend millions securing fighters that refuse to fight one another or who's promoters will not allow for it?

Plus....I think that subscriptions are falling as well....for the first time in YEARS, I am letting HBO go next month. With the economy the way it is and as high as my cable bill is...I simply cannot justify the $20 a month that it takes to keep HBO....a station that only ever kept for the boxing and maybe 2 weekly series....now the boxing is just so-so and there is only one series I like....so it's just not worth the extra money.

I think HBO will be content to reduce their boxing budget until they see a major change in the boxing landscape.....

[jlupi]

good article

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/mma/new...take-over/

"In just his second year on the job, Ken Hershman, the former Showtime top executive, made a decision that will threaten HBO's position as the industry leader in the sport.
And you know what? He's right.
Watching HBO get picked apart over the last year has been like watching Superman go down one crystal of Kryptonite at a time. Golden Boy has the deepest stable in the business and CEO Richard Schaefer clearly preferred his fighters at Showtime, which was willing to cut him favorable deals. Showtime likes stars, and Schaefer offered his best ones. Showtime got Khan, Garcia and Canelo while Golden Boy got good money for relatively safe fights."