Thomas Hauser on HBO

[Erratic]

http://secondsout.com/Columns/index.cfm?ccs=208&cs=24779

[Mitchell Kane]

I like it when Hauser writes about the business side of boxing...it's probably what he's best at.

I'll definitely make time to read this today.

[Mitchell Kane]

Sources say that the current annual budget for HBO Sports is approximately $75,000,000. That doesn’t include the salaries of fulltime employees, who are listed on a different budget line. It does include salaries for “talent” (such as Jim Lampley, Larry Merchant, and Bryant Gumbel), license fees, production costs, and marketing. Approximately $60,000,000 of that $75,000,000 total is spent on boxing. By way of comparison, Showtime’s annual boxing budget is slightly more than $20,000,000.

...

[Mitchell Kane]

There were raised eyebrows when the network paid a $7,000,000 license fee for De La Hoya-Forbes. $2,000,000 of that total came from the HBO Sports budget and $5,000,000 was a special corporate grant. HBO spent another $2,000,000 off-network to promote the fight and incurred production costs in the mid-six-figures. There was extensive on-air promotion as well.

...

[joony]

damn, that was long.

i like idea of buffer becoming an analyst. he's been to just about every hbo fight since the 90s.

i also agree with his take on kellerman. max needs to shut up or follow up on his bold remarks.

[Neil]

buffer is a terrible idea. I've heard him offer "insight" before.

that was a depressing article

[Mitchell Kane]

I think HBO went completely down hill when Dibella left.

I'm not sure it's ever getting back to where it was then.

There's decent points made about the GBP-HBO deal. GBP does bring in sponsors, but they're not a proven grass roots promoter at all and they haven't done much of anything to really build their young fighters like Top Rank does...outside of just getting them on television.

The real trend in boxing promotion in the U.S. is away from live events and into television. Gary Shaw and Golden Boy control a great deal of the cable dates, yet a lot of their shows aren't that well attended...and it doesn't even seem to matter.

[Double L]

Buffer makes a fool of himself on Versus with his history lessons and pointless comments.

[Mitchell Kane]

Bernstein also noted that HBO has added a one-minute countdown clock to the screen between rounds and is experimenting on Boxing After Dark with showing punch-stats on the screen during rounds.

:doh::bangh:

[joony]

don king's decline also attributes to this as well. golden boy promotions blows.

[Mitchell Kane]

“But it doesn’t stop there,” says a member of the HBO production team. “They’re looking at three and four-figure expenses that they never thought twice about before. They’re planning to leave both Merchant and Kellerman home when they do [the June 28th telecast of] Pacquiao-Diaz to save airfare and three nights at the hotel.”

...

[Mitchell Kane]

HBO’s dealings with Ricky Hatton are a case in point. Sources say that, in 2006, the network signed a three-fight deal that led to a $2,850,000 license fee for Hatton’s fight against Luis Collazo; $2,850,000 for Hatton against Juan Urango; and $3,000,000 for Hatton against Jose Luis Castillo.

By contrast, Versus paid a license fee in the low six figures (very low) for its May 24th doubleheader featuring Hatton against Juan Lazcano and Paulie Malignaggi against Lovemore N’dou.

“It’s one thing to be out-negotiated by King or Arum,” says an industry insider. “HBO was outwitted by Artie Pelullo [Hatton’s U.S. promoter at the time the three-fight deal was signed].” :lol:

There’s something very wrong with the economic model at HBO Sports when the network pays a $2,850,000 license fee for Hatton-Urango and Versus pays roughly five percent of that amount for a doubleheader pairing Hatton-Lazcano with Malignaggi-N’dou.

To repeat: There’s something very wrong with the economic model at HBO Sports when the network pays a $2,850,000 license fee for Hatton-Urango and Versus pays roughly five percent of that amount for a doubleheader pairing Hatton-Lazcano with Malignaggi-N’dou.

...

[royyjonesjrp4pno1]

Bob Arum is a huge hypocrite in this article.

[REEDsART]

Buffer makes a fool of himself on Versus with his history lessons and pointless comments.
agREED...

Buffer's TERRIBLE on Versus' "Legends of the Ring" Series...When he Gives his "Insight" it's APPARENT that he's REEDing from a Cue Card...

Just the Other Day, he Referred to Wifred Benitez as WilfreDO Benitez...He Also Pronoucned Ayub Kalule WRONG...Buffer Said Ka-Loo-LUH, but it's Ka-Loo-LAY...

He'd B DREADFUL Giving LIVE Boxing Analysis...

REED:lol:

[Mitchell Kane]

agREED...

Buffer's TERRIBLE on Versus' "Legends of the Ring" Series...When he Gives his "Insight" it's APPARENT that he's REEDing from a Cue Card...

Just the Other Day, he Referred to Wifred Benitez as WilfreDO Benitez...He Also Pronoucned Ayub Kalule WRONG...Buffer Said Ka-Loo-LUH, but it's Ka-Loo-LAY...

He'd B DREADFUL Giving LIVE Boxing Analysis...

REED:lol:

Perhaps Buffer isn't up to it.

But the “Watch a fight on HBO with your son and daughter” campaign sounds like a winner.

[Mitchell Kane]

Hauser has another article ESPN that deals with the situation involving the Peterson brothers and Shelly Finkel.

It deals with some of the same players, including Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions, who both wanted their services.

http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/boxing/news/story?id=3414631

It quotes a Peterson counterclaim against Finkel at some length.

Here's a few excerpts:

At that point, the counterclaim continues, "Hunter began to inquire of Finkel and Prize Fight Promotions as to when the Petersons were going to receive more lucrative fights. In response, Finkel told Hunter to be patient. But Prize Fight Promotions was more direct, and Hunter then learned something as to which [neither] he nor Anthony and Lamont had any knowledge: that Prize Fight had been promised by Finkel an exclusive promotional contract with the Petersons, that Finkel had received in excess of $400,000 in return for securing Prize Fight's exclusive rights, and that Prize Fight was upset because no such contract had been signed."

"In March 2007," according to the counterclaim, "Finkel denied [to Hunter] that he had received any monies in connection with promising to sign Anthony and Lamont with Prize Fight Promotions and claimed that the monies related to a totally separate deal having nothing to do with the Petersons. After Hunter told the Prize Fight Promotions principals that Finkel had denied receiving any such monies, they told him that Finkel had been lying and [Russ Young of Prize Fight] faxed to Hunter a letter that had been sent from Finkel to Prize Fight."

The handwritten letter states, "Hi Michael, I want to follow up on your letter regarding the 2004 amateurs, a recap of our agreement, and where we are at present. Originally, we were supposed to be funded with $500,000 for the recruiting and signing of the best 2004 Olympians and amateurs. Instead, we ended up being financed for $425,000 of which $25,000 went to [name illegible]. The status of the individual fighters is as follows: Lamont and Anthony Peterson -- They are going to be exclusively with Prizefight Promotions as we discussed. I believe that one or both of the brothers are going to put Prizefight Promotions on the map and, with a little luck, we will recoup all of your investment from them."

[royyjonesjrp4pno1]

Its well known that Finkel takes big cuts to get people deals. He did the same witht he 2000 Olympians.

[Joe King]

Its well known that Finkel takes big cuts to get people deals. He did the same witht he 2000 Olympians.
He's got to be one of the worst promoters around right now. Who does he even have?

[Mitchell Kane]

He's got to be one of the worst promoters around right now. Who does he even have?

He's not really a promoter.

I think he still has the Klitschko brothers. He recently became Victor Ortiz's manager and he just fought on the GBP/DLH-Forbes card. He's in arbitration with the Peterson brothers, and Robert Guerrero is one of his fighters and he's seeking arbitration with Goossen. He also has Rocky Juarez.

[Mitchell Kane]

Fernando (Hamilton City,Ca.): What's your opinion on Thomas Hauser's recent HBO article?

Dan Rafael: (12:21 PM ET ) Tom is a friend of mine and I have tremendous respect for him as a reporter and writer. He and I spoke at length about the article. I agree with many points. I agree with his overall theme that HBO has some things that need to be fixed or tweaked and that they can do a better job of buying fights and a better job on how they spend their money. But I did think some of it was too harsh and overly nitpicky on some things. I also felt that some things were distorted in a way that shouldn't have been done. That is simply my opinion, which I shared with Tom in a professional manner.

...

[Mitchell Kane]

Steve Kim:

MUST READ

I highly recommend everyone read Thomas Hauser's latest work on Secondsout.com, 'HBO: 2008' which takes a look inside the game’s most influential and powerful network.

Sources tell me that HBO Sports President Ross Greenburg was so dismayed by the article and the internal leaks within his own company that he had a meltdown of Three Mile Island proportions at a staff meeting that took place on Wednesday. He vowed that he would sniff out these moles and vanquish them.

But then I was told that if Greenburg actually did that, he would basically be left, "With nobody but Kevin Flaherty." More than just a few folks talk to Hauser over there - even though there's an edict for them not to. Just who are his 'deep throats'?

I won’t rehash the article (trust me, you should read it for yourself) but I do have a couple of thoughts on the issues that were brought up.

First, the David Haye situation points out why rival promoters feel (and with good reason) that whoever they have invested in, cultivated and developed, could be doing so just to have the fighter form their own 'promotional' company, that then forms an association with a company that has access to guaranteed dates on HBO.

So in essence, every other promoter not named Golden Boy could be just a farm system for them, eventually. More than one source has told me that it was made very clear that if Haye signed with Golden Boy that an HBO date would be made available for him, which in the open market certainly gives them an advantage over every other company, you'd have to assume.

The same thing exists for managers, who run the risk of being undercut by Al Haymon. After they've done most of the arduous work of building a fighter, they can then just be swept away by Haymon, who not only offers to take a smaller percentage of purses, but who can sway a fighter with the promise of HBO appearances - and he wouldn't be fibbing.

I was told by one major promoter that HBO using their influence to guide fighters to certain promoters is nothing new. Companies like Main Events and Cedric Kushner were the beneficiaries of this for years. The difference, it was pointed out, was that HBO would at least spread the wealth around - and not to just one entity.

It's just my belief that monopolies are not good for business. And most of all, not for the consumer. But that's precisely what they seem to be funding. Perhaps they would rather manage that then have to deal with promoters who can be difficult to deal with.

But so far, the results (in terms of ratings and the overall quality of their product and brand) show that this may not be the most prudent way to go about things. The numbers don't lie.

Also, everyone that has read just a little of my work knows I've had my battles with Lou DiBella in the past. But the bottom line is that DiBella, while he helped run the boxing program at HBO alongside Seth Abraham throughout the 90's, was a guy that didn't just do the job and collect a paycheck - he worked the job. This was a guy who didn't just show up 15 minutes before the main event - or as I've seen with Kery Davis, sometimes in the second round of the first televised bout - but was there usually around the first bell of the night. He immersed himself in the boxing world and its characters. This guy even watched 'Heavyweight Explosion' on a regular basis - and not just because he and Kushner were tight. He was a boxing guy.

And a boxing guy is needed at HBO. Right now, its heart and soul is missing.

[mikE]

Haven't gotten through the entire article, but I can say that it is pissing me off in a big way. It's full of half-truths and mis-aligned cause/effect analysis.
.
So Calz Kessler got bad ratings. Does anyone want to make the argument that that fight wasn't HBO quality? Of course, HBO could have shown Kessler's eye-opening blast out of Beyer, but they dropped the fucking ball on that one. (see Hauser, this is how relevant criticism works)
.
And then to point to bigger fights in the past on HBO...well, I'll tell you the biggest reason. HBO shows a fuckload more fights these days. It's not even close. And the rating comparisons are conveniently changed between HBO or HBO Championship Boxing depending on the point the writer is trying to make. HBO is far better now than it was in the 90's. It's not even close. At least when HBO has a bad card, you know it will only be a few weeks before they try again. In the 90's, it might be 6 weeks (or more).