Ratings Fumble for NFL Surprises Networks, Advertisers

Ratings Fumble for NFL Surprises Networks, Advertisers

       After the first four games of the 2016-2017 NFL season, viewership is down ten percent from last year after the first four games of the season. Many say that the cause of this is the presidential election that is going on. Some say that viewership is being lost because many people are watching on their mobile devices. Many NFL superstars such as Adrian Peterson, JJ Watt, and a few others have suffered season ending injuries so they believe this may cause some people to stop watching. No matter what it is that is causing the loss of viewers, people are being somewhat affected by this.

       With the great invention of the DVR, many people decide to record shows and movies instead of watching them in real time so that they do not have to sit through and watch the commercials. The invention of the DVR has decreased viewership and tremendously impacted commercial advertisement. Companies pay money to have their commercial ads televised during specific shows, movies or sporting events because they know that they will have greater views during specific events.

       Sporting events have become the best times to have a commercial ad because people are less likely to DVR it and watch it later. Sporting events are meant to be spectated at that specific time and not later. With all the technology around today it is not enjoyable to DVR a sporting event and watch it later because you already know who won through social media. But since the NFL's viewings have been down ten percent from last year, some companies may be skeptical of wanting to pay to have their commercial aired during the event if they know viewership has gone south compared to last year.

      This article relates directly to the promotion part of the target market. While companies are still very likely to want their commercial advertisement played during an NFL game, the fact that viewership is down is never a good thing for the NFL itself or companies trying to promote their product to the world.