Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) clubs will have to
guarantee their television coverage before being allowed into next
season's league, officials said yesterday.
The 17-team professional league has seen a sharp fall in TV
coverage since Yi Jianlian left to play in the Unites States. In
fact, local television stations denied broadcasting opportunities
to six CBA clubs, reportedly due to low audience ratings and
limited marketing chances, depriving fans of the chance to watch
their home teams.
"We are very likely to change the league's entry standards, and
let them guarantee the coverage at least," said Hao Guohua,
director of the CBA's managing office. "We will have some specific
regulations for the bottom-ranked clubs and try to help improve
their living conditions."
Fujian Xunxing, Shaanxi Dongsheng, Yunnan Honghe, Shanxi Zhongyu
and two Zhejiang teams, Horses and Guangsha, all failed to reach
any agreement with local television stations this year, and Jilin
Tonggang will only have one of its home games broadcast.
Unlike in the US, where television stations pay for the rights
to broadcast National Basketball Association (NBA) games, CBA teams
- as state media report - have to pay local TV stations if they
want coverage of their games.
According to sina.com, Fujian Sports Channel charged 300,000
yuan (US$40,540) for live coverage of home and away games last
year. That amount doubled this season, and only one live game is
guaranteed each week.
And despite the comeback of four-time CBA Most Valuable Player
Liu Yudong, the Fujian side has yet to cause any stir within its
fan base this year.
"It is a very embarrassing situation," said Hao. "As the
governing body of the sport in China, we cannot help. The charge is
very high for clubs, and I can tell you all we can do is just try
to negotiate with clubs and television stations (for better
deals)."
The 2007-08 CBA season tipped off last month. The league has
spent the last 13 years cultivating its Chinese fan base as it has
produced international stars like Yi and Yao Ming.
The pinnacle of TV-viewing came in 2005 when a total of 315
million people watched CBA games on television. The average is
79.15 percent of that figure, meaning approximately 250 million
people watch CBA games in a typical season, according to Infront, a
Swiss-based sports management group, which manages the CBA.
But with the Olympics looming, officials have decided to shorten
the new season by about three months, compressing it into a
four-month schedule to give more time to the national team to
practice for the Olympics.
China's Central Television (CCTV) will broadcast 96 NBA games
this season. The match between Yao's Houston Rockets and Yi's
Milwaukee Bucks last month drew some 200 million viewers from
around the country.
By contrast, there are only 41 CBA games broadcast on CCTV this
season, and games are frequently cut short due to gymnastics and
table-tennis competitions.
"I think the only way (to change the situation) is to enhance
the quality of our league," said Hao.
CBA chief Li Yuanwei felt the same way.
"I am not concerned that fans will only watch the NBA," Li said
during the NBA China Games in Shanghai last month. "The CBA is open
to all the cooperation from around the world, not only from the
United States, but also from European countries.
"McDonald's has been in China for quite a long time, but there
is still a lot people who love Shanghai cuisine."
(China Daily November 29, 2007)