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By Pat Evans
Turner Sports has sold out of its regular-season NBA ad inventory. The 22 teams in the bubble resume play tonight, playing eight games each before playoffs start next month.
Fox Sports said it has sold 90% of its regular-season MLB inventory last week and Turner reportedly had the same demand for its baseball slate. Disney, which broadcasts the NBA on ESPN and ABC, has brought in more than 100 advertisers with the season resuming, including 25 new to the sport.
Advertising rushing back to sports is a welcomed sight for the networks, as they lost an estimated $240 million in April when the MLB season and the NBA and NHL playoffs were supposed to start. Viewership numbers are proving the demand sports fans have for the programming, including ESPN drawing 4 million viewers for its MLB Opening Night.
From March to June 2019, the NBA, NHL and MLB generated approximately $1.3 billion in revenue for broadcasters:
— $800 million for NBA regular season and playoffs.
— $120 million for NHL regular season and playoffs.
— $60 million for regular MLB season games.
