Can 'free' Boxing Free Boxing?

摘要

With the sport of boxing and the U.S. economy both taking a beating, HBO is shifting its strat- egy and relocating many of its big fights from pay-per-view (PPV) to its network. HBO Sports chief Ross Greenburg hopes the move to make more top-tier fights available to HBO customers will infuse some life into the sport. "The sport needs more eyeballs," he says. "It's ironic, but while in bad times you'd expect the sport to suffer, it could actually trigger the opposite effect." In 2008, HBO Pay Per View offered eight events, bringing in ＄190 million in revenue based on 3.7 million buys.