Hauser: HBO - Part III - Boxing back on Cable TV?

Quote :: David Levy is president of Turner Sports. All sports in the Turner family of networks flow through him. There has been talk of putting HBO’s live boxing program under Levy’s guidance. The fights would still air on HBO, but acquisition and production would be under his umbrella. TBS or TNT might also televise fights to build synergy and provide a platform for young fighters.

When asked about this scenario, Bob Arum (who is not a source of the reports) says, “You’d save a fortune on salaries. You’d save a fortune on production costs. And you wouldn’t be paying for all those first-class airplane tickets and all those rooms at the Four Seasons and Beverly Wilshire hotels. Forget all the planning and scheming and machinations that these guys go through. HBO has the biggest checkbook in the industry. Promoters will be lining up to sell fights to Turner or HBO or whoever. You’re not reinventing the wheel here.”