Moore exits with goals in bank
Rogers boss steps away to recharge after helping Sportsnet pass TSN
When Scott Moore joined Rogers in 2010, Sportsnet was a distant second to TSN as far as Canada’s sports television landscape is concerned.
Now, as Moore steps away — Friday was his last day with the wonky title of president, Sportsnet & NHL Properties, Rogers Media — Sportsnet is Canada’s No. 1 sports network.
“We’ve levelled the playing field of sports media franchises in Canada,” said Moore. “I like to think we’ve taken the lead. That’s a pretty big accomplishment.
“If you look around the world, in no other market has the second-place sports contender ever overtaken the legacy brand. In the U.S., ESPN has never been threatened by Fox or NBC. In Europe, SkySports or EuroSport — depending on the market — has huge leads over their rivals. The balance of power never shifts.
“So to do what we did in Canada is remarkable. A lot of it’s luck. A lot of it’s good timing. It’s still rare.”
And a lot of it has to do with landing the national broadcast and digital rights to the NHL, while also gaining control of Hockey Night in Canada.
Moore’s the first to say there was more involved in the equation than just him. With Keith Pelley and Nadir Mohamed, the biggest coup in Canadian television was engineered in time for the 2014-15 season.
There were mistakes. Viewers and critics didn’t like the massive changes to Saturday’s broadcasts and, after two years, Ron MacLean was re-installed as host, replacing his replacement George Stroumboulopoulos. Analyst Glenn Healy and others were let go as Sportsnet streamlined production and cut costs.
It’s worth nothing the three principals involved in the landmark 12-year, $5.2-billion deal have all left. Pelley was Rogers Media president and now runs the European PGA Tour. Mohamed stepped down as Rogers president and CEO but remains active with Tennis Canada and Ryerson University.
It’s also worth nothing that as the deal goes on, the money paid to the NHL increases. It started at about $300 million annually. It will finish at $500 million. Rogers is counting on revenue rising accordingly.
“There’s always pressure to make money,” said Moore, “but we continue to grow revenues on it. I’m not sure I would have written it this way, but … four years into the deal and heading into year five the biggest drivers of revenue, being the Toronto Maple Leafs, are co-operating quite well.”
Moore isn’t retiring, and he hasn’t been replaced yet. He expects to return to the sports/ TV/digital landscape in some capacity after stepping away for a bit — to recharge and connect with family.
“This was caused by our success,” said Moore. “It’s all-consuming, the way I do the job. I looked at what I said I wanted to accomplish for the company, which was become No. 1, and we’ve done that. We’ve had a level of financial success which has bucked the media trend of the past few years in this country.
“I figured, as a former standup comic, if you want to leave the stage, leave while they’re still laughing and before they start throwing tomatoes.”