Regional cable is able to do that much more efficiently than the networks.
The case for regular-season games on cable By Gabriel Spitzer After a measly 1.8 rating for its XFL playoff game and a 2.1 for the championship, NBC appears poised to run Vince McMahon out of town. The NBA on NBC weighed in at a slightly higher 3.0 this year. The National Hockey League s regular season on ABC averaged just a 1.3 all significantly lower than the XFL s average of 3.3. The ratings ebb for regular-season sports has long been blamed on fragmentation, as more sports programming options pop up on television. But in recent years, the vast majority of new sports programming has landed on cable.