Problems with the pay-per-view system were delaying the much anticipated match between Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor on Saturday night, ESPN reported.
"Due to the overwhelming demand, capacity of cable systems around country are being overwhelmed. They are shutting down and rebooting some of these cable systems," Showtime executive vice president Stephen Espinoza told ESPN.
Why it matters: Millions of households forked over $100 apiece to watch the fight using UFC Pass; Much of that revenue is due to the two participants. ESPN notes that PPV issues also delated the start of Mayweather's 2015 fight with Manny Pacquiao.
Long gone are the days and influence of television stars like Raven Simone, Hillary Duff and Miley Cyrus — today YouTube celebrities like Smosh and PewDiePie and social media wizards like Gigi and Bella Hadid or Kendall and Kylie Jenner have captivated younger audiences.
Why it matters: HBO, Disney, Nickelodeon, Netflix, Amazon Prime and YouTube are all fighting to win over young viewers to their streaming services. In the past, Disney and Nickelodeon captured the youngest audiences and produced the hottest tween celebrities. But with the trends toward streaming and Gen Z watching less TV in general, according to Nielson, the game has changed.
