Five Forces

“Rift Deepens as N.B.A Draws Line on Compensation” The N.B.A. is a well established association and is well-known across the globe. Over the past couple months the association has been in contract talks between the players union and the N.B.A. officials. With the basketball season right around the corner, both sides have been able to work out an agreement to get the players back on the court playing the game they love. As Porter’s “Five Forces” model describes how certain areas of the industry could be affected or affecting the entire game, and people throughout the basketball world. The way that I look at this situation and in regards to the N.B.A. and the players, because of a strong competitive force in the industry, and according to Porter, these forces can be a threat on the entire involvement in basketball. The lockout brings forward a lot of issues between the union and the officials who are always trying to get more money out of the teams, which is where the talks have heated up in the recent weeks due to a dispute over a 50-50 concept of revenue share. In relation to Porter’s “Five Forces”, the NBA dispute raises a great deal of negotiation in regards to these “Five Forces”, and how the economy is affected. With the cancelling of the first two weeks of the basketball season, players and fans are constantly finding ways to either spend their money in other markets, or from a player’s standpoint, find a different league to play in during this lockout. Therefore, according to Porter, the closeness of substitutes is creating conflict within the entire industry. Whether the NBA lockout is settled sooner than later, the game may lose a tremendous amount of fans because they may have settled for an interest in a different area of entertainment. Several players including top stars are seeking interest overseas in leagues in countries such as Italy, France, and Spain, and if negotiations continue we could see a lot more players seeking playing