> They're high because ESPN has fixed price contracts into the future for the rights to broadcast sports events. If their subscriber base falls, they're still on the hook for those contracts.

If ESPN continues to lose viewers, their ad revenue will suffer. If ESPN revenue suffers, will they be able to pay the fixed price contracts they have with the largest, most viewed sports leagues, such as the NFL, MLB, and SEC (college football)?

Seems to me that this is the first domino to fall...