WHERE IS OUR BLUE OCEAN USTA?

BY Javier Palenque

In my many consulting assignments, there is a book I always recommend to owners of established companies that are now in the declining phase of their businesses (like the USTA).

The name of the book is “The Blue Ocean Strategy” written by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne, professors at INSEAD, back in 2004. This is one of the books I would make required reading in week one, this way USTA executives can understand from an outsider’s point of view how what is being done will not work, has not worked, and repeating it makes truly little to no sense for the future.

What the USTA needs is a new way of defining a new market that is accessible and where there is an actual demand for and where value can be created for the demand. Of course, all this means is that the USTA needs to transform itself to adapt and remain alive in these ever-changing modern times.

To those confused, please note that the US Open as an entertainment venue, will have its ups and downs from people attending the event, but the event itself will not do anything for most people who may be interested in the sport. I can also assure you that in a few years, the broadcast portion of the event in the US (which is 50%) of all broadcast revenue will suffer an enormous contraction due to the nature of the country’s demographics and…