What a difference a year makes.

This time last year, cable operators were still counting the windfall from the May 2, 2015, Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao pay-per-view fight, which generated a record 4 million buys and more than $400 million in revenue.

Fast forward to today, and the category is preparing for HBO’s July 23 PPV event between undefeated welterweight champion Terence Crawford and undefeated contender Viktor Postol -- with far fewer performance expectations.

In fact, the combined revenue and buy take of the category’s two fights so far this year — HBO’s April Manny Pacquiao-Timothy Bradley Jr. Fight and its May Canelo Alvarez-Amir Kahn fight — along with next Saturday’s fight won’t even come within a jab’s length of Mayweather-Pacquiao’s performance.

Still, with Pacquiao and Mayweather virtually out of the picture in retirement, HBO said it’s using this year’s PPV telecasts to nurture the next generation of PPV fighters, in the hopes that a few will break through and serve as the industry’s next big cash cow.

“When a promoter identifies a talented fighter and decides to build him up, at some point they have to throw them into the deep waters to see whether they have the thing that they could sell,” HBO vice president, programming, PPV, Tony Walker said. “Crawford is talented, he has an edge to him, and in the fight he’s going up against a fighter that is equally as skilled. Good competitive fights always sell, and it comes during a time where there’s not a lot of competition in the marketplace.”

Crawford has never headlined a PPV card, so it’s not surprising that Walker would not reveal projections for the PPV event. He added that HBO and fight promotion company Top Rank want to gauge Crawford’s appeal on the big stage.

“Manny Pacquiao didn’t generate a million buys in his first PPV event, so we’re going to see how it performs,” Walker said. “We’re optimistic — I don’t know a number, but I know that we and Arum are pretty enthusiastic.”

The industry has stepped up marketing efforts for the fight, committing to the traditional outlay of promotional spots, social-media promotion and other marketing tactics typical of marquee PPV events. With few PPV boxing cards on the slate, Walker said the industry is looking to maximize the revenue return from every fight that’s offered.

“All of the distributors are running cross-channel spots, digital ads and electronic program guide ads, as well as showing past fights featuring the fighters,” Walker said. “There is a lot of marketing around the show.”

While there aren’t any big PPV fights scheduled beyond Crawford-Postol, there maybe a silver lining for the PPV boxing category this fall. Published reports last week quoted boxing promoter Bob Arum as saying that Pacquiao will return to the ring then, just months after announcing his retirement following the Bradley fight.

Walker and HBO could not confirm a potential fall Pacquiao fight, but any in-ring appearance by the PPV category’s former pound-for-pound champion would provide a major revenue boost to the category, regardless of his opponent.

Pacquiao has generated the second-highest level of PPV revenue within the boxing category, behind only Mayweather.

The official end of the fall-winter television season typically leads to a quieter, lighter summer for the industry. Thus far this year, though, events outside of the normal day-to-day business of TV have been anything but normal, and a couple of recent industry-related stories are already beginning to forecast what could be a very interesting and unusually busy summer in the world of television.

The presidential primary season has delivered its share of crazy twists and turns and unlikely scenarios that have driven ratings up for virtually all cable news networks. Just when you thought it couldn’t get any stranger or more unpredictable, presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders contemplated debating each other in a very high-profile event.

Hoping to get in on the action, boxing promoter Bob Arum looked to bring the spectacle to pay-per-view. Arum’s Top Rank event promotion company was willing to put up a minimum of $20 million — as well as donate 80% of the net proceeds from “The Heavyweight Debate” between the two presidential hopefuls to a charity or charities of the candidates’ choice — in an effort to promote the show.

Trump ultimately backed out of the proposed debate prior to Memorial Day weekend, but given his penchant for creating media spectacles, can anyone rule out a potentially big, politically-themed PPV event before voters head to the polls in November?

Meanwhile, HBO’s Game of Thrones is one of the most digitally pirated shows on cable, but recently the pay TV service has taken its GoT digital piracy fight to the world of online pornography.

HBO is trying to curtail the uploading of titillating, nudity-laced scenes from its fantasy series to the adult Web service PornHub, according to published reports.

PornHub itself released audience figures that show site searches for GoT scenes and related adult parodies were up 370% on the site in the days prior to the show’s April 24 season six premiere, but the site’s traffic actually drops 4% during a Game of Thrones episode.

For its part, HBO has said in a statement that it is “aware of the issue and is in the process of getting material taken down from PornHub,” according to Business Insider.

Even the world of sports TV isn’t immune to the potential effects of unforeseen developments. The New York Daily News reported last week that some NBC employees are refusing to travel to Brazil to work on NBCUniversal’s massive coverage of the Summer Olympics this August for fears of contracting the dangerous, mosquito-borne Zika virus.

Brazil is struggling to control the spread of the virus, which has been linked to birth defects in children of pregnant women contracting the disease. NBC is expected to send more than 2,000 staffers to Brazil to oversee the company’s unprecedented linear and digital coverage of the games.

An NBC spokesperson told The Daily News that “the safety of our team members is always our first priority,” and that “no NBC personnel assigned to work in Rio will be required to travel if they believe that their personal health or safety is at risk.”

Fasten your seat belts. It could be a bumpy, unconventional summer in TV land.

Boxing icon and humanitarian Muhammad Ali has died at the age of 74. 

Ali, who had battled Parkinson's disease for decades, passed away Friday after being hospitalized in the Phoenix area earlier this week with respiratory issues, according to the Associated Press. During a legendary pro boxing career, Ali -- considered by many boxing observers as the greatest boxer of all time -- won the heavyweight boxing title three times and fought a number of iconic fights throughout the 1960s and 1970s.

Ali retired from boxing in 1981 but remained one of the most popular and well-known athletes in the world. 

Ali, whose conversion to Islam and his opposition to the Vietnam War and the military draft during the 1960s drew criticism and condemnation from many circles, was revered later in life for advocating peace and equal rights for all. 

Several cable networks released statements early Saturday morning reacting to the death of Ali. 

ESPN president John Skipper reflected on Ali's passing, saying: “We are sad to hear of the passing of Muhammad Ali. However, we revel in the memory of his athletic excellence in the ring, we recollect with pleasure the charm of the charismatic young man from Louisville who would shock the world and we celebrate the dramatic achievement of a champion of civil rights who changed the world. In many ways, he was truly the greatest of all time.”

HBO in a statement said: "We join the rest of the world in mourning the passing of Muhammad Ali and celebrating the legacy of this unique man in unifying us through his acts and gifts. Ali's charisma, grace, and genius transcended all races, religions, nationalities, and generations. His spirit will inspire people forever. HBO is honored to have known Muhammad Ali as a fighter of beauty and a man of principle. We experienced the joy of working with him in support of initiatives he passionately cared about including, most importantly, his never-ending desire to teach tolerance and understanding of others to all people. Muhammad Ali was an icon and hero, father and friend, and beacon of hope for oppressed people throughout the world. He will be missed by all of those whose lives he touched. There are not enough bells to toll this loss."

Showtime also released the following statement: "Muhammad Ali was The Greatest of all time.  Perhaps the greatest in any sport.  The outpouring of emotion currently taking place around the world is a testament to his impact beyond boxing and beyond sports.On behalf of everyone at Showtime Networks, and our extended boxing family, we offer our condolences to the Ali family and to the millions of people the world over that were inspired by his grace, poise and prowess in life."

Boxing promoter Bob Arum, who promoted numerous Ali fights, said in a statement: "A true great has left us. Muhammad Ali transformed this country and impacted the world with his spirit.  His legacy will be part of our history for all time." 

Don King, who also promoted several Ali fights, including his memorable 1974 bout against George Foreman, told the Associated Press: "It's a sad day for life, man. I loved Muhammad Ali, he was my friend. Ali will never die. Like Martin Luther King his spirit will live on, he stood for the world." 

Retired, undefeated boxing champion Floyd Mayweather told ESPN early Saturday that Ali was a "hero" and paved the way for fighters like himself to be successful. Recently retired boxing champion Manny Pacquiao also said in a statement: "We lost a giant today ... boxing benefitted from Muhammad Ali's talents but not nearly as much as mankind benefitted from his humanity.  Our hearts and prayers go out to the Ali family.  May God bless them."  

When pound for pound pay-per-view boxing champion Manny Pacquiao stepped out of the ring and into retirement after his April 9 unanimous decision win over Timothy Bradley Jr., so went the second-biggest revenue generator in pay-per-view event history.

Pay-per-view boxing’s all-time revenue generator, Floyd Mayweather, had already hung up his gloves last year. The retirements of PPV boxing’s two top draws leaves the category with huge shoes to fill as it comes off its most-successful year ever — success due largely to the record-setting “Fight of the Century” between Mayweather and Pacquiao on May 2, 2015.

It could be years before another PPV-boxing match rises to match the performance of Mayweather-Pacquiao, which raked in 4.5 million buys and more than $400 million in revenue. But it might take just a few rounds for the sweet science to crown some new champions capable of consistently surpassing the industry’s benchmark of 1 million PPV buys, boxing observers said.

Up-and-coming champions aren’t just getting greater television exposure from traditional boxing outlets like HBO and Showtime. New distribution hubs such as the Premier Boxing Champions series — which airs on NBC, Fox, CBS, ESPN and Spike TV, among other outlets — are affording exposure to young fighters. And digital media, with its reach and immediacy, can help a fighter quickly build a brand beyond boxing circles.

“There’s always going to be the question of who’s next,” In Demand senior vice president of programming and business development Mark Boccardi said. “It’s a cyclical business and since the late 1990s, there’s always been someone to be that guy or those guys, and within the industry everyone is confident there will be a fighter or fighters who can do that.”

Indeed, after such heavyweights as Mike Tyson, George Foreman, Evander Holyfield and Lennox Lewis — as well as lighter-weight fighters like welterweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez — dominated the PPV category in the 1990s, there was a lull before Oscar De La Hoya assumed the mantle in the mid-2000s. Once De La Hoya retired, the stage was set for Mayweather and Pacquiao to rule the PPV event business.

STAR SEARCH

The template for building a PPV fighter has already been established, said Bob Arum, the president of boxing promotion company Top Rank. The key now is to find a fighter or fighters who can follow the game plan.

“It all depends on taking a fighter and putting him in a position where he can attract people to spend money on PPV to watch him fight,” Arum said. “That’s easily said and hard to do.”

Arum, a veteran promoter who worked with Pacquaio and promoted Mayweather in his early boxing years, said that in addition to championship in-ring skills, first and foremost a successful PPV fighter must appeal to as many demographic groups as possible — something both of the aforementioned fighters were able to accomplish over the years.

So who’s closest to stepping into the vaunted PPV ring? The consensus among most boxing observers is that Mexican boxer Canelo Alvarez is poised to make the quickest move to PPV superstar status. The middleweight champion — who’ll fight Amir Kahn in a May 7 HBO-distributed PPV event — has already participated in the third-biggest PPV event of all time: his 2013 fight against Mayweather, which drew 2.2 million PPV buys.

His last fight, in November 2015 against Miguel Cotto, pulled in more than 900,000 buys, according to HBO.

“Clearly, with Canelo, you have a PPV superstar that can transition into the next great era,” Mark Taffet, president of sports marketing/consulting company Mark Taffet Media, said. “The challenge for the sport, in order to create a regular flow of million-buy mega-fights, is to develop a great supporting crew.”

Other up-and-coming fighters like welterweight champion Keith Thurman, junior welterweight champ Terence Crawford, middleweight titleholder Gennady Golovkin, undefeated former super middleweight champion Andre Ward and heavyweight champions Deontay Wilder and Anthony Joshua have been identified as potential draws either on their own, or pitted against one another in PPV mega-fights.

Top Rank will look to build a July PPV card featuring Crawford, Arum said, while the industry is hoping to schedule at least one fall PPV mega-event, although it’s unclear who would headline it.

STILL BUILDING FANS

But as good as those fighters are — and as well-known as they are within boxing circles — they still have yet to develop the broad, diverse audience they’ll need to win in the PPV arena, according to boxing observers.

“It takes time,” said Tony Paige, a boxing broadcaster and sports-talk host on New York radio station WFAN. “The fighters will have to build themselves up with big fights over time to become big PPV draws. If you get enough big wins, you’re driving the bus, so to speak.”

Some observers said the development of the Premier Boxing Champions series, which showcases current champions and young fighters on live fight cards airing on NBC, CBS, Spike TV, ESPN, NBCSN, CBS Sports Network and FS1 — along with other networks like BET and truTV from time to time — as a step in the right direction.

“The sport is not only in the transition to see who ascends to the mountaintop next, but I think there’s a great opportunity with the quickly changing television landscape and technology to reach out and attract the next generation of fans to support the next generation of fighters,” said Taffet, who most recently served as senior vice president of HBO Sports. “It’s a challenge promoters and networks must readily accept to insure a very fertile environment for the sport going forward.”

But offering fights on too many outlets could actually curtail the ability to create one or two mega-stars, Paige cautioned. “It’s hard to build up interest in one particular fighter when that fighter fights one month on one network and then maybe three months later on another network,” he said. “It’s hard for fans to keep up with the schedule.”

Developing continuity in the sport’s message to the consumers is critical if boxing is to build its next wave of top fighters into PPV superstars, Taffet said. “It’s important for consumers to regularly be in touch with the sport, the athletes and the storylines, so that in their increasingly busy, media-savvy days they can develop the attachment that leads to true fan support on an ongoing basis.”

One way to get a fighter’s brand beyond boxing’s core fan base is via social media. Digital platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram give promoters, fighters and sponsors a chance to continuously feed fans’ appetites in ways that have yet to be fully exploited, Taffet said.

Added WFAN’s Paige: “If you don’t get beyond your core followers you’re just preaching to the choir. What always makes boxers and boxing successful is when you get a crossover audience of people that don’t have anything to do with boxing, but are interested in the fighter.”

Getting to that point will take a combined eff ort from several corners, according to executives.

“It’s not just as simple as everyone getting together and saying let’s just create someone,” said In Demand’s Boccardi. “It’s a combination of the promoter doing their job and finding the fighters, the networks doing their job and helping to develop them, and the PPV industry doing their job to help promote those fighters.”

The much anticipated Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather mega boxing match may happen after all.

Pacquiao has agreed to terms for a mega May 2 pay-per-view boxing match against Mayweather, Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum told the Examiner.com Tuesday.

Arum told the website that Mayweather’s representatives have also agreed to a May fight, but Mayweather has yet to sign off on the deal.

Mayweather recently stated during a Showtime interview last month that he wanted the fight to happen. “We are ready. Let's make it happen. May 2. Mayweather versus Manny Pacquiao. Let's do it," he said during the Dec. 12 interview.

The report marks the closest the two fighters have come to making the mega fight. Negotiations for the fight have been marred over the years by disputes over blood sampling issues, purse splits and bad blood between the two fighters.

If the fight happens, many observers believe it will be the most lucrative pay-per-view boxing match in history. The two fighters are arguably the biggest names in the fight game, and their fights have generated the most PPV buys and revenue over the past decade.

Mayweather’s Sept. 2013 fight against Canelo Alverez is the most lucrative PPV event in history, generating more than $150 million.

The fight would most likely be co-promoted by HBO -- which has Pacquiao under contract -- and Showtime, which has two fights left on a six-fight TV deal with Mayweather. The two companies reportedly are talking about a potential deal, according to ESPN.com.

Of course Mayweather and Pacquiao have been down this road before, and most boxing fans won’t believe the fight will happen until the two fighters actually step into the ring. Let’s see what transpires over the next few weeks.

In Shawshank Redemption, Morgan Freeman’s Ellis Boyd Redding character reads a letter from Tim Robbins’ Andy Dupree: "Remember Red, hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies."

Given Floyd Mayweather’s post-fight comments after his unanimous decision in his rematch against Marcos Maidana, there’s a flicker of life in the boxing and distribution communities about the long-moribund prospects for a mega-fight with Manny Pacquaio. Maybe.

“We don't know what the future holds, as of right now," Mayweather said. "Anything is possible. At the moment I want to go home, have a break, spend some time with my children and then see who's next in May. Hopefully it's Manny Pacquiao.”

But the comments from "Money" also included some qualifiers before a "Pac Man" battle could ensue.  "If the Pacquiao fight does happen it has to happen on Showtime pay-per-view only and Mayweather Promotions have to do the fight.”

Pac Man, of course, is a member of Bob Arum’s Top Rank stable and HBO’s PPV camp.

Then, there’s the longstanding animus and mistrust between the men who have been boxing's best pound-for-pound pair for the better part of a decade.

A meeting in 2009 was scotched over disputes about drug-testing protocols. Mayweather has also made racial and homophobic slurs against Pacquiao, which many view as the undefeated champion running scared from the Filipino politician.

Of course to have any chance, Pacquiao has to take care of business in his welterweight defense against decided underdog Chris Algieri on Nov. 22 in Macau.

"I'm gonna go and talk to my team and see what the future holds," Mayweather said. "I don't know who I'm fighting in May but I expect to fight in May. Manny Pacquiao needs to focus on the guy in front of him. Once he gets past him, he can look to the future. If the Pacquiao fight presents itself let's make it happen."

That's hopeful. Should Pac Man hold up his end of the bargain in China -- maybe, just maybe -- the stage could finally be set for a megafight that would have been far more intriguing five years ago.

But time is running out on this sliver of PPV hope.

Both fighters are getting to the end – Mayweather is adamant he’s out after the two remaining fights on his six-bout contract with Showtime. CBS’s premium network would certainly appreciate a nice going away promotion(s) from Mayweather, who earned a minimum of $32 million on Saturday night. That figure will rise depending on how many bought the fight: the first Mayweather-Maidana bout reportedly drew just 900,000.

Mayweather and Pacquiao in May. Perhaps followed a year from now by a big Money finale, a rematch against Canello Alvarez – their September 2013 fight generated 2.4 million buys and a a PPV record $150 million in revenue.

Hope is a good thing ... and could be a very profitable thing.