NBC chief Jeff Zucker has said that the writers' strike may lead to permanent changes in the way American broadcasters do business, and may even result in the May upfront being cancelled.

The tradition of an annual network presentation to accompany the upfront advertising sales season dates back decades but Zucker told the Financial Times that it is a "vestige... of an era that's gone by and won't return".

According to Variety, Zucker is expected to make the decision as soon as next week, and his colleagues at CBS and ABC are also understood to be re-evaluating the worth of an expensive presentation for the press in New York.

"When people say the upfront, there are two things: One is the dog-and-pony show at Radio City and the second is the way we sell the inventory," Zucker told Reuters. "The way that we sell the inventory in an upfront selling period is not going to change. Whether we still need to do the dog-and-pony show is completely under review here and you can look for an announcement on that from us very soon."

Fox, which was widely praised for its 2007 presentation, is expected to proceed with one this year.