Zucker on why NBC won't do an upfront show

So NBC's Jeff Zucker gave the keynote yesterday at NATPE, and talked about what why the network, in all likelihood, is not planning a glamorous upfront presentation this year, and he did so--at least if you look at the snippets here on the Ad Age site--without once mentioning how the writers' strike might leave a network with not a lot to show. Zucker talks about the upfront presentation as a thing of the past. Why does this seem like a trendlet that we'll see for a few years rather than the end of an era? I guess it's 'cuz ad execs sure like their TV stars.