Will this year be the final year that The National Academy of Arts and Sciences rolls out the red carpet for the Daytime Emmys? That may be the case, as the dwindling number of soap operas threatens the success of the annual event.

A special report in Variety titled "Daytime Emmys Look For Alternatives as Soap Bubble Bursts" states that the event -- which enters its 42nd edition on Sunday, April 26, with nominations formerly being announced on Thursday, March 26 -- relies heavily on daytime dramas, both for the glamour that the actors from soap operas provide as well as the ardent loyalty of daytime fans. Meaning that, without soaps (or a further decrease in the number of soaps), NATAS might still give out awards, but it could have a hard time attracting an audience and could therefore consider cancellation.

"To me it really depends on if there's still going to be soap operas, because that's the engine that drives it," says Brad Adgate, senior vice president, research, at agency Horizon Media. "Otherwise, why bother? I don't think they could lose another soap opera and keep the show going, based on the fact that that's the glamour part of the show."

He continues: "You go back 10 years ago, and there were probably close to a dozen or 10 soap operas. There are four now. There's one on each network, and two on CBS. The success of the show is either that the soap-opera format, at the very least, stays where it is -- in other words, no more cancellations -- or they find some other way to keep viewers engaged and create some excitement in other categories or program types."

The decreased number of soap operas has already changed the event in significant ways, including lower ratings for previous broadcasts and changes to the categories, including the addition of awards for Web soaps.

Says David Michaels, NATAS senior executive director, Daytime Entertainment Emmy Awards, of the Web category: "Although some of them would be new faces to our audience, some of them are bona-fide soap stars who are now doing these Web series."

Michaels also explains that because the turnout was unexpectedly large this year (with submissions by Web soaps like Los Angeles-based DeVanity, the Boston-set lesbian romance Beacon Hill starring Alicia Minshew [ex-Kendall, All My Children] and Sarah Brown [ex-Madison James, Days of our Lives; ex-Agnes Jones, The Bold and the Beautiful; ex-Claudia Zacchara, General Hospital], and season three of The Bay, which features numerous network soap alums), they'll have to spread out the category next year. "We're going to at least [split the acting category into] male and female for next year, because the response was bigger than expected."

To find out what other changes NATAS has in store for the Daytime Emmys, check out Variety's original report here.

What do you think about the changes NATAS has been forced to make due to the decreased number of soap operas? Do you agree that the cancellation of one more soap could threaten the future of the event? And what would you like to see for this year's celebration as well as future Daytime Emmy events? Share your thoughts in our Comments section below, on our message boards, or by submitting Feedback.