At the price that Comcast is asking. Reasonability of that price is the entire discussion. So far the providers have said no. But disingenuous to say its entirely on the providers.
I'm sure you've done it before, and maybe this isn't the thread to do it, but how exactly does one go about doing this?
It's a huge win for Comcast and CSN. They can sign on providers at the rate they want or they can reap the influx of people switching over to watch DH. I think I am just going to switch anyway. My Uverse has gotten pretty expensive and if I go over to Comcast I can get the introductory rates for a year or two. Maybe when that rate bumps back up the provider issue will be settled and I can go back to an introductory rate with Uverse
Comcast really doesn't have to do isht, they and the two organizations involved have a asking price and are unlikely to budge that far from it, meaning providers like AT&T and others will have to compromise more and the public is probably in for either streams or going to bars/other peoples homes to watch the games live.
This sort of action is what will eventually cause the providers to cave. Right now, the providers don't have any incentive to pick up the extra $$$ to carry CSN on their basic tiers (which is what CSN wants). Providers know that passing this rate increase on to the consumer will lead to complaints and people potentially switching, so they know that any deal they sign with CSN has to be at a price that's enough for the providers to absorb most of, without passing it on to the customer. Right now, that price is too high... and compounding this is the fact that they're still carrying the useless FSN at a pretty steep price, without the possibility to get rid of it as its bundled with the other Fox channels. If providers are going to lose customers regardless of what they do (ie - by people switching to comcast because they want programming that their providers don't provide), this will lead to the other providers picking up the channel, raising their rates, and seeing if customers will stick with them despite that (and avoid the hassle of switching providers.) Comcast totally in the drivers seat now. They have demand for the product, they have pretty favorable introductory offers for people who switch (along with a large share of the best broadband internet on the market currently... which makes it even more cost feasible to bundle the services), and they have the backing of a company with deeper pockets than any of the other providers. While the sports teams individually may not be able to withstand a long stalemate... the company (Comcast) can... and will give assurances to those teams that they'll continue to fight the battle until they all get a favorable deal.
Comcast is not really negotiating with them. They are saying take our deal or leave it. The amount they want to charge is $3.40 per subscriber whether the subscriber actually watches CSN or not. The providers (Dish, Direct TV, UVerse, TWC, etc...) would have to raise their prices for every subscriber to pay that rate or eat the cost.
Comcast could easily procure a good amount of customers by making a marketing push, coinciding with this signing, and offering subtantially reduced rates for switching/bundling. A good amount of satellite subscribers use Comcast for internet already, so it wouldn't take a huge push to get those customers. The Uverse ones would take more effort to switch. Then there's the areas that don't currently have comcast as an option. If they want to win this battle, they got to strike while the momentum is there. It would have to come down from Comcast corporate, as I doubt the Houston chapter can authorize the favorable switch rates.
With D12 coming to Houston, this may start movement as Reid Ryan probably doesn't want this to be seen as more bad PR for the Astros...
That's totally up to the other providers. Comcast is the one who spent the **** pile of money for the rights. Their coverage compared to Fox Sports is beyond comparison. It was a move to bring better coverage to fans and being a Comcast subscriber it's freaking awesome. While Comcast has been asking a pretty steep price, just like any business, they have a bottom line to meet, and now with Dwight here they have more leverage. "Other" subscribers have invested money in other markets, when they could have used that money to just pony up with Comcast. The business model Comcast has used in Chicago and New England was very successful, and the investors here in Houston used that same model. Unforunately, it's been a simple case of supply and demand here in this region why other providers didn't pony up. Not they might. As for loopholes, my neighbor found one that works pretty good. If there's a not a deal done and you want to keep Directtv, sign up for NBA league pass broadband. Do not use your wifi, but instead tether with your smart phone or tablet (gives out a bogus IP). You can watch the Rockets games on your phone, tablet, or with the right tools your TV through HDMI cords from your tablet or phone. It does use a lot of gigs so you need to have an unlimted plan.
DirecTV will not cave. They are a television giant with customers across the globe. Their bottom line will be fine either way.
