I already said I don't believe there is a conspiracy to keep the channel off DTV and DISH. I said the goal is to make them pay through the nose to get it.
That's basically saying the same thing, at least to me. If CSN Houston is seeking a price point that isn't in line with other CSN affiliates, they're basically trying to keep the channel off DTV/Dish. I don't see why the Rockets/Astros, as majority stakeholders, would go for that. If the price point is in line with others, then it's not "through the nose".
justtxyank - you obviously are familiar enough with the process to have a superior standing with ability to debate this topic. However, even with the regionality of FSNSW - isn't the loss of two of the teams (in this case rocks/stros) enough of an impact to key provisions in the contract which either reduce fee's or allow outs? Again - I'm not thinking that the money free'd up through this is going to be able to cover whatever fee CSN is trying to obtain. These are two negotiations for different products occuring at substantially different time frames. But your posts seem to indicate that the loss of the two teams has had little impact on the existing contract with FSNSW. If this is the case, seems like a poorly negotiated contract. edit - just saw a quote with explanation from earlier post. was thinking of Fox Sports regionally, and not as a whole. Still stand by the fact that negotiating it as a full/instead of regional is a poor choice.
I have a hard time believing that. No offense, but I'd like to hear that from someone with the companies involved. If Bravo's ratings fall off dramatically, I don't see it being locked in for providers for the remainder of time simply because it's under the NBC umbrella. As I said, Fox Sports was an example for local, non-satellite providers.
If you are Rockets/Astros and Comcast you can easily believe that either DTV or DISH will cave or they will suffer severely in the market place. CSN Philly managed to really hurt DTV in Philadelphia by not showing those games on satellite. The CSN will be here for a long time. They can play the long game. Astros season hasn't even started. The financial success of these networks is more important to teams now than actual ratings. The fees they get from selling their network is outrageous and can set them up to be profitable for years regardless of attendance, ratings, etc. They have to fight that fight up front though. Sorry, I don't know what their current contract with FSNSW is. I was only trying to point out that it's not as simple as what Cat was saying.
Called UVerse today. Got some lame-brain woman in God-knows-where. I had to explain to her that no, UVerse does not have the channel, and they should, I am paying way too much not to be getting the primary thing I got UVerse for. She takes several minutes to go check, then just comes back on the line and says, 'I'm sorry sir, we do not have that channel.' Sigh. Just transfer me to the cancellation department. So I am on hold, some woman answers, doesn't realize she is on the line, and is talking to some other woman next to her about something, and then she hung up. SIGH. Called back, fought my way through the robo-sentry AGAIN, and just went straight to the cancellation dept. Told the lady then that I was not happy about paying through the nose and not getting what I am paying for. She offered me $10 off for six months. Then $15. I was pretty much laughing at her at this point. I said, no, I think I will just keep it the way it is for nw, and if UVerse doesn't get the channel soon, I will just cancel the service and go to Comcast. Now she starts stammering, well we'd like to keep from losing you as a customer. Finally offers a pretty good discount *IF* I go onto a 1-year contract. Which was fine, I would be shocked if UVerse doesn't pick it up very soon. The early-cancellation fee is a booger, almost $400. But she waived the extra receiver fees, and wound up knocking about $70 off my monthly bill, without reducing any services. I probably could have pushed for more, but that was satisfactory for me, I think. And if they get the channel soon, then hey, I would say, all in all, probably worth it for the substantial savings over what I was paying before. YMMV
#winning That's what I did with the Viacom dispute. I wish this had happened earlier in the year. I just started my DirecTV contract up again so I can't really negotiate anything.
If anyone is going to "suffer severely" from an extended TV holdout, it's the brands of the Rockets and Astros, given the current state of the teams and their declining interest in Houston and the surrounding region. I disagree completely that they can play the long game. There's a ton at stake for these franchises. In my view, DTV and Dish have seen record-low ratings for the Rockets/Astros the last two years and think they can eventually get the franchises to cave to a sweetheart deal.
Sports brands bounce back if you win. Particularly in this front running town. Any deal the Rockets make today with DTV and Dish doesn't get to be renegotiated if in two years if the Rockets are a playoff team with another star. Comcast has history on their side. They wounded DTV in Philly by keeping the Sixers, Flyers, etc. off of satellite.
I tried to watch the Wiz/Cavs game on LP(free preview) last night, but couldn't because I wasn't a subscriber to LP. I just finished talking to DTV customer service & Mike said that the 10/30 to 11/6 period was just the discounted rate period where you could get LP for 6 months @ 29.95/month. He couldn't find a "free preview" period. This pissed me off, because I 1st mentioned the free preview when I saw the ad for it. My bad!
Anyway Cat, I always enjoy the high level discussion with you even if we don't agree on the subject. Repped
Daniel Martin@Red_DMartin For those of you who are currently being screwed over by @csnhouston along with myself, just go to http://nbaliveonline.com . Streams are there. Retweeted by CSN Houston LOL WTF WHY WOULD CSN RETWEET THAT ???
In the town, maybe. But there are wide-ranging impacts from a lack of exposure. Think about secondary markets like Beaumont and College Station. For baseball, you can also include Austin, Corpus Christi and San Antonio. The Texans are by FAR the best team in the state, but the Cowboys still trounce them in ratings in all of these locations. Why? Because people grew up watching Dallas on a regular basis and identify with them. I hate it, but it is what it is. If you go through an extended holdout, a generation of fans throughout the state could grow up watching the Rangers and other non-Houston teams. That has an extensive impact on the brand and value of the franchises. Again, Comcast in Philly had the controlling stake in their network. They don't here. The franchises themselves (Astros/Rockets) do. It's about their motivations, not Comcast. Maybe if the Rockets and Astros draw in more stars and improve substantially in the next two years, they can get the satellite providers at a higher price. But that's far from a guarantee and could lead to some disastrous consequences if it doesn't happen. To me, it's far more likely that CSN Houston is seeking a similar figure to other Comcast affiliates, and providers are hoping for a sweetheart deal given the recent fortunes/ratings of the two franchises involved.
As usual Cat you make very good points - you are spot on with your analysis about the Cows - but I feel inclined to be a bit more cynical here. I don't think that much, if any, thought was given to getting them on these networks. Whatever thought processes they used they were faulty either in concept or execution. At any rate, it will be interesting to see how this all plays out. All I know for sure now is that the Rockets will be virtually invisible up here in North Texas which is a shame because with the addition of Harden, they are actually much more interesting than the Mavericks right now.
Same thing for me today, except I went from $212 a month now to $140 a month, plus free HD, only pay for two receivers instead of 4 and I received the full sports package and an upgrade to U450 for 1 year at this price, also kept the fastest internet speed available. I know we'll get the channel soon, so again THANKS Comcast for making me quit being lazy and saving me almost $1000 a year on cable. Big fan.
I am still trying to understand how the Rockets benefit by committing to a network that is virtually invisible in Texas. Do they think their fans are in other states? I am in Eastern Texas and ComCast is not an option here, south of Dallas to north of Houston. This a large area including the cities of Lufkin, Tyler, Longview, Kilgore, etc. There are literally ten of thousands of Rockets fans who would like to see the games. Also, like me they look to travel to Houston several times a year to see games live. If they are shut out, it seems like the Rockets lose in the end. Throw in Central Texas, Southern Texas, West Texas, etc. and I don't see how this is a win for the Rockets with ComCast not even being an option in most of these areas.
Bird in the hand is better than two in the bush. Take the money now, let everyone else fight it out later.
