Except that it's NOT already happening. Now the scenario could be: Customers are inraged because games were taken away, given back, then taken AGAIN. Go give a bum a dollar, then snatch it back. He won't be in a worse mood than he was earlier because he's had dollars before. GTFO, respectfully of course.
It's not already happening? Uh, what? Providers are giving out discounts like candy. They've had people calling in, emailing and signing petititons since October. I'm sure there are thousands of posters on this site alone that would disagree with you on that. In the scenario you listed, they're no more enraged than they already were. Some blame CSN, some blame the providers, some blame both, but folks are upset that they're missing the games. That IS happening. As for your "bum" analogy, no, I don't think the bum would be any more angry at you than he would be at any other person that previously did the same thing.
And with that... You're either being intentionally obtuse, or think that people don't mind being jerked around. There's no need for this discussion to go any further. Cheers.
There is no doubt that there are angry people already But give the games out and then take them away, the number of angry people will grow, and many that are angry now will get even more upset. The world we live in has a lot to do with right now. csn certainly understands this, that is why they are doing this.....if anyone thinks this is just simply csn out of the kindness of their hearts giving these games to their beloved fans so they can have some relief, well . . . . . . .
Again, he doesn't understand because he gets the games. I"m not saying that to mean anything bad about him at all, but when this isn't happening to you then it is a lot easier to just throw out comments, because they don't truly affect you
A better Analogy would be you are convicted for murder in Italy, then conviction is overturned and you are released and leave that country to come home to the USA. 2 years later, a court decides that the your appeal of the conviction is invalid and you must come back to Italy for retrial. Oh wait....what are we talking about?
The CSN move is just a negotiating ploy. They think people once they see the games will revolt when the games are taken away. It's the only reason they're providing the games. The providers understand that, they're not stupid. The providers aren't going to allow CSN to control their customers by turning the spigot on and off and they shouldn't. CSN should stream the games off their own site. Why would the providers let them use their service as a negotiating ploy?
And when it's happening to you, it's a lot easier to think with emotions rather than logic. We can play this game all day, both ways.
As usual, you're the only one using logic. It's amazing how that works. And you're the one constantly talking about fairness in business. Logic at work.
You're not seeing the point here. There's alot more people that are completely oblivious to all of this that is happening than those of us that care enough to post at our locals teams message boards. I guarantee waaaaaaaaaaay more people would be upset if the providers accepted the free trial and then had the channel taken away after May 31st. So many people have no idea what is going on and would be upset once it's gone so I definitely understand the providers not accepting that deal.
They're doing this because it illustrates exactly what MadMax (a UVerse customer who has stuck with them thus far) said earlier: that they're not fighting on your behalf. Of course it's not out of the kindness of their hearts. It's a negotiating ploy. CSN knows that it's extremely unlikely for a major carrier to take this. Why? Because it's a game of negotiation, and they don't want to give CSN anything it asks for until the sides can come together on a bigger deal. As someone said yesterday (I forgot who), the providers sense vulnerability on the part of the Astros/Rockets, and from a negotiating standpoint, that's the time step on their neck, not give them mercy. That's certainly within the provider's rights. It's business. But that's exactly what CSN wants to show, I'm guessing. The narrative so far, if this board is any indication, is that CSN is "big greedy business" and providers are sticking up for the little guy. In reality, they're both giant corporations fighting over every last penny in margin.
Except that for many of us it isn't a "game", it's a change to what our daily lives have been for many years
You guarantee how, exactly? Where's your evidence? Who, exactly, has no idea what's going on? Can you point me in the direction of even one person? People know the Rockets and Astros are playing games. They've seen them their whole lives. They're reading about them on the internet, in the newspaper, many are streaming games. Do you think it hasn't dawned on them that the games are no longer televised? The only people who don't know what's going on are the people who didn't watch the Rockets/Astros in the first place. Somehow, I don't see them being "hooked" by this free trial and suddenly becoming upset. It's funny that some of you complain about CSN talking to you "as if you're idiots" and then post things like this. How dumb would a person have to be to be a fan of the Rockets/Astros, be oblivious to the fact that they're not on TV for seven months, then suddenly become a regular viewer and then become enraged when they're not available again?
Again, it's called an analogy. When I talk about fairness as it relates to provider business, it's extending the same logic directed by many toward the Astros/Rockets/CSN. I don't think anyone would argue that accepting the provider's terms, at the moment, is good for the business of CSN owners. It would put the Astros at an enormous financial disadvantage relative to the Rangers. But many argue that given tax breaks, anti-trust exemptions and the like, the public's well being (notably, the opportunity to see the games on television) should be the top priority. Note the people clamoring for us to stay on FSSW, even with lesser money and being treated like second-class citizens. That's fine and good. They think the franchises should display some loyalty to the fans -- not just the bottom line -- based on our financial support. Now, take a look at the enormous margins of UVerse, DTV, Dish, etc. These are multi-billion-dollar corporations that most of us shell out thousands to each year. Why is it OK to blame the CSN side for working for the best business deal for them, while simultaneously making excuses for the providers that we support with our money? I'm more than happy to leave fairness out of the discussion and talk "just business", so long as both sides are evaluated with that same criteria. Somehow, I don't think that will happen.
There's a bunch of fair weather fans that don't follow teams closely and a bunch of people that love to b**** when something they didn't know about is taken away from them. They don't even have to be hardcore Astros/Rockets fans to be upset. They can just see a game randomly one day, then flip to it to see if there's a game 2 weeks later and see that the channel is pulled to upset them. Or their child can be watching a game one day then ask their parents why the channel isn't there anymore. Or plenty of Spanish speaking baseball fans who won't know what is going on when the Astros are on then aren't all of the sudden. I'm not talking about diehards I'm talking about all the casuals. And yes, they don't know what is going on with all these negotiations. They just randomly pop tv on and watch whats on.
Maybe you are just smarter than everyone else? Maybe you are just so much more in control of your emotions than everyone else that you would actually handle the situation exactly as you say. Maybe you are just a person who is on a completely different level intellectually and emotionally than everyone else. Most people though, if they got the games and got back in the routine of watching them everyday, would go through another round of anger when the games were taken away. I was super pissed when the Rockets season started and couldn't watch. As the season wore on, I still didn't like the fact I couldn't watch them, but I got used to doing other things and understood that I was just going to miss at least one full season if not more. Then the Astros season started, now I did know that I wouldn't be able to watch them but just got my hopes up that the beginning of the season would bring a deal. I knew it wasn't likely but I was hoping. Then the games begin and I can't watch and i'm super pissed again. As the season goes on, I will wish I could watch, but the emotions certainly calm down. Give me the games again, let me get back into the groove of coming home from work and turning on the game, drinking a cold beer and relaxing while watching it, and then rip that away and yea, i'd be more pissed and more emotional about it again. Most people who are true fans would respond that way also....maybe you are just a different level though and you would just calmly and intellectually go about your day
