The providers are currently making more money this way, as are the bulk of the channels. Its stupid to suggest that the tv companies would just change the system when they are making more money this way. That's capitalism. They can do what they want even if it is worse for consumers. Does anyone know if dish net has free csn? What channel?
But the providers are the ones saying the system is broken when it comes to RSN's, basically wanting to put any new ones on a premium basis. So it's ok for all the other channels, just not sports channels?
The VPN workaround is going to continue to work going until next season so there's that. Just buy nba league pass broadband (or through your provider) , and use a VPN that masks your location. I did that pretty much all season long, and just hooked up my laptop to my TV via it's HDMI port. Not that hard.
I'm not buying League Pass just to watch my local team. Especially when I already pay for satellite. I'll stick to the LP quality streams
If that works for you, then cool. If you're referring to those VLC streams that use .m3u8. I'm almost positive that loophole is going to be closed for next year
Working the game to your advantage IS capitalism, this is just on a personal basis. I never felt bad pirating music. The data was out there and I could grab it with no consequences. (I never seeded and didn't feel bad about that either). The existence of that alternative changed the music paradigm to where now it's just too cheap and easy to stream it to even bother with pirate downloads. Anybody that thinks the paradigm for sports programming is not going to change too is just kidding themselves. The dinosaur monopolies will get crushed by cheap information exchange on the internet. If people can't see an Itunes type alternative, like $.99 direct streaming of games, they will be left behind. Capitalism is all about efficiency, and undercutting margins. The cheapest alternative will win.
The article is behind the paywall so I can't confirm this, but apperently Ken Hoffman thinks Postolos was holding back the deal. http://www.houstonchronicle.com/lif...-on-TV-when-they-play-the-Rangers-4512277.php
If that's the line someone in the Astros organization fed this guy to write for public consumption, I reject it completely. The reason there is no agreement goes straight to the top: Jim Crane. If he's finally ready to cave and face reality, so be it. Would like to read the entire article.
What is Annise Parker going to do to help this? I like the fact that she is trying to get this resolved (she should have been trying this a year ago) but she doesn't have any say in any of this.
Exactly, I can't believe that Postolos was the guy making the ultimate decisions on this. Maybe Postolos was advising Crane to not make a deal, but Crane has always had the power to get a deal done whenever he wanted.
We Uversians don't care 'bout no Suddenlink. But I guess them talking is good in the grand scheme of things, right? Right? Please? And I would definitely go watch the Astros play the Skeeters. And I would be pulling for the Skeeters.
Astros owner Crane worries about CSNH's financial pinch As Comcast SportsNet Houston approaches its ninth month without full distribution, the Astros/Rockets/NBC Sports Group partnership is low on funds and faces "tough decisions" about its future, Astros owner Jim Crane said Friday. Crane said the network does not face irreparable financial damage and will remain on the air, but the partners might have to make financial decisions if NBC is unable to increase revenue by closing carriage deals with national carriers such as DirecTV, Dish Network and AT&T U-verse or regional carriers such as Suddenlink and Time Warner Cable. "Without coverage, the network is not making money and so without the other (carriers) signing up and paying, there are things that can happen as the entity draws down on its credit," Crane said. "As that goes on, we run out of money, and we are going to have to make some tough decisions. "There are mechanisms for that in the plan. We're not going to go bust or anything, but basically it becomes more difficult for everybody to operate if we don't get coverage." He said all options are on the table for the network owned by the Astros (46.4 percent), Rockets (30.9 percent) and NBC (22.7 percent). "There are rights fees involved, there is equity involved, there is long-term viability, overhead costs, and all of those things are in play," Crane said. "It is what it is. It's a business deal, and we've got to get it to a point where it makes good sense for everybody and move forward." Meeting with mayor Crane and Rockets CEO Tad Brown are scheduled to meet Monday with Mayor Annise Parker and with representatives of Suddenlink, which services Kingwood, Humble and several cable systems across Texas and the five-state area serviced by CSN Houston, on carriage talks for the network. CSN Houston is available in about 40 percent of Houston's 2.2 million TV households, and an offer to providers for a free-view period through the end of May was picked up by only a few local carriers in the Houston area. Crane will assume the Astros' position on the four-member CSN Houston board that was held by George Postolos, who resigned Monday as Astros president and CEO. Crane acknowledged that carriage pickup rates for CSN Houston, which launched in October, "certainly hasn't gone like we wanted it to." "We want to get fans to see the games," he said. "What they have to understand is there's big economics here, and it's not only for this year or next year. It's a long-term deal. "If we cut a bad deal moving forward, it will have significant impact for us competing against the Rangers and Angels and Mariners. So we are really focused to get the games on as soon as we can, but we also are focused on the long-term credibility and viability financially against our competitors, and the TV deal is a big part of that." West tough in TV, too The American League West could be one of the most competitive divisions in baseball in that regard. The Rangers and Angels have deals with Fox Sports Net that include equity interests in their respective regional sports networks - Fox Sports Southwest and Fox Sports West - and the Mariners announced plans to form an RSN partnership with their carrier Root Sports, owned by DirecTV. Rights fees are in play, as are future equity exchanges. Brown had no comment on Crane's remarks but added the Rockets "completely agree with Jim that the single most important issue we both face is and remains securing network carriage for our fans." Matt Hutchings, CSN Houston's president and general manager, referred questions to NBC Sports Group officials. Officials had no comment, but all signs point toward NBC's long-term support for CSN Houston's success. _______________ <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p><a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23Astros">#Astros</a>' Crane told @<a href="https://twitter.com/dfbarron">dfbarron</a> an investor cash-call is possible because of CSN Houston's initial financial struggles.</p>— Brian T. Smith (@ChronAstros) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChronAstros/status/335604865411735552">May 18, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Not sure if you read that... but the article echoes the idea that it's CSN/NBC in control of these negotiations...not the Rockets or Astros. CSN/NBC see CSN Houston as a battle in a larger war....and now the Rockets and Astros are left to decide if it's worth it to stick with this little experiment.
While I'm sure NBC group has a lot of say in the situation, Brian T Smith also tweeted " Postolos was central figure in CSN Houston holdout."
