Nothing personal (you know I heart you Max) but this reminds me of the time I was at rehearsal when my power and the power of most of my actors was still out from Ike and someone got a phone call and screamed and then got off the phone and starting singing and dancing around the theatre about how their power was back on (and ours wasn't). Nobody liked that person for at least a week. I am still completely baffled as to why there is no Clutchfans coverage of the fact that at least half of us can't watch the games anymore. The Clutchfans news just continues like it was any other season (plus Harden). And the game threads continue. And half of us don't have access to the games and there is one thread for us to b**** in (and for local b**** RM95 to make fun of us - I used to like that guy). Where is the coverage? Clutch, Jeff, the rest of you, where is even half the energy for this much larger issue than Save Our Rockets was? Nowhere, that's where.
I hadn't seen RM95's "I deserved it" post. It's good that he realized that and I forgive him his truly crappy comments in this thread.
Is it just half, I would have suspected more, but I can't find the poll anymore? I too don't understand why there is no "apparent" administrative-driven advocacy on this site. If there is some going on behind of the scenes please tell us about it. I haven't seen a Rocket's game this year. I have seen the Spurs and the Mavs play, so why does the Texas blackout only apply to the Rockets?
I didn't listen but I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that it was 10 minutes of Hutchings telling fans to call their providers and DEMAND the channel, derp derp derp...... So if I'm understanding all of this right, it seems like the major point of contention is that CSN is wanting the providers to charge a monthly access charge to all of their customers in order to have CSN. But the providers don't want to do that because not all of their customers watch CSN and they don't want their customers to pay extra for something that's supposed to be in their basic package. So, if all of this is correct, I was right all along. CSN is at fault here, not the providers.
Maybe you should read through threads before adding snide little rep comments, former pal. Oh wait, this was the rep on my apology post. I can tell you one way I wouldn't be posting - like a little baby pouting that I'm never going to watch the Rockets again and I'm done with them.
Wait...I don't have the channel yet. I have Uverse. I just had never considered they would ultimately be carrying Spring Training games
What are people's issues with Comcast that they refuse to switch? I have directtv and enjoy it but had Comcast for many many years prior and never had any issue with it. I guess I never dealt with customer service that often. I'm moving at the end of this month and if there's no resolution with directv by then, I'll have to get Comcast because these streams are getting ridiculously bad.
Rockets games aren't blacked out in Austin. Blackout rules are put in place by the NBA and how far you live to the nearest team. For example, Spurs games are blacked out in Austin if they play on NBATV and on League Pass. I can however watch it on Fox Sports Southern Oklahoma (oops i mean Southwest)
Huh? Of course CSN isn't willing to give their product away for free. It's a business. And the argument of "not all customers watch CSN, so we don't want to charge everyone" can be made for essentially every non-network channel in the cable lineup. I no longer watch Fox Sports Southwest (or Fox News, for that matter)... there, I've just proven that I pay extra for something I don't watch! Should my provider go to war for me? The fact is, without an "a la carte" model, providers are always going to charge customers for some channels they don't watch. It can't be avoided. They simply have to make educated guesses on which channels are most demanded by their audience. That's where all the website complaints come into play - they show concrete evidence of subscriber demand. Unless you have specifics on what Comcast's offering price is, we have no idea who is at fault. What if they're offering it for 2 cents/subscriber and providers are holding out for 1? Obviously that's not a real example, but unless you expect CSN to give away its product for free, it's pretty hard to pin blame on one party without knowing the negotiations.
I would love an "a la carte" model. Bring it... Would so greatly simplify my channel surfing...about six (6) clicks and I'm done!
CSN Houston released this the other day... Keeping my fingers crossed! http://www.csnhouston.com/basketbal...esident-gm-talks-distribution-sportsradio-610 <iframe src="http://player.theplatform.com/p/zT2_HC/iEazkwCwmKPM/embed/select/6Uar6t_il3uK?autoPlay=false¶ms=zone%3Drockets" width="480" height="270" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>Your browser does not support iframes.</iframe>
It's a bit of the opposite actually. CSN bid up the rights so high that they need a certain amount from the providers not to lose money. The Lakers charge $3.95 per subscriber and CSN is trying to get $3.40 per subscriber. The Lakers are a perennial championship contender with several big names while the Rockets are a perennial lottery team and the Astros have been one of the worst teams in the history of baseball. The providers would rather add CSN as a premium sports channel so they can pass on the costs to the people that actually want the channel instead of raising the price of their cable/dish service for every one of their customers. The problem here is that the greed of sports entities is changing the way TV is delivered. If every damn team had their own network they're going to all try to extract premium money for that exclusive channel. This is about the greed of the Rockets and Astros to raise revenues and the providers trying to maintain costs for their customers so they don't lose business.
I understand the ranting, im pissed to. But to say the Astros have been one of the worst teams in baseball is a far overstatement. Yea they've had some bad years the past 6 years, but before that they were quite successful/popular. They will be back eventually. If it came down to me paying an extra $3.40 a month (i know thats not how it works but just saying) I would happily pay that. Even though I do understand not everyone cares about these two teams.
I would like you to use the connections you have to let the Rocket's management know the predicament they have put their fans in. Maybe you already have. I truly believe that the current arrangement is not in the team's long term interest. Essentially, they have blacked out their Texas fans and a good part of their Houston area fans. Games on T.V. are the way fans are made and retained; it creates a connection that becomes a conduit through which trips are made and tickets are bought. I depended on the broadcast to learn of special promotions. Out of town fans will travel a few times a year to see games in the TC and so will those in Houston. Blacking out the entire State doesn't make sense, especially when the Mavs and Spurs are seen on a regular basis. What is so frustrating is that no one in the media is talking about this. There is no way to communicate with the Rockets. I emailed their media director and got no response. I have written the Chronicle, but they won't discuss it. It is certainly discussed here, but is this feedback getting to the Rockets and what is their response? If they don't care and plan to do nothing to help their fans, then we can make our decisions as what we should do. It is not like we have options. In Eastern Texas and most parts of Texas there are no providers that plan to carry Comcast sports network. In my area and most areas, subscribing to Comcast in general is not an option. For those of us who love the Rockets and have been on this site for years, we see you and the other administrators as advocates for the fans. I personally would just like to know if the Rockets are aware of what has happened and do they care enough to intervene and help us?
Have you seen the "black out" map that has appeared on this site. Maybe I am using the term "black out" in the wrong way, but the Comcast Sports Network coverage is virtually limited to parts of Houston.
Hello, many people have to break their contracts to do the switch, you should know that. For me, if the rockets or Comcast force me to switch simply due to the games, I just refuse to do it. I know I like my team, but if the team does not respect me, so be it, I could be a OKC fan. I know I got the mails from Comcast of the $250 off deal for a couple of time within two weeks, that is suggesting that Comcast is now using the rockets to get more customers, that is just a bad business, I am not going to buy it.
