Its a crack... but they're so far ahead of the other sports, it still isn't close. Frankly, we should have all seen this coming a long time ago... the ratings on MNF have been going down every year, and the costs of producing it just don't justify the ratings it gets. This way, they still retain the rights to producing NFL games by putting it on ESPN, and they're able to come up w/ another lame-ass show like Desperate Housewives to try to fill the time slot... and maybe they'll strike a hit. Sports is tailor-made for cable... you can have major pre and post-game shows dissecting the game ad-nauseum. You don't have to worry about pre-empting the "local news" or worry about some dumb controversy over racy promos. I think, in the end, its just much EASIER to not have to deal with network television. In the end, however, it does hurt the common folk who don't have cable... but in this age of broadband internet, HD, satellite, etc... eventually cable/dish has to become the mainstream. Its just how society has worked... better technology replacing the old. Color tv's, automatic transmission, computers, laptops, cd-rom, xbox, dolby digital, clutch bbs.... the revolution will never end.
So will the Sunday night game on NBC become the bigger game? I think so. There is something about a regular season football game being on national TV that appeals to me atleast. I think MNF will lose some luster once they make the switch that might just be me though
my initial reaction, is oh well most people have cable anyways, but just thinking about it, i can count 6 close friends who have no cable. their families or themselves can definitely afford it but they don't need/want it i suppose. everyone of them has dsl/ high speed internet though.
I think so as well. I really don't see what the big deal is. If the Sunday and Monday games were both on cable, then yah, it would be a blow, but it's a fair tradeoff. It's not like they are showing a big chunk of their playoff games on cable. **cough**looksatNBA**cough**
So does this mean no more Hank jr to get us pumped for the game? Hearing him Sing and the Monday night anthem always got me pumped for prime time!
I don't, got rid of it last year, the only thing I miss is sports but I can always just go down to the bar.
You and Vescey got it wrong - it'll be Suzy "I WANT TO KISS YOU" Kolber or maybe even the blonde fox, Jill Arrington.
FIRST, the ROCKETS Games go to CABLE... now THIS???? F****************************************CK!!!!!
Actually, what this does is allow ESPN to raise the rates it charges to cable companies. This ultimately means you will pay more, whether or not you already have cable. Plus, companies that have to have ESPN (restaurants, bars, hotels) will be forced to pay whatever commercial rate comes through. Not sure how much the viewership drops and therefore advertising $....
man, if this means i get to see more of suzy kolber then put me down for moving MNF to ESPN. or rachel nichols will do as well.
So in the past, every team and every player wanted to play in the Monday night game to showcase to the nation. Now it is no different than any other game. If its not going to be national network, what is the point of even wanting to play on Monday Night?
This is interesting...saying it won't be available for the "working man" is true in some aspects, but c'mon, how many people do you know that don't have cable...Heck, if someone was destitute, they'd probably find money for cable or strip clubs...
We already have one. It's called TVMAX... and IT SUCKS ASS!!!!!! By the way, Dream Sequence makes an excellent point that I can't believe I totally overlooked. ESPN can and will raise its rates to cable companies, which in turn will raise our rates. ESPN is already one of the most expensive networks for cable providers to carry. A lot of carriers in the NW have dropped ESPN b/c of its outrageous prices. Only will go up now, to pay for the multibillion dollar package for MNF.
Well, if it sucks ass, then it obviously can't compete with Time Warner. Care to elaborate on why it sucks ass?
