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NFL Network Vs Time Warner

Who do you blame

  • Total voters
    70
Hookem Horns said:
Agreed, other than the few games they are carrying I have been real disappointed in the NFL Network. It's not what I thought it would be. I thought it would be a lot of cool NFL Films stuff, etc however they just show the same old recaps and previews every day. It's like watching the late night news on Monday and then that channel showing Monday's news everynight the rest of the week.
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Agree, NFL films shows on Great Games would be awesome. I really don't get why they don't show more of this
 
Double Barrel said:
This made me think of an interesting aspect that has been overlooked: the cost to produce an NFL game.

Networks lose money in doing NFL games, but they make it up in the shows they advertise to draw the audience. Those shows make ad revenue which counters the loss of covering NFL games.

The NFL Network does not have that luxury, since they do not have any sitcoms or tv drama shows to make up the difference. So when they produce a game, it has to be made up from some place. I would not expect the NFL to lose money on it's network just because it's making so much money as a league. Every facet has to be revenue generating, so operating costs might have as much with this issue as anything else. Food for thought.
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I work in the TV syndication business as an accountant. I am by know means an expert. But, I can say that in our company, our shows are paid on ratings provided by Nielsen.

Which brings me to this Thursday Night game situation. Maybe the NFL Network is not building their business model off of Nielsen ratings, at least as it is related to these Thursday Night games? The adds I saw last night, just seemed strange for a prime time NFL game.

Like I said, technology is changing rapidly and it seems strange that it appears the NFL Network is not concerned about ratings. If they were concerned about ratings and they made money off the ratings, they would be concerned about getting this channel in every household. But, they are not.

I have to deal with Nielsen on a regular basis. You want to talk about a monopoly that should be busted up, there is one. I am just speculating here, but if this NFL Network thing means they don't pay one dime to Nielsen for research fees, I am all for it no matter the impact to society. Nielsen is an extremely difficult company to deal with from my end and should be driven into the ground, including a few of their employees that I deal with on a regular basis for good measure. Just difficult people that are mind numb robots.

The old days of free TV are probably coming to an end. It's hard to make money just off of advertising on a produced show. Trust me, I see it!

TV is going to pay per view and probably will be just over the Internet (which means the satellite and cable companies are not providers of content, but merely providing a service similar to a phone or some other utility company).
 
Kind of long article about this NFL network issue.

This paragraph sums it up (this guy is basically writing himself a letter 20 year into the past so he will have the proper reflection to this issue):

...H. In 2006, the NFL launched its own network and decided to keep eight Thursday night games for itself, even though most cable systems weren't carrying the NFL Network at the time. A bitter war ensued that was never resolved, leading to the week after Thanksgiving 2007, when the 10-1 Cowboys were hosting the 10-1 Packers -- the first game between two 10-1 teams since 1990 -- and half of America couldn't watch the game from the comfort of home.

Did the "older you" complain about this particular slight? Actually, no. You happened to be working in New York City that day; once you discovered that your hotel room didn't offer the NFL Network, you got off your ass, met up with some friends and watched the game in a crowded sports bar that was screaming on every big play. Ironically, it turned out to be a more entertaining night than just sitting at home (or in this case, a hotel room) and watching the NFL Network. Is it a bad thing to get off your ass every once in awhile? Probably not. Everyone's incessant whining about "missing" NFL Network games made you realize that too much time was spent complaining about stupid stuff and far too little time appreciating everything that's happened for sports fans over the past 25 years. If traveling 5-10 minutes to a sports bar or a neighbor's house to watch the Packers-Cowboys game is our biggest dilemma of the sports week, then we must be in pretty good shape in 2007, right?
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Here is entire article,
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page...1130&sportCat=nfl&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab1pos1
 
Like putting Ohio State on the Big Ten Network. I don't care if you do it, I don't care if you charge for it, but for God's sake, when the majority of Ohio redisdents can't watch the game from home, that's just lame.

My point? NFL, Big Ten Network, figure your sh*t out and get the network available one way or the other.

(thank you Comcast for buying TW Houston so I can buy NFLN)
 
I blame who ever started the NFLN channel because if they didn't there wouldn't be any of this to worry about. So there you have it.
 
hollywood_texan said:
Kind of long article about this NFL network issue.

This paragraph sums it up (this guy is basically writing himself a letter 20 year into the past so he will have the proper reflection to this issue):



Here is entire article,
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page...1130&sportCat=nfl&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab1pos1
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So basically the NFLN and the Cable companies lost money so sports bars could get rich and the patrons could drive home drunk. Yep that makes a lot of sense.
 
At the start Comcast made it sound like they were just going to add it on and not charge extra money for it.
 
Double Barrel said:
This made me think of an interesting aspect that has been overlooked: the cost to produce an NFL game.

Networks lose money in doing NFL games, but they make it up in the shows they advertise to draw the audience. Those shows make ad revenue which counters the loss of covering NFL games.

The NFL Network does not have that luxury, since they do not have any sitcoms or tv drama shows to make up the difference. So when they produce a game, it has to be made up from some place. I would not expect the NFL to lose money on it's network just because it's making so much money as a league. Every facet has to be revenue generating, so operating costs might have as much with this issue as anything else. Food for thought.



I honestly don't think this is a high number of people. I've got loads of pine trees in my back yard, but I still get a signal. Apartments are a bit different, but many of them are updating their policies to allow dishes as these services become more mainstream.

Many folks cannot afford cable, while other areas have no cable service, so is Congress going to get involved with those that can no longer watch Monday Night Football because it's on ESPiN? That primetime game used to be free via broadcast.

As far as storms are concerned, I lost cable signals all the time because of weather. While it could take upwards of 24 hours to restore service, satellite comes back within an hour, usually right after the storm calms down. The signal is always there, and it's just a matter of the dish getting it.

I can understand aesthetics, but it doesn't bother me anymore than those whirly things or people's giant tv antennas. Just part of modern society, IMO.



My old cable company did not offer HD, and advised me that they had no plans to upgrade. So that's pretty obvious to me.

I've got a buddy (Captain in the TDC) that had Warner/Comcast before going DirecTV, and he says he can't tell the difference. This is a tech guy who is big on this stuff, so take it for what it's worth.
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You didn't lose cable service because of weather. Someone probably hit the main cable pole thing (forgot what my mom calls it) in your area.
 
Well, I'll probably get flamed for this, but here goes:

It's the consumer's fault.

1. DirecTV offers Sunday Ticket and NFLN.

2. You want to see the Texans, you want NFLN.

3. Switch to DirecTV.

Perhaps one of the easiest things to do. Ever.

But I guess Americans love to gripe and whine, and so it must be.

BTW...if you have housing restrictions/codes or obstructions that don't allow dishes on the house, then disregard this message.
 
Remember when someone on here's apartment complex went around and cut/removed/swiped every dish in the complex? Yeah.

Also, the weather thing is a big deal for me. Went to a buddy's house ofr a UT watch party this year, but about a whole quarter was missed because of a storm.
 
That's just it. What if you don't have that kind of housing. Then your only hope is Comcast.
 
I have DirecTV and the NFL Network is part of the basic packages. There is no reason TWC couldn't do the same thing without raising their prices, which they claim they would need to do.
I don't think the NFL is totally blameless in this because they are just as greedy as TWC, but if it works for DirecTV and Dish, then why can't it work for Time Warner.
 
SA Texan said:
I have DirecTV and the NFL Network is part of the basic packages. There is no reason TWC couldn't do the same thing without raising their prices, which they claim they would need to do.
I don't think the NFL is totally blameless in this because they are just as greedy as TWC, but if it works for DirecTV and Dish, then why can't it work for Time Warner.
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Actually you are extremely wrong. NFL made a deal with Direct TV so the cost is minimal for Direct TV to carry the channel. There is no deal in place with cable or the dish network so the cost for them to carry the channle is higher. So they want people to switch to Direct TV so they make more money, but if a cable company wants the channel they have to pay NFLN a sum of money but they can not put it on a sports package so the cable company does not make any money only loses money or they can raise their rates and charge everyone to cover the cost and upset customers who do not even watch NFL so they leave and a percentage of them would goto Direct TV so now cable loses more money and Direct TV makes more money. So the NFL makes its money and Direct TV makes its money and cable loses. Sounds like the only people winning here is NFL and Direct TV and mean while the fans and the customers get screwed without even the courtesy of a reach around.

As far as me switching to Direct TV or Dish as GP would say and blames me because I do not. WOW thanks for saying I am the problem because the cost for me to have two rooms with digital cable and DVR and the small sports package I do have (so I get ESPNU, CSTV SPEED and few other crappy channles) and 3 rooms with basic cable, plus home phone and RR is $150 a month. If I switch to Direct TV and do not bundle my cost I would end up paying roughly $185 for what I get now. So I am the problem because I want to save money and not spend more to get one freakin channel.

My fault? Ya know this is the same crap Microsoft said and everyone was pissed about exclusionary deals as well. If what Microsoft did was illegal so is the deal between Direct TV and NFL and they should be taken to task just like Microsoft did.
 
GP said:
Well, I'll probably get flamed for this, but here goes:

It's the consumer's fault.

1. DirecTV offers Sunday Ticket and NFLN.

2. You want to see the Texans, you want NFLN.

3. Switch to DirecTV.

Perhaps one of the easiest things to do. Ever.

But I guess Americans love to gripe and whine, and so it must be.

BTW...if you have housing restrictions/codes or obstructions that don't allow dishes on the house, then disregard this message.
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Is DirecTV better with bad weather than Dish Network? I had Dish for years and every time there was a storm the TV went out. It's retarded to have to schedule your TV viewing around if a bad weather front was coming. After 5 years with the dish I got tired of it and moved to cable.

If I can have my far more reliable cable and pay $5 to see one Texans game and cancel, I'm good with that. I doubt the Texans will be a mainstay on NFLN.
 
GP said:
Well, I'll probably get flamed for this, but here goes:

It's the consumer's fault.

1. DirecTV offers Sunday Ticket and NFLN.

2. You want to see the Texans, you want NFLN.

3. Switch to DirecTV.

Perhaps one of the easiest things to do. Ever.

But I guess Americans love to gripe and whine, and so it must be.

BTW...if you have housing restrictions/codes or obstructions that don't allow dishes on the house, then disregard this message.
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that's unbelievably idiotic. DirecTV sucks.
 
I will take anybody other than Bryant Gumby as the commentater

Even Jaws knows the players names, especially the star players
 
gwallaia said:
The NFL is very clever. Take away games from viewers that used to always be free and blame the cable companies for not letting us see them.
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The cable companies have gotten really fat over not paying for their stuff. In the late 60's Congress forced the nets to give their signals to the cable companies for free in order to help the cable companies have something to build a market around. Then the cable companies stabbed everyone in the back by selling advertising against the nets and jacking their rates to the consumers at the same time. That edict remainded in effect for almost 30 years, and when the nets tried to change it, the cable companies said the exact same thing then that they are now saying about the NFL.

I say let them fry. I dig HD satellite.
 
kastofsna said:
that's unbelievably idiotic. DirecTV sucks.
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Okey dokey.

All I ever said was this: If you want the service, get the carrier.

My parents have Dish AND DirecTV in their house on separate TVs. I absolutely hate to watch the TV that has Dish on it....HATE it. I think the on-screen interface is lousy and cumbersome, the controller is a jumbled mess, and I don;t think they offer Sunday Ticket yet, or do they?

Thanks for coming right out and calling me names, though. I wish someone would have told me a long time ago. All these years and I've been a moron...
 
The storm has to be a pretty bad one, where I live, for it to affect me.

I lose service about 3 times a year, and it seems to stay on during most of the storm anyways.

If you get THAT upset over losing a signal for what amounts to be a short amount of time, then perhaps you depend on watching TV too much.

I just can't stand the thought of paying a landline cable company. They jack with your rates ALL the time. I mean, ALL the time. Might be different for you in your area, but the cable company in my town is an absolute tyrant.
 
I have direct tv. Their customer service stinks. I also do'nt like the fact when the hurricane hit Miami last year & they changed the K.C.-MIA. game to Thursday I couldn't get the game. Direct TV is very heavy handed, but they are the only game in town if you want the best N.F.L. coverage. The N.F.L. Direct T.V. partnership has helped Direct T.V. compete with cable. The partnership also helped the N.F.L. over take M.L.B. as the no.1 sport in america.
 
Well i did it:splits: I called Direct TV and getting it installed next Tuesday...Not only being upset TWC still didn't carry the NFLN, i was tired of their high prices...My cable bill went up $12 for no reason, and when you question it, they act like we should be appreciative and honored to have them...They said cable prices are going up for everyone...2 of my friends got an increase as well. I mean i could understand if they upgraded their service or added more HD channels, but for no reason, come on. I am also getting DSL and a AT&T Phone line..So even after the years discounts i'll be getting from Direct TV, i'll be saving $65/mo on my total costs of TV, DSL and phone, compared to TWC, RR, and Digital phone.and thats for 275 channels, all preminum channels, as opposed to only ONE preminum channel with TWC...After the year, i'll probably downgrade to the next level since i really don't need all those preminum channels, i very seldom watch the one i have. Thanks Darrell for your imput on your service with Direct TV.
 
I just upgraded to DirecTV HD on Friday and love it. The channels that broadcast in native HD are just stunning on my new TV. Even the upconverted similcast channels are excellent. I have been a customer of thiers close to ten years, and lose a total of 1-2 hours a yr due to bad weather. If that's a problem for you, don't get it. The picture, etc are all perfect imho.

Now, the cust svc? That's a different story. The people in Nazi concentration camps probably got treated better than DirecTV treats it's customers. At times, they can be downright hostile, and their policies are extremely rigid. As long as you don't have a problem you're fine. If you do, expect to be treated like dirt.
 
Plus, take this dose of hard hitting fact from David Cohen, executive VP of Comcast.
"While the NFL claims that it wants its games to be seen by the widest possible audiences, it's actually their rules that limit which games fans can watch. It's the NFL that designates which cities can have over-the-air broadcasts of specific games. It is also the NFL that decided to take these eight games off of free broadcast television and to try to enrich themselves at the expense of their fans by creating a multi-billion dollar asset called the NFL Network."
Amen.
Suddenly the NFL is worried about my wallet. Oh, that’s rich.
http://czabe.com/daily/archives/2007/11/index.html#a000603
:cowboy1:
 
Porky said:
Now, the cust svc? That's a different story. The people in Nazi concentration camps probably got treated better than DirecTV treats it's customers. At times, they can be downright hostile, and their policies are extremely rigid. As long as you don't have a problem you're fine. If you do, expect to be treated like dirt.
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Time Warner's customer service sucks as well, at least in San Antonio. DirecTV doesn't have the market cornered on bad customer services; they are both about equal from my experiences. I'm not making excuses because bad customer service in inexcusable, I'm just saying they are both very bad in that area.
 
SA Texan said:
Time Warner's customer service sucks as well, at least in San Antonio. DirecTV doesn't have the market cornered on bad customer services; they are both about equal from my experiences. I'm not making excuses because bad customer service in inexcusable, I'm just saying they are both very bad in that area.
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And i agree 100%...When i was going back and forth with a twc customer rep online and told him i was not happy with the recent increase in my bill, His response, "Well i would be happy to assist you with the disconnect of your TWC service if you like" I told him, no thank you, i can figure out how to dial the phone and have it disconnected myself, and thats just what i did.....
 
axman40 said:
Plus, take this dose of hard hitting fact from David Cohen, executive VP of Comcast.
"While the NFL claims that it wants its games to be seen by the widest possible audiences, it's actually their rules that limit which games fans can watch. It's the NFL that designates which cities can have over-the-air broadcasts of specific games. It is also the NFL that decided to take these eight games off of free broadcast television and to try to enrich themselves at the expense of their fans by creating a multi-billion dollar asset called the NFL Network."
Amen.
Suddenly the NFL is worried about my wallet. Oh, that’s rich.
http://czabe.com/daily/archives/2007/11/index.html#a000603
:cowboy1:
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That's kind of lame on his part. The TNF games are broadcast on regular tv in the cities of the teams that are playing. And unless someone has the NFL Ticket, chances are many of these games would not be seen because of conflicting television schedules and broadcast rules.

What was the NFL supposed to showcase on Thursday Night Football if not it's own product?! idonno:

I don't hear him whining about poor folks who can't afford cable and miss out on Monday Night Football on ESPiN!
 
Porky said:
I just upgraded to DirecTV HD on Friday and love it. The channels that broadcast in native HD are just stunning on my new TV. Even the upconverted similcast channels are excellent. I have been a customer of thiers close to ten years, and lose a total of 1-2 hours a yr due to bad weather. If that's a problem for you, don't get it. The picture, etc are all perfect imho.

Now, the cust svc? That's a different story. The people in Nazi concentration camps probably got treated better than DirecTV treats it's customers. At times, they can be downright hostile, and their policies are extremely rigid. As long as you don't have a problem you're fine. If you do, expect to be treated like dirt.
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I upgraded recently too . Its the coolest thing I've ever seen . They have a TON of HD channels , and they keep adding more . Soon , they will have a HD alternate for every channel .

I have never really had any serious problems with reception . Even during Allison , I had reception . I stayed in town for Katrina and we lost reception for maybe 6 hours . When the "storm" rolled through , I was back to having TV . In the 6 years I've had the service I've had maybe 12 hours of no reception , thats including the outage during Katrina . They have really worked to correct the problems with losing reception during bad weather . My brother recently and grudgingly switched from Comcast to DirecTV , and he said he wishes he would have done it a long time ago . He can finally see the full effects of his 60" 1080 .
 
it's great living in Florida and having DirecTV. there are times when the signal is lost for 2 weeks out of a month.
 
kastofsna said:
it's great living in Florida and having DirecTV. there are times when the signal is lost for 2 weeks out of a month.
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I find that hard to believe considering the signal is coming from space. :rolleyes: but if you say so...
 
Double Barrel said:
I find that hard to believe considering the signal is coming from space. :rolleyes: but if you say so...
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it rains a lot here. and i don't mean it'll be out for 2 weeks straight, it just goes in an out for an accumulative time of 2 weeks. it's rare, but still.
 
kastofsna said:
it rains a lot here. and i don't mean it'll be out for 2 weeks straight, it just goes in an out for an accumulative time of 2 weeks. it's rare, but still.
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That sucks. Definitely the Achilles’ Heel of satellite television.
 
False Start On # 69 said:
http://directv.com/DTVAPP/global/contentPageNR.jsp?assetId=P4380112

Thats the HD line-up for Directv . I just found out there are some new ones . :cool: :jam:
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Yup. That's the list I just got recently. The Food network broadcasts in native HD and looks great. Several others do as well. Most right now still upconvert their regular signal. It still looks good, but it's not as stunning as the native HD broadcasts. They are nearing 100 total channels in HD. That beats the pants off of any other service right now. Dish has some catching up to do (and I am sure they will over time)
 
Interesting development, to say the least:
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/5391680.html

NFL Network flap may jeopardize league's antitrust exemption
Senators threaten to take away protection if games aren't available to wider audience
Associated Press

WAHINGTON - Two members of the Senate Judiciary Committee sent a letter to the NFL on Wednesday threatening to reconsider the league's antitrust exemption if it doesn't make games on the NFL Network available to more viewers.

Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., expressed concern that many fans in their home states will not be able to see games on the channel involving the New England Patriots or the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Leahy is the committee's chairman, and Specter is its ranking member.
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This might just prompt something to get done, the NFL would have to seriously change if it lost it's antitrust exemption.
 
Screw Time Warner and any government official that gets involved on this. Let the private sector and the best value proposition win out.
 
Texans_Chick said:
NFL does have an exclusive deal with DTV, so they don't care if they hurt cable companies or consumers who can't use satellite.
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Who can't get DTV? Who can't use satellite??

Under the Telecom Act of 1996, DBS systems are legal everywhere... condos, apartments, etc.

The FCC has recently came down hard on apartment complexes, condo associations, etc. that tried to regulate residents subscribing to DTV.

Yes, DTV is part of Fox (News Corp.), but politics aside they are a pretty decent company.

The bogus mass litigation over "flashed" system cards stopped once Fox bought them.
 
Kaiser Toro said:
Screw Time Warner and any government official that gets involved on this. Let the private sector and the best value proposition win out.
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Like I have stated before it is very similar to how the Govt got involved with Microsoft. It is about fair business practices and exclusionary deals that hurt other companies.


Koolaid Time said:
Who can't get DTV? Who can't use satellite??

Under the Telecom Act of 1996, DBS systems are legal everywhere... condos, apartments, etc.

The FCC has recently came down hard on apartment complexes, condo associations, etc. that tried to regulate residents subscribing to DTV.

Yes, DTV is part of Fox (News Corp.), but politics aside they are a pretty decent company.

The bogus mass litigation over "flashed" system cards stopped once Fox bought them.
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That is well and good but just as the same a person living a very rural area may not have an option of cable a person living in a condo may not be able to have a dish because of the surroundings and where their place is. the condos are for more privilant in the North to Northeast part of the US.

It is an exclusionary deal and after all the Microsoft rullings it is pretty much that those are not going to be allowd if they are challenged correctly.
 
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