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NFL Network vs. Cable Companies (1 Viewer)

I switched from DirecTV to Verizon FIOS, after 8 plus years of DirecTV and Sunday Ticket.

Much better bang for the buck. Local network feeds in HD, NFLN in HD, ESPN-HD........need I go on?

The leap in quality from DirecTV to FIOS is much like that of going from cable to DirecTV. No weather related reception problems, incredible signals, no calling to gripe at the cable company and customer service that is strange, in that they actually answer their phones quickly and fix problems. Some guys running pipe in my yard cut through the FIOS cable. Verizon was out that afternoon and provided a patch cable to get us service until they could get out to permanently repair it.

Getting back to the discussion, Time Warner should look at who makes the purchasing decision for cable in the home. Just as they provide certain programming for kids and other demographic groups, they might want to make certain to do so for men. My basic had better have NFLN-HD, ESPN-HD and Sci-Fi. Otherwise I take my money somewhere else. I originally took my money to DirecTV to get Sci-Fi and Sunday Ticket.

 
I talked to a rep from Charter yesterday and he doesn't think there will be a resolution anytime soon. Just his opinion. I find it interesting that Charter continues to be ignored in all of this when, unlike Time Warner, that service carried The NFL Network up until a year or so ago. If there are any cable users who should be really upset about this situation it's Charter users.

 
NFLN can suck my left nut. I can't get satellite because I have huge trees blocking the southern skyline. My only TV options are Time Warner and Everest. Everest carries NFLN, and I had planned on just watching the games at my friend's house...but they blacked the actual games out.

So now I've called TWC and gotten a significant reduction on my monthly bill...all year. And I'll call up and get it again next year if I still can't get NFLN.

In the meantime, I hook my laptop up to my HT Receiver via DVI > HDMI and wireless USB for sound. I watch the games on my 50" HD when they come on via sopcast. If the NFL won't ALLOW me to get what I want, then I'll just continue to take it for free.

 
Time Warner's customer service certainly sucks, but other than not having NFLN, i never understand the complaints against their product. seems great to me.

 
NFLN can suck my left nut. I can't get satellite because I have huge trees blocking the southern skyline. My only TV options are Time Warner and Everest. Everest carries NFLN, and I had planned on just watching the games at my friend's house...but they blacked the actual games out. So now I've called TWC and gotten a significant reduction on my monthly bill...all year. And I'll call up and get it again next year if I still can't get NFLN.In the meantime, I hook my laptop up to my HT Receiver via DVI > HDMI and wireless USB for sound. I watch the games on my 50" HD when they come on via sopcast. If the NFL won't ALLOW me to get what I want, then I'll just continue to take it for free.
There's no way I could watch sopcast on a 50". :X
 
NFLN can suck my left nut. I can't get satellite because I have huge trees blocking the southern skyline. My only TV options are Time Warner and Everest. Everest carries NFLN, and I had planned on just watching the games at my friend's house...but they blacked the actual games out. So now I've called TWC and gotten a significant reduction on my monthly bill...all year. And I'll call up and get it again next year if I still can't get NFLN.In the meantime, I hook my laptop up to my HT Receiver via DVI > HDMI and wireless USB for sound. I watch the games on my 50" HD when they come on via sopcast. If the NFL won't ALLOW me to get what I want, then I'll just continue to take it for free.
There's no way I could watch sopcast on a 50". :X
You have to sit at the back of the room! :D It looks better than it does on the laptop, because both the receiver and the tv clear up the signal, trying to "upscale" it. Obviously the quality is lacking, but it's not all that much worse than a standard def signal...as long as you sit at the back of the room. It also helps to run the brodcast through Windows Media Player in full screen, as opposed to the sopcast software.Either way...beggars can't be choosers. Other than going to a bar, or moving, it's my only option.
 
NFLN can suck my left nut. I can't get satellite because I have huge trees blocking the southern skyline. My only TV options are Time Warner and Everest. Everest carries NFLN, and I had planned on just watching the games at my friend's house...but they blacked the actual games out.

So now I've called TWC and gotten a significant reduction on my monthly bill...all year. And I'll call up and get it again next year if I still can't get NFLN.

In the meantime, I hook my laptop up to my HT Receiver via DVI > HDMI and wireless USB for sound. I watch the games on my 50" HD when they come on via sopcast. If the NFL won't ALLOW me to get what I want, then I'll just continue to take it for free.
There's no way I could watch sopcast on a 50". :X
You have to sit at the back of the room! :D It looks better than it does on the laptop, because both the receiver and the tv clear up the signal, trying to "upscale" it. Obviously the quality is lacking, but it's not all that much worse than a standard def signal...as long as you sit at the back of the room. It also helps to run the brodcast through Windows Media Player in full screen, as opposed to the sopcast software.

Either way...beggars can't be choosers. Other than going to a bar, or moving, it's my only option.
I guess you're right about that one.
 
NFLN can suck my left nut. I can't get satellite because I have huge trees blocking the southern skyline. My only TV options are Time Warner and Everest. Everest carries NFLN, and I had planned on just watching the games at my friend's house...but they blacked the actual games out. So now I've called TWC and gotten a significant reduction on my monthly bill...all year. And I'll call up and get it again next year if I still can't get NFLN.In the meantime, I hook my laptop up to my HT Receiver via DVI > HDMI and wireless USB for sound. I watch the games on my 50" HD when they come on via sopcast. If the NFL won't ALLOW me to get what I want, then I'll just continue to take it for free.
There's no way I could watch sopcast on a 50". :X
You have to sit at the back of the room! :D It looks better than it does on the laptop, because both the receiver and the tv clear up the signal, trying to "upscale" it. Obviously the quality is lacking, but it's not all that much worse than a standard def signal...as long as you sit at the back of the room. It also helps to run the brodcast through Windows Media Player in full screen, as opposed to the sopcast software.Either way...beggars can't be choosers. Other than going to a bar, or moving, it's my only option.
How can going to a bar be a bad choice?
 
I'm with those saying this will not hurt the cable companies much. How many people who don't play fantasy football will be up-in-arms about not being able to see an out-of-market football game on a Thursday night?

 
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i don't know about that either, marc. local sports networks, espn, and fsn should provide sufficient coverage to satisfy enough people that cable companies will not feel pressure to put it on basic cable. i know many. many more people watch football than basketbll, but this feels ore like an nbatv model than an espn model to me.

 
I'm with those saying this will not hurt the cable companies much. How many people who don't play fantasy football will be up-in-arms about not being able to see an out-of-market football game on a Thursday night?
you do realize how many million play FF right?
 
i don't know about that either, marc. local sports networks, espn, and fsn should provide sufficient coverage to satisfy enough people that cable companies will not feel pressure to put it on basic cable. i know many. many more people watch football than basketbll, but this feels ore like an nbatv model than an espn model to me.
Not when you factor in their NCAA college football coverage.If your favorite sport is football and you ONLY watch TV for sports (as tens of millions of American men do), ESPN is a pitiful place to be for April through July (and that's assuming the football fan is interested in March Madness)And I think you will acknowledge that, for football fans, the NFL-N is king from August through Jan.So, I am not sure I agree with your assesment.The NFL-N's draft coverager has, in the past, been beyond compare - more people watch that then you'd think.
 
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I'm pretty sure the NFL has a good idea of how many people are interested in their product.

They planned from the start to compete with ESPN, and they know way better than us if they have the numbers to do it.

 
I'm pretty sure the NFL has a good idea of how many people are interested in their product.
Ya think ? ;) I was just answering the question; didn't mean to suggest 14 mil is the cap on their audience. Sorry if it came across that way....
 
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If so, then how could you make this statement:

this feels ore like an nbatv model than an espn model to me.
The funny thing about the NFL-N is their complete lack of advertising revenue. Th eleague makes SOOOOO much money, then can run a network w/o selling significant advertising?
 
If this game was just another Sunday noon game would everyone really be this fired up about not being able to watch?
I think the reason it's Th and not SunDAY is that, IIRC, the league's deal with DirecTV allows DirecTV feeds of all early and afternoon Sunday games and only local blackout rules prevent DirecTV from carrying those games.I recall that being the deal when they moved a 'phin game to Sat. b/c a 'cane was coming.
The Thursday night game in previous seasons was a replacment for the Sunday night game that ESPN didn't brodcast so as not to compete with the first weekend of the World Series.
:thumbup:Nothing stated here refutes my assertion that DirecTV's deal with the NFL would prevent the NFL-N from broadcasting a Sunday game.I recall that being the exact reason why DirecTV would not be able to carry that phins game that was moved to Saturday - DirecTV has the right to all feeds for the Sunday morning and afternoon games and no right to any other feeds. While some feeds will obviously end up on their local network channels and not on Sunday Ticket channels, that doesn't change their right to broadcast the feeds.NBC owns the Sunday night game feed.ESPN owns the Monday night game feed.NFL-N has removed a game per week from distribution to those broadcasters and has kept it for a Thurs. night broadcast. Someone said "this wouldn't be an issue if it was one more Sunday afternoon game rather than a prime time game" Well, yeah - it would. NFL has a K with DirecTV allowing them the right to all feeds during the day on Sunday.
Yes, you are correct. I wasn't debating Sunday Ticket broadcasts on non-Sundays because I agreed with you. (although I must note that part of the reason the Miami/KC hurricane game was only shown in local markets and not on CBS nationally was because of the NFL's agreement not to schedule games on Fri/Sat during high school & NC$$ football season)I have been shelling out money to DirecTV since they started offering Sunday Ticket (the last 5 weeks of 1992 IIRC). The great thing is that I never have to look at the TV listings to see which game is being broadcast that week. The bad thing is that I am several thousand dollars lighter in the ol' pocketbook. But, what the heck, I would have just blew that money on beer & porn anyway. :shrug:
 
I would have just blew that money on beer & porn anyway. :shrug:
I always justified it as I woulda spent that money @ a bar to watch the phins, which is what i used to do.And I make few bucks back every week since I have four boxes & four TVs in four different rooms, but you only get your own remote control if you bring a twelver of beer.
 
If so, then how could you make this statement:

this feels ore like an nbatv model than an espn model to me.
The funny thing about the NFL-N is their complete lack of advertising revenue. Th eleague makes SOOOOO much money, then can run a network w/o selling significant advertising?
Hi, Marc - just saw this. All I meant by NBA TV model was having people with interest pay for it who want it vs putting on a tier that also gives it to people who could care less. I am not questioning if enough people want it to make it a viable going concern.
 
i'm starting to think nfl/network miscalculated...

not sure if this was said already upthread, but the real hard core fans probably ALREADY left cable for satellite (those that could, i'm aware not everybody can get dish)... if cable customers aren't enough of a hard case to switch carriers to get the sun NFL ticket... why would they leave for an extra game a week (or two in the case of upcoming week)?

 
Looks like NFL-N is now trying pressure from a different direction, holding the Rutgers Bowl game hostage ( Link ).
Unreal. :no:
Strategic move by the NFL IMO. I don't think that many people out there really know what they are missing, and unless they are die-hard FF guys like us they probably are not too informed on the issue. It may take drastic measures like this for the NFL to get the atention of subscribers. I bet Time Warner will start to take notice when enough people with huge packages start to switch. I don't understand how Time Warner can ##### about the price of $140 million, when Verizon is offering NFL Network for a comparable price thru FIOS. I am sure they had to sign a contract as well.

 
Looks like NFL-N is now trying pressure from a different direction, holding the Rutgers Bowl game hostage ( Link ).
Unreal. :no:
Strategic move by the NFL IMO. I don't think that many people out there really know what they are missing, and unless they are die-hard FF guys like us they probably are not too informed on the issue. It may take drastic measures like this for the NFL to get the atention of subscribers. I bet Time Warner will start to take notice when enough people with huge packages start to switch. I don't understand how Time Warner can ##### about the price of $140 million, when Verizon is offering NFL Network for a comparable price thru FIOS. I am sure they had to sign a contract as well.
What's so humorous about this whole situation is that, money being the #1 issue aside, Time Warner and Cablevision are finally doing something about the ridiculous amount of channels called "basic cable" that are really niche channels and yet because it is a channel that all of us here want, we think they're Satan and rail about how there are 10 shopping channels on basic cable.
 

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