Man in the yellow hat
Footballguy
http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=541999
No screen pass: Packers-Vikings not on TV in some areas
Network dispute leaves out parts of the state
By DON WALKER
dwalker@journalsentinel.com
Posted: Dec. 13, 2006
From Superior to Kenosha, from Hazel Green to Marinette, one question lingers in the minds of pro football fans in Wisconsin.
The answers are: You betcha. Probably. I think. No way. Or, I don't care, I have a satellite dish.
The answers vary because the availability of the game depends on where you live, which cable system you have, or whether you live in what the National Football League considers the Packers' home market.
The Packers have two home markets: Green Bay and Milwaukee. But if you live in or around Escanaba, Mich., that's a Packers' home market, too, and viewers in the Upper Peninsula will be able to see the game.
But viewers, for example, in Madison, Eau Claire and Superior cannot.
Confused?
That's the reality of the nasty street-fight between the NFL Network, which has the broadcast rights to a slate of Thursday night games this season, and a host of cable companies, including such national and regional heavyweights as Time Warner Cable, Comcast and Charter Communications.
The NFL Network is pressuring major cable carriers to put its upstart network on the regular channel lineup. In effect, the NFL is arguing that it's the inalienable right of every American to watch NFL games. So far, the network claims, more than 170 cable companies and two satellite networks - Dish and DirecTV - have cut deals with the network to broadcast the games.
The cable companies, no slouches when it comes to high-pressure lobbying, aren't buying the NFL's end run. Customers want choice, they say. And cable consumers shouldn't have to pay an extra 70 cents each for the network.
Instead, the cable companies would rather put the NFL Network on a premium sports tier with other sports-related networks rather than forcing consumers to pay a price that is greater than some of the more popular cable networks.
As the NFL season edges closer to the playoffs, everyone is waiting to see who will cry uncle first. And waiting in the wings are the satellite providers, ready and willing to snatch up frustrated customers.
This week, the NFL Network opened the door a bit. The network, which is available in about 40 million of the 111 million homes with TV, announced that it would offer one free week of its network programming to Cablevision and Time Warner Cable customers on the East Coast. The offer was seen as a way to placate college football fans who wanted to see the Texas Bowl game on Dec. 28, featuring Rutgers.
However, the offer didn't include the Dec. 30 broadcast of the New York Giants-Washington Redskins football game.
Here in Wisconsin and across the country, the battle for your remote is being played out on many fronts. News releases go out daily taking potshots at the opposition. On the Internet, Web sites (www.nflgetreal.comand www.iwantnflnetwork.com) offer fact sheets and talking points. And in daily newspapers located in NFL markets, cable companies and satellite companies are jousting in full-page ads.
In Wisconsin, major cable companies, as well as the over-the-air television stations that bought the rights to telecast the Packers-Vikings game, are well into a full-blown informational push to keep customers fully educated. In the Milwaukee market, 63% of all households have cable, 22% have over-the-air TV, and 15% have satellite programming.
"This is about money and who gets what cut from it," said Barry Orton, a telecommunications professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. "The NFL has really reached here. They figure they had the consumers by the . . . "
The Vikings-Packers game is shaping up to be especially contentious because of the intense interest in the rivalry and the statewide appeal of the Packers. Packers fans aren't used to missing games on television. And with chunks of Wisconsin not getting the Dec. 21 game, there will be plenty of unhappy fans.
"In other parts of the country we didn't hear much about the dispute until Thanksgiving," said Anita Lamont, a spokeswoman for Charter Communications in St. Louis. "But we've been talking about the NFL Network and Wisconsin since the summer."
Al Lancaster, vice president and general manager of WSAW in Wausau, said he tried to contact the NFL to bid on the over-the-air rights to the game. "They wouldn't do it," he said, adding that Wausau is only an hour from Lambeau Field. "It's going to be ugly."
Viewers in Milwaukee and Green Bay, regardless of whether they have cable television service, won't have to worry. WITI in Milwaukee and WFRV in Green Bay bought the over-the-air rights for the game. And if you have a cable system that carries WITI, WFRV, KSTP in Minneapolis or WJMN in Escanaba, Mich., you can get the game.
That does create some interesting situations, however.
In Madison, Charter Communications customers will not be able to see the game because Charter does not have a carriage agreement with the NFL Network. But Charter Communications customers in some areas, such as Dodge, Waukesha, Sheboygan, Jefferson, Washington and Walworth counties, can see the game because regular cable lineups in those areas receive WITI.
John Miller, a Charter spokesman, declined to state how many customers Charter has in the state but estimated that the over-the-air broadcast carriage of the game will be seen in approximately 55% of Charter households.
He said all customers on the east side of the state from West Bend up through Door County, communities west of Milwaukee such as Fort Atkinson, Jefferson and Oconomowoc, and the Wausau/Stevens Point/Wisconsin Rapids area in the central portion of the state will get the game.
In an interview and subsequent e-mail, Miller said it would be easy for companies such as Charter and Time Warner to "roll over" and pay the NFL Network what it wants and place it on basic cable. "But that is not what our customers have been saying to us over the last couple of years, regarding programming services vs. content," he said. "They have asked for more ability to select or decline services that could impact prices, thereby creating more value to them, as opposed to automatically receiving a service that would significantly impact their bill," Miller said.
Seth Palansky, an NFL Network spokesman, said the network had signed up about 45 new cable companies nationwide in the past few weeks. He declined to say how much the network was asking for rights. "We stick to saying it's the cost of a Madison, Wisconsin, movie ticket for a year.
"We believe this network provides good content 365 days a year," Palansky said. "It's football, and it is as popular as anything else. It belongs next to Jewelry TV and others that are on basic cable programs."
The NFL Network has been adamant that it doesn't want to get relegated to a premium tier. The cable companies, Palansky said, want a sports tier to make more money.
"We object to that," he said. "They are discriminating against their customers."
Dish and DirecTV, eager to capitalize on the fallout, have been actively seeking new customers via newspaper ads and telemarketing. In full-page newspaper ads, Dish is warning people they might miss some of the games leading up to the NFL playoffs. Counting tonight's broadcast of the San Francisco-Seattle Seahawks game, the NFL Network is planning to broadcast five more games.
"We're making sure we're reaching out to consumers who are in a position to not get the games," said Cory Vasquez, a Dish spokesman. "If you are a fan and you are concerned, and you can't see it, we are a good option. That's the message we are trying to get out."
Last week, Time Warner filed suit in federal court in New York accusing DirecTV of engaging in false advertising and deceptive business practices in connection with its promotion of the NFL Network. The lawsuit said DirecTV ads claim home team fans won't be able to see games carried by the NFL Network unless they subscribe to DirecTV. The ads have run in Milwaukee and Green Bay, among other cities.
A DirecTV spokesman declined to comment on the suit.
Packers chairman Bob Harlan, already concerned with the sight of empty seats in Lambeau Field, says the dispute concerns him.
"I've talked to the league several times," Harlan said. "I do realize it's a problem, and I hate to see it happen. On top of that, it's a division game."
"I don't think the cable industry is going to blink on this one," Orton predicted. "I'm betting on the cable industry and six points."
In the meantime, be sure to check your local listings. It might be the only way to know for sure.
From the Dec. 14, 2006 editions of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
No screen pass: Packers-Vikings not on TV in some areas
Network dispute leaves out parts of the state
By DON WALKER
dwalker@journalsentinel.com
Posted: Dec. 13, 2006
From Superior to Kenosha, from Hazel Green to Marinette, one question lingers in the minds of pro football fans in Wisconsin.
The answers are: You betcha. Probably. I think. No way. Or, I don't care, I have a satellite dish.
The answers vary because the availability of the game depends on where you live, which cable system you have, or whether you live in what the National Football League considers the Packers' home market.
The Packers have two home markets: Green Bay and Milwaukee. But if you live in or around Escanaba, Mich., that's a Packers' home market, too, and viewers in the Upper Peninsula will be able to see the game.
But viewers, for example, in Madison, Eau Claire and Superior cannot.
Confused?
That's the reality of the nasty street-fight between the NFL Network, which has the broadcast rights to a slate of Thursday night games this season, and a host of cable companies, including such national and regional heavyweights as Time Warner Cable, Comcast and Charter Communications.
The NFL Network is pressuring major cable carriers to put its upstart network on the regular channel lineup. In effect, the NFL is arguing that it's the inalienable right of every American to watch NFL games. So far, the network claims, more than 170 cable companies and two satellite networks - Dish and DirecTV - have cut deals with the network to broadcast the games.
The cable companies, no slouches when it comes to high-pressure lobbying, aren't buying the NFL's end run. Customers want choice, they say. And cable consumers shouldn't have to pay an extra 70 cents each for the network.
Instead, the cable companies would rather put the NFL Network on a premium sports tier with other sports-related networks rather than forcing consumers to pay a price that is greater than some of the more popular cable networks.
As the NFL season edges closer to the playoffs, everyone is waiting to see who will cry uncle first. And waiting in the wings are the satellite providers, ready and willing to snatch up frustrated customers.
This week, the NFL Network opened the door a bit. The network, which is available in about 40 million of the 111 million homes with TV, announced that it would offer one free week of its network programming to Cablevision and Time Warner Cable customers on the East Coast. The offer was seen as a way to placate college football fans who wanted to see the Texas Bowl game on Dec. 28, featuring Rutgers.
However, the offer didn't include the Dec. 30 broadcast of the New York Giants-Washington Redskins football game.
Here in Wisconsin and across the country, the battle for your remote is being played out on many fronts. News releases go out daily taking potshots at the opposition. On the Internet, Web sites (www.nflgetreal.comand www.iwantnflnetwork.com) offer fact sheets and talking points. And in daily newspapers located in NFL markets, cable companies and satellite companies are jousting in full-page ads.
In Wisconsin, major cable companies, as well as the over-the-air television stations that bought the rights to telecast the Packers-Vikings game, are well into a full-blown informational push to keep customers fully educated. In the Milwaukee market, 63% of all households have cable, 22% have over-the-air TV, and 15% have satellite programming.
"This is about money and who gets what cut from it," said Barry Orton, a telecommunications professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. "The NFL has really reached here. They figure they had the consumers by the . . . "
The Vikings-Packers game is shaping up to be especially contentious because of the intense interest in the rivalry and the statewide appeal of the Packers. Packers fans aren't used to missing games on television. And with chunks of Wisconsin not getting the Dec. 21 game, there will be plenty of unhappy fans.
"In other parts of the country we didn't hear much about the dispute until Thanksgiving," said Anita Lamont, a spokeswoman for Charter Communications in St. Louis. "But we've been talking about the NFL Network and Wisconsin since the summer."
Al Lancaster, vice president and general manager of WSAW in Wausau, said he tried to contact the NFL to bid on the over-the-air rights to the game. "They wouldn't do it," he said, adding that Wausau is only an hour from Lambeau Field. "It's going to be ugly."
Viewers in Milwaukee and Green Bay, regardless of whether they have cable television service, won't have to worry. WITI in Milwaukee and WFRV in Green Bay bought the over-the-air rights for the game. And if you have a cable system that carries WITI, WFRV, KSTP in Minneapolis or WJMN in Escanaba, Mich., you can get the game.
That does create some interesting situations, however.
In Madison, Charter Communications customers will not be able to see the game because Charter does not have a carriage agreement with the NFL Network. But Charter Communications customers in some areas, such as Dodge, Waukesha, Sheboygan, Jefferson, Washington and Walworth counties, can see the game because regular cable lineups in those areas receive WITI.
John Miller, a Charter spokesman, declined to state how many customers Charter has in the state but estimated that the over-the-air broadcast carriage of the game will be seen in approximately 55% of Charter households.
He said all customers on the east side of the state from West Bend up through Door County, communities west of Milwaukee such as Fort Atkinson, Jefferson and Oconomowoc, and the Wausau/Stevens Point/Wisconsin Rapids area in the central portion of the state will get the game.
In an interview and subsequent e-mail, Miller said it would be easy for companies such as Charter and Time Warner to "roll over" and pay the NFL Network what it wants and place it on basic cable. "But that is not what our customers have been saying to us over the last couple of years, regarding programming services vs. content," he said. "They have asked for more ability to select or decline services that could impact prices, thereby creating more value to them, as opposed to automatically receiving a service that would significantly impact their bill," Miller said.
Seth Palansky, an NFL Network spokesman, said the network had signed up about 45 new cable companies nationwide in the past few weeks. He declined to say how much the network was asking for rights. "We stick to saying it's the cost of a Madison, Wisconsin, movie ticket for a year.
"We believe this network provides good content 365 days a year," Palansky said. "It's football, and it is as popular as anything else. It belongs next to Jewelry TV and others that are on basic cable programs."
The NFL Network has been adamant that it doesn't want to get relegated to a premium tier. The cable companies, Palansky said, want a sports tier to make more money.
"We object to that," he said. "They are discriminating against their customers."
Dish and DirecTV, eager to capitalize on the fallout, have been actively seeking new customers via newspaper ads and telemarketing. In full-page newspaper ads, Dish is warning people they might miss some of the games leading up to the NFL playoffs. Counting tonight's broadcast of the San Francisco-Seattle Seahawks game, the NFL Network is planning to broadcast five more games.
"We're making sure we're reaching out to consumers who are in a position to not get the games," said Cory Vasquez, a Dish spokesman. "If you are a fan and you are concerned, and you can't see it, we are a good option. That's the message we are trying to get out."
Last week, Time Warner filed suit in federal court in New York accusing DirecTV of engaging in false advertising and deceptive business practices in connection with its promotion of the NFL Network. The lawsuit said DirecTV ads claim home team fans won't be able to see games carried by the NFL Network unless they subscribe to DirecTV. The ads have run in Milwaukee and Green Bay, among other cities.
A DirecTV spokesman declined to comment on the suit.
Packers chairman Bob Harlan, already concerned with the sight of empty seats in Lambeau Field, says the dispute concerns him.
"I've talked to the league several times," Harlan said. "I do realize it's a problem, and I hate to see it happen. On top of that, it's a division game."
"I don't think the cable industry is going to blink on this one," Orton predicted. "I'm betting on the cable industry and six points."
In the meantime, be sure to check your local listings. It might be the only way to know for sure.
From the Dec. 14, 2006 editions of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
in ad revenue) yet charging the cable Companies premium rates, ala HBO, Cinemax etc... because they think consumer pressure will make the Cable companies cave, the NFL has caused this impasse.It's business & they'll eventually reach a middle ground.
