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telcodad
MVM
join:2011-09-16
Lincroft, NJ

telcodad

MVM

Re: Comcast Sports Nets

FYI - The latest status on Comcast carrying the Los Angeles Lakers local games from that area’s Time Warner Cable SportsNet (»forums.comcast.com/t5/Ch ··· 1#M26740 ):
From: ComcastTeds
10-05-2012 11:02 AM

The conversations and discussions for carriage of this network are still ongoing.

The pre-season games are exclusive to the new Time Warner Sports Network that is not currently available on Comcast.

The first three games of the Lakers' regular season are scheduled for national telecast.

October 30th against Dallas is scheduled for TNT
October 31st against Portland is scheduled for NBA TV
November 2nd against the Clippers is scheduled for ESPN.

»www.nba.com/lakers/schedule
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telcodad

MVM

A recent LA Times article on the TWC SportsNet RSN situation:

Lakers games become can't-watch-TV
Time Warner Cable, the team's new $3-billion TV partner, hasn't been able to convince other providers to carry the games because of cost. It's another example of how ugly the sports TV business can be.

By Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times - October 6, 2012
»articles.latimes.com/201 ··· 20121007
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1 edit

telcodad

MVM

Here's the latest status on Comcast carrying the Los Angeles Lakers local games on the Time Warner Cable SportsNet (»forums.comcast.com/t5/Ch ··· 1#M27123 ):
From: ComcastTeds
10-16-2012 03:05 PM
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
lorenzo93436 wrote:

so more likely its gona be a subscription channel, the key thing is how much extra the channel ks gona cost, the sticking point is the 3.95 per customer/provider that twc is asking for, i read andother article it said that laker fans booed every twc commercial that was shown on the score board saturday, its gpna get interesting in a couple of weeks so we will see.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Likely not going to be a subscription channel; that is the price that reportedly Time Warner wants the video providers to pay per month for each customer (whether the customer wants the channel or not).

All customers eventually end up subsidizing the relatively high costs of offering that channel.

I don't believe that the channel can be contractually offered as a single subscription or premium option; (that would be ideal); that would go against their business plan of reaching as many eyeballs as possible for advertising and getting the most dollars across all customers.

EDIT:
From: ComcastTeds
10-17-2012 05:03 PM
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
hunter103805 wrote:

So you think that this channel would more likely be available in a basic/extended cable package like FSN, if anything?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yes. That is my own belief based on past experiences.

Of course a deal still needs to get done that allows for any level of carriage to happen.

Also, there is a discussion forum about whether DIRECTV, and other TV providers, should carry the Lakers channel on the TVPredictions.com site:

Should DIRECTV Carry Pac 12, Lakers?
By Phillip Swann, TVPredictions.com - October 15, 2012
»www.tvpredictions.com/la ··· 1512.htm
telcodad

telcodad

MVM

Not much progress yet in having other cable providers carrying the Lakers games on TWC's SportsNet:

TV/LAKERS: Deals with providers may not be close
By Jim Alexander, The Press-Enterprise - October 25, 2012
»blog.pe.com/jim-alexande ··· e-close/

See also: »forums.comcast.com/t5/Ch ··· 5#M27423
telcodad

telcodad

MVM

An article on the FieceCable site today about this and other RSN carriage issues:

SportsNet, MSG disputes highlight Time Warner Cable's evolving views on sports tiers
By Steve Donohue, FierceCable - October 25, 2012
»www.fiercecable.com/stor ··· 12-10-25
telcodad

telcodad

MVM

Deals to carry TWC's SportsNet RSN are being closed now:

Charter, FiOS Suit Up For Lakers Sports Nets
RSN Slated to Launch Oct. 31 on MSO's Systems; Telco Timing Yet to be Released

By Mike Farrell, Multichannel News - October 26, 2012
»www.multichannel.com/cab ··· s/140015

AT&T U-Verse Signs TWC SportsNet Deal
Third Carriage Deal for RSN in Two Days

By Mike Farrell, Multichannel News - October 27, 2012
»www.multichannel.com/tel ··· l/140035

mikedz4
join:2003-04-14
Weirton, WV

mikedz4

Member

Still neither satellite company or comcast have the channels yet

telcodad
MVM
join:2011-09-16
Lincroft, NJ

telcodad

MVM

Cox reached an agreement to carry TWC's SportsNet earlier this week (»www.latimes.com/entertai ··· 51.story), but other distributors are still at the negotiating table:

DirecTV still not carrying Lakers; CEO blasts sports channels
By Joe Flint, The Los Angeles Times - November 7, 2012
»www.latimes.com/entertai ··· 23.story
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telcodad to mikedz4

MVM

to mikedz4
said by mikedz4:

Still neither satellite company or comcast have the channels yet

DirecTV has now signed, leaving Dish Network and Comcast as the last big holdouts:

DirecTV reaches deal with Time Warner Cable for Lakers channel
By Joe Flint, The Los Angeles Times - November 15, 2012
»www.latimes.com/entertai ··· 75.story
telcodad

telcodad

MVM

Geez, so Comcast doesn't count as a "Major" MSO? I guess they only have a small number of customers in the SoCal region.

Dish Network remains last major SportsNet holdout, following DirecTV deal
DirecTV subscribers have missed 7 Lakers games

By Steve Donohue, FierceCable - November 16, 2012
»www.fiercecable.com/stor ··· 12-11-16
The Q
join:2008-06-26
Collegeville, PA

The Q

Member

said by telcodad:

Geez, so Comcast doesn't count as a "Major" MSO? I guess they only have a small number of customers in the SoCal region.

I think it is a fairly small area of southern california; santa barbara and santa maria areas.

telcodad
MVM
join:2011-09-16
Lincroft, NJ

telcodad

MVM

Don't know if any Lakers fans with Comcast service can "exploit this situation" as described in this article, but it may be worth a try:

Making the Lakers TV mess work for you
Showdowns with regional sports providers are here to stay, so figure out how to exploit such situations.

By Chris Erskine, The Los Angeles Times - November 15, 2012
»www.latimes.com/sports/b ··· l.column

From the article:
So let Dish Network make its noble last stand — the NBA season doesn't really start till Christmas Day anyway.
:
Till then, what's in it for you and me?

To keep me from jumping, Dish offered three months of its multisport Red Zone package, plus a choice of Cinemax or Starz for three months.

Note that Dish won't necessarily call you with these compensation offers. You have to reach out. And if you do, it's pure street ball.

Before DirecTV reached its agreement Thursday, it was doing handsprings to keep customers. A friend bargained for the NFL package that gives him all Sunday games, plus approximately $25 off his monthly bill for six months.

Point is, these showdowns with regional sports providers are here to stay. So don't just sit back and mutter over these stupid disputes. Exploit them.
telcodad

telcodad

MVM

An article on the Philadelphia Inquirer's site yesterday about the soaring prices for sports programming rights:

About half of cable-TV bills go to sports
By Bob Fernandez, The Philadelphia Inquirer - November 19, 2012
»articles.philly.com/2012 ··· e-sports

[Make sure to click through all 5 pages of the article.]
telcodad

telcodad to The Q

MVM

to The Q
said by The Q:

said by telcodad:

Geez, so Comcast doesn't count as a "Major" MSO? I guess they only have a small number of customers in the SoCal region.

I think it is a fairly small area of southern california; santa barbara and santa maria areas.

I guess my question has been answered in the latest status update posted to the "Lakers Network to Xfinity?" thread in the Comcast Help and Support Forum (»forums.comcast.com/t5/Ch ··· 7#M28236 ):
From ComcastTeds
11-26-2012 1:29 PM

Unfortunately, I don't have an update or timetable to provide. The conversations and discussions for carriage of this network are still ongoing. Thanks for your continued patience.

I believe that Comcast usually isn't mentioned in a lot of the local news articles on this topic as we have very few customers in this area of southern California compared to Charter, Cox, Time Warner and Brighthouse.
telcodad

telcodad

MVM

Sports TV Class Action Against Comcast, DirecTV, MLB & NHL Still In Play
By Dominic Patten, Deadline.com - December 5, 2012
»www.deadline.com/2012/12 ··· ackouts/
Major League Baseball, the NHL, Comcast and DirecTV failed today in their team effort to get an antitrust class action suit against them dismissed in a New York District Court. “Plaintiffs have plausibly alleged that the NHL and MLB have used their monopoly power to restrict the broadcast of television programming in a manner that harms competition,” said the ruling (»www-deadline-com.vimg.ne ··· 1450.pdf) from U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin on Wednesday. The ruling means the class action instigated in the spring can go forward. The various plaintiffs claim that the leagues, regional sports networks and the cable and satellite companies have created monopolies over the airing of games on TV and online by dividing up territories and instating blackouts.

mikedz4
join:2003-04-14
Weirton, WV

mikedz4

Member

where is the lawsuit against directv and the nfl? The NFL Sunday Ticket is ONLY on DirecTV!!

telcodad
MVM
join:2011-09-16
Lincroft, NJ

telcodad

MVM

said by mikedz4:

where is the lawsuit against directv and the nfl? The NFL Sunday Ticket is ONLY on DirecTV!!

NFL Sunday Ticket is a different situation. See:
»Re: FCC Chief Proposing to End U.S. Rule on Cable Program Shari
and:
»Re: chances of nfl ticket on comcast?

mikedz4
join:2003-04-14
Weirton, WV

mikedz4

Member

That needs to be changed. People in apartments or who don't want or can't get directv are locked out of sunday ticket. There is something wrong that directv is the only provider that has sunday ticket.
I suggest people write the nfl, and the fcc about this setup.

telcodad
MVM
join:2011-09-16
Lincroft, NJ

telcodad

MVM

NCTA's Powell: Escalating Sports Costs Could Invite Government Scrutiny
Says operators and programmers need to be careful not to blow up the model

By John Eggerton, Broadcasting & Cable - December 7, 2012
»www.broadcastingcable.co ··· tiny.php

mikedz4
join:2003-04-14
Weirton, WV

mikedz4

Member

at least offer people who have cable the option to order it online or their cell phones at a reduced rate. Maybe $200 or $250?

telcodad
MVM
join:2011-09-16
Lincroft, NJ

1 edit

telcodad

MVM

Well, it looks like this is how DirecTV has decided how to handle the additional cost of carrying TWC's SportsNet:

DirecTV adds local sports surcharge for some new subscribers
By Joe Flint, The Los Angeles Times - December 10, 2012
»www.latimes.com/entertai ··· 76.story
Satellite broadcaster DirecTV has quietly added a surcharge to some customers for sports channels separately on several of its most popular programming packages.

New DirecTV subscribers who live in areas where there are more than one regional sports network (Los Angeles has four -- News Corp.'s Prime Ticket and Fox Sports West and Time Warner Cable's SportsNet and Deportes) and want those channels are being asked to pay a monthly surcharge of $3. That fee is on top of whatever portion of the costs of the channels DirecTV passes on to its customers.
EDIT: Also an article on the Multichannel News site: »www.multichannel.com/dis ··· e/140662
telcodad

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MVM

FYI - There is news today that DirecTV is considering dropping its exclusive contract with the NFL for the Sunday Ticket package when it next expires in 2015:

DirecTV floats possibility of sharing NFL Sunday Ticket rights with cable operators
By Steve Donohue, FierceCable - March 7, 2013
»www.fiercecable.com/stor ··· 13-03-07