DirecTV to drop or share NFL Ticket in 2015?

[isired]

From Sunday Ticket's wikipedia entry: Prior to the NFL's latest television deal, other satellite and cable providers were allowed to bid on the rights to carry NFL Sunday Ticket if they agreed to carry the NFL Network. However, DirecTV still won exclusivity for the package, bidding over $700 million a year to do so. This has long been one of DirecTV's selling points to consumers, and thus likely explains the large premium they pay for the privilege.[citation needed] Still, the NFL has indicated that another reason they accepted DirecTV's bid was to limit the availability of the product so that the television networks and especially their local affiliates would be protected.[citation needed] In particular, NFL Sunday Ticket viewers do not count towards local Nielsen ratings; thus offering NFL Sunday Ticket on cable might cost CBS and Fox affiliates millions of dollars in lost revenue from local commercial breaks (as opposed to national ads sold by the networks). In turn, affiliates help subsidize the networks' programming costs.

[Jungle Shift Jet]

If you live in the Eastern/Central time zones you are probably getting the 4 NY City Network affiliates as your D* East Coast Network affiliate defaults in SD and HD -
terms are dictated in the SHVERA law of 2004 - nothing to do with your uncle in Bangor or fake addresses

If you have D* tune to channels below to see whats on now


ABC (WABC–East) 86, 396

CBS (WCBS–East) 80, 390
FOX (WNYW–East) 88, 398
NBC (WNBC–East) 82, 392
ABC (KABC–West) 7, 397

CBS (KCBS–West) D 2, 391

FOX (KTTV–West) 11, 399
NBC (KNBC–West) 4, 393


In Canada, the CRTC has forced the issue so many providers have ST.
Anecdotally, I have heard of , in theory, folks here getting Shaw Satellite TV / ST for a lower cost!

[124]

If they offered all games on PPV, sort like what Boxing and UFC does, that would be tremendous. No matter where you are or your cable provider, you could get any NFL game ... For $59.99.

People would pay.

[JetsfanfromtheBURGH]

I just hope it goes to something other than dish or directv. I feel like trailer trash having this dish attached to my house.

[jetssjumets]

Originally Posted by Boynton Beach Jets

Its all negotiation, DirecTV is nothing without the exclusive NFL package. If they lost the NFL they would lose subscribers in droves, me included.

Agree. Add me to that list. Although, I don't understand the NFL's thinking? I am sure the revenue generated by its exclusivity agreement with DTV can also be gained by allowing other mulitchannel broadcasters access to Sunday Ticket programming -- probably more.

[Mainejet]

Originally Posted by PatsFanTX

That is absolutely true!

My first 3 years down here I had DTV and had the bill sent to an old neighbor in Hyannis. Had the basic DTV package for $29.99/month and got all the Pats games along with the local Boston news.

Then one night, MrsPatsFanTx decides she wants to watch some girlie-girl movie on DTV pay-per-view and plugged in the phone cord to order the movie.

BUSTED!

Still pissed off about that to today.

Stop being so cheap TX! You deserve to pay the amount right along with the rest of us.

[isired]

Originally Posted by jetssjumets

Agree. Add me to that list. Although, I don't understand the NFL's thinking? I am sure the revenue generated by its exclusivity agreement with DTV can also be gained by allowing other mulitchannel broadcasters access to Sunday Ticket programming -- probably more.

I think you all are underestimating the size of direct tv (by US subscribers):

Rank		MSO		BasicVideoSubscribers
1	Comcast Corporation		22,002,000
2	DirecTV				19,981,000
3	Dish Network Corporation	14,042,000
4	Time Warner Cable, Inc.		12,344,000
5	Cox Communications, Inc.1	 4,595,000
6	Verizon Communications, Inc.	 4,592,000
7	AT&T, Inc.			 4,344,000
8	Charter Communications, Inc.	 4,197,000
9	Cablevision Systems Corporation	 3,247,000
10	Bright House Networks LLC1	 2,038,000
11	Suddenlink Communications1	 1,230,000
12	Mediacom Communications Corp	 1,019,000
13	WideOpenWest Networks, LLC1	   710,000
14	CableOne, Inc.			   605,000
15	RCN Corp.1			   331,000
16	Atlantic Broadband Group, LLC	   251,000
17	Armstrong Cable Services	   237,000
18	Midcontinent Communications	   234,000
19	Service Electric Cable TV Inc1	   215,000
20	MetroCast Cablevision		   174,000

Besides that, sports has always been a draw for satellite, for out of market college and pro sports fans.

[sec.101row23]

Originally Posted by isired

I think you all are underestimating the size of direct tv (by US subscribers):

Rank		MSO		BasicVideoSubscribers
1	Comcast Corporation		22,002,000
2	DirecTV				19,981,000
3	Dish Network Corporation	14,042,000
4	Time Warner Cable, Inc.		12,344,000
5	Cox Communications, Inc.1	 4,595,000
6	Verizon Communications, Inc.	 4,592,000
7	AT&T, Inc.			 4,344,000
8	Charter Communications, Inc.	 4,197,000
9	Cablevision Systems Corporation	 3,247,000
10	Bright House Networks LLC1	 2,038,000
11	Suddenlink Communications1	 1,230,000
12	Mediacom Communications Corp	 1,019,000
13	WideOpenWest Networks, LLC1	   710,000
14	CableOne, Inc.			   605,000
15	RCN Corp.1			   331,000
16	Atlantic Broadband Group, LLC	   251,000
17	Armstrong Cable Services	   237,000
18	Midcontinent Communications	   234,000
19	Service Electric Cable TV Inc1	   215,000
20	MetroCast Cablevision		   174,000

Besides that, sports has always been a draw for satellite, for out of market college and pro sports fans.

The Sunday Ticket is really the only sports package that you can not get without having Direct TV. I have FIOS, the only out of market sporting events I cant get is Sunday Ticket.

[isired]

Originally Posted by sec.101row23

The Sunday Ticket is really the only sports package that you can not get without having Direct TV. I have FIOS, the only out of market sporting events I cant get is Sunday Ticket.

I guess that's true, now, with pay per view ncaa and other sports season passes, but satellite is traditionally the one that gives you, within it's package, local sports feeds from different regions.

[Digetydog]

Originally Posted by isired

I think you all are underestimating the size of direct tv (by US subscribers):

Rank		MSO		BasicVideoSubscribers
1	Comcast Corporation		22,002,000
2	DirecTV				19,981,000
3	Dish Network Corporation	14,042,000
4	Time Warner Cable, Inc.		12,344,000
5	Cox Communications, Inc.1	 4,595,000
6	Verizon Communications, Inc.	 4,592,000
7	AT&T, Inc.			 4,344,000
8	Charter Communications, Inc.	 4,197,000
9	Cablevision Systems Corporation	 3,247,000
10	Bright House Networks LLC1	 2,038,000
11	Suddenlink Communications1	 1,230,000
12	Mediacom Communications Corp	 1,019,000
13	WideOpenWest Networks, LLC1	   710,000
14	CableOne, Inc.			   605,000
15	RCN Corp.1			   331,000
16	Atlantic Broadband Group, LLC	   251,000
17	Armstrong Cable Services	   237,000
18	Midcontinent Communications	   234,000
19	Service Electric Cable TV Inc1	   215,000
20	MetroCast Cablevision		   174,000

Besides that, sports has always been a draw for satellite, for out of market college and pro sports fans.

Using your numbers, Direct TV is 21% of the market. While certainly significant, the exclusive deal means 79% of the NFL's potential customers cannot buy the Sunday Ticket.

Again using your numbers, that is 79.4m households w/o access to the product.

If only 10% of the 79.4m households bought the Sunday Ticket and if the NFL's share of the revenue was $150 per household, the NFL would get $1.146B per year!!!

I don't know of a single ("Solvent") business that would intentionally prevent 79% of the market from buying their product.

[isired]

Originally Posted by Digetydog

Using your numbers, Direct TV is 21% of the market. While certainly significant, the exclusive deal means 79% of the NFL's potential customers cannot buy the Sunday Ticket.

Again using your numbers, that is 79.4m households w/o access to the product.

If only 10% of the 79.4m households bought the Sunday Ticket and if the NFL's share of the revenue was $150 per household, the NFL would get $1.146B per year!!!

I don't know of a single ("Solvent") business that would intentionally prevent 79% of the market from buying their product.

Yeah, but those 79.4m that aren't getting Sunday Ticket are, more often than not, getting the NFL they want (which is most often either 'none,' or their local team). It's not all or nothing. The NFL is essentially a content provider, and the value they can attract for their content is directly relatable to the ad dollars that the content derives for the Network/MSO. On Sunday, if every cable provider has Sunday Ticket, what your offering is a choice other than your local game in one timeslot and a national game in the other. I think that choice might result in added viewers on a pay-per-view basis, where you could cherry pick a good matchup when your team is in the pits, or when the national game is a dog, but that's not what Sunday Ticket does, for the most part. These viewers would have to decide, up front, that they wanted to pay for the opportunity to not see their local team/predetermined national game at 1pE/4pE each week. So I think the total ad dollars won't go up much , so the tv rights would stay more or less the same overall - and any gains might be offset by the lack of the DirectTV/exclusivity 'premium' (they definitely pay a premium for exclusivity as the Sunday Ticket is a flagship product).

In other words, they can give viewers access to the Jets-Patriots Sunday at 1pE in multiple ways (in the NE/NY regions) and grant access via Sunday Ticket in other markets, if they like, but they're only going to change the viewership by a negligible amount in each case, I would think - not really in the local market at all, and maybe a bit in other markets, with the viewers who decided before the season began that they wanted to pay for the right to choose games over what the networks would provide for 'free' in that timeslot.

So while you may be right, it may be that they could make more money by negotiating with every MSO on the list, I don't think it would be the windfall you make it out to be, and it's definitely not that simple.

[Sec340]

Originally Posted by nyahay bus

Once upon a time I wanted Sunday ticket, but not badly enough to make the switch to DirectTV. Now, after having the Red Zone channel for the last three years with FiOS, I realize that I have all I need and doubt I'll get the Sunday ticket if it becomes available.

I could not agree more. The price difference ( RZ-$50) is not the main reason. Its just a better way to follow Sunday football. Rarely do I want to watch every snap of any game besides the Jets, so Red Zone lets me follow every game without the minutia and commercials, its does the work for me. And when it comes to the 4th quarter of games, its insane bouncing from snap to snap. Sunday ticket is for a football fan that lives outside his teams market. Red Zone is for the love of the NFL. Actually, its to good to be true, it can't last forever can it? I mean $49.99 to watch the best parts of every game without one commercial for 7 hrs. I mean, its better then sex. At least it lasts a lot longer and I dont have to say I love you even though I do.

[jetssjumets]

Originally Posted by isired

I think you all are underestimating the size of direct tv (by US subscribers):

Rank		MSO		BasicVideoSubscribers
1	Comcast Corporation		22,002,000
2	DirecTV				19,981,000
3	Dish Network Corporation	14,042,000
4	Time Warner Cable, Inc.		12,344,000
5	Cox Communications, Inc.1	 4,595,000
6	Verizon Communications, Inc.	 4,592,000
7	AT&T, Inc.			 4,344,000
8	Charter Communications, Inc.	 4,197,000
9	Cablevision Systems Corporation	 3,247,000
10	Bright House Networks LLC1	 2,038,000
11	Suddenlink Communications1	 1,230,000
12	Mediacom Communications Corp	 1,019,000
13	WideOpenWest Networks, LLC1	   710,000
14	CableOne, Inc.			   605,000
15	RCN Corp.1			   331,000
16	Atlantic Broadband Group, LLC	   251,000
17	Armstrong Cable Services	   237,000
18	Midcontinent Communications	   234,000
19	Service Electric Cable TV Inc1	   215,000
20	MetroCast Cablevision		   174,000

Besides that, sports has always been a draw for satellite, for out of market college and pro sports fans.

isired,

A significant number of DTV's 20 million subscribers is attributed to the Sunday Ticket. If DTV's exclusivity was lost, millions of subscribers, like myself, would switch to cable. It cost me a pretty penny to have DTV on both coasts -- no discounts. Actually, DTV doesn't care; and I am a subscriber for 16 years. But I have no choice if I want to follow the Jets.

[rbstern]

I'm a DirecTV/Sunday ticket subscriber.

I like DirecTV, love Sunday ticket, but I've suffered through years of crappy service, bad-weather-lost signals, stupid pricing and contract gimmicks.

If my local cable operator has Sunday ticket on the menu, DirecTV gets dropped like a hot potato.

[LV2]

Originally Posted by Untouchable

It will be a cold day in hell before you can subscribe to Sunday Ticket without having DirecTV. That's the main service that keeps that company in business. They'll pay out the ass before they lose it.

Who the hell would even own dish if it wasn't for Sunday Ticket?

Me. It's either DTV or Comcast where I am. Not even close in terms of cost. Comcast seems clueless what the competition offers on TV.

[SAR I]

Originally Posted by rbstern

I'm a DirecTV/Sunday ticket subscriber.

I like DirecTV, love Sunday ticket, but I've suffered through years of crappy service, bad-weather-lost signals, stupid pricing and contract gimmicks.

If my local cable operator has Sunday ticket on the menu, DirecTV gets dropped like a hot potato.

FiOS is God.

If you have it available in your area, grab it, don't look back.

SAR I

[PatsFanTX]

Originally Posted by SAR I

FiOS is God.

If you have it available in your area, grab it, don't look back.

SAR I

What's FiOS national market share?

.79%?

[Batmans A Scientist]

Originally Posted by PatsFanTX

What's FiOS national market share?

.79%?

FiOS is only in 18 markets. And even in those markets, it isn't available everywhere.

If you can get FiOS, I'd recommend it highly. But if you want Sunday Ticket, you can't right now (And on a personal level, I'm annoyed they don't have BeIN yet, but few people here care about that)

Also, FiOS is not expanding to other markets based on some deals that Verizon did with various cable companies in exchange for spectrum space.

http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/...as-we-know-it/

Verizon is simply acquiring its wireless bandwidth in a more subtle way. Wu also offered that for the last decade, Verizon has been the “clearest and strongest competitor to the cable industry,” and that an agreement to essentially work together with cable companies in the future would severely harm customer choice.

[CTJetsFanII]

You guys do realize that you can get the Sunday Ticket (online) without having DirecTV? I've had it for the past 2 years. $300. If you have an internet ready TV or a laptop with and HDMI output, you can watch on your TV. May not be perfect like cable, but way better than those offshore websites that stream.

[isired]

Originally Posted by jetssjumets

isired,

A significant number of DTV's 20 million subscribers is attributed to the Sunday Ticket. If DTV's exclusivity was lost, millions of subscribers, like myself, would switch to cable. It cost me a pretty penny to have DTV on both coasts -- no discounts. Actually, DTV doesn't care; and I am a subscriber for 16 years. But I have no choice if I want to follow the Jets.

Not sure what you mean by significant - I would agree that it's significant, they could lose a million or more subscribers. But, again, not sure if you're underestimating direct tv - only about 3 million of their 20 million subscribers are Sunday ticket subscribers, so they're not going to lose more than that. It could bring them back to DISH levels.
Anyway, my point wasn't that they are big, so can lose the Sunday ticket - my point was that it wasn't like the NFL was missing tons of viewers by doing exclusivity with direct tv vs another provider.

But I would agree, if direct tv would share out the Sunday ticket, selectively, it would be a win for them and the fans, and maybe the league.