DIRECTV unlikely to keep NFL Sunday Ticket

[NashGuy]

You mean SOME of it, right?

Not every game, like linear ESPN, right.

Life remains too short to try to save four cents.

ESPN remains linear only. And will for many decades to come.

As predicted.

Many decades? LOL. Here's the Disney CEO on his most recent quarterly earnings call:

As for the future of Disney’s linear TV channels, like ESPN: “linear networks are cash generators,” Chapek said, adding that “the hesitancy to move too fast away from those is really a cashflow situation.”

However, Chapek did tease a future where ESPN is available directly to consumers.

“At some point, when it is going to be good for our shareholders, we will be able to fully go,” he said, noting that whenever they decide to do it, “It will be the ultimate fan offering that appeals to super-fans of sports, and it is really only ESPN that could pull that off.”

For further reading:

Disney’s Direct-to-Consumer ESPN Would Be “Different Offering” Than ESPN+, CFO Says

"What ESPN+ is today is a complement to, not a substitute for, ESPN linear, so it doesn't make any sense to just port over all of those linear rights ... to an ESPN+ at the price point that it currently is," CFO Christine McCarthy says.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

Disney seems to be warming to an ESPN DTC offering

A direct to consumer offering for ESPN programming has often been called the endgame for the company, especially with cord cutting continuing to roll along. During Disney’s earnings call on Wednesday, CEO Bob Chapek seemed to agree with that sentiment, and seemed to talk about a potential ESPN...

awfulannouncing.com

It may not come as soon as 2024 (when I predict) but you can rest assured that a DTC version of ESPN isn't "many decades" away. Linear channel cable TV isn't going to even exist decades from now...

 

[Bruce]

You mean SOME of it, right?

Not every game, like linear ESPN, right.

Life remains too short to try to save four cents.

ESPN remains linear only. And will for many decades to come.

As predicted.

Go to ESPN.com, look at schedule for plus, you will be surprised.

Juan is actually the one who posted the link that it would be on ESPN+.

OTA for the next 10 years and streaming

NFL announces new broadcast deals running through 2033 season

The NFL announced Thursday it has signed long-term agreements with media partners Amazon, CBS, ABC/ESPN, FOX and NBC to distribute NFL games across television and digital platforms, along with additional media rights.

www.nfl.com

from the link-

ESPN will continue to be the home of Monday Night Football, while ESPN+ subscribers can stream one International Series contest on an exclusive national basis each season. ESPN can also simulcast all ABC and ESPN games on ESPN+.

Once I read that, I went to ESPN and checked the schedule, every game for September is listed for ESPN+ ( too soon for October’s schedule ).

 

[NashGuy]

Again, I agree with you, but it can take one functional imbecile to mess up.

WKRP is a perfect example, while no one could of thought of DVDs back then, syndication of TV shows started in the 50’s, but someone did not think of getting the music rights for future airings, so a lot of it was replaced by, basically, Cover Bands.

Yes, but WKRP isn't *nearly* as big a deal as the NFL. And more importantly, DVDs didn't even exist when that show aired in 1978-82. In contrast, Fox's direct competitor CBS had already been live-streaming their Sunday NFL games in their own DTC service (CBS All Access/Paramount+) for at least a couple seasons when Fox negotiated their new NFL contract. So it's not like Fox had to imagine some future technological/business innovation that didn't yet exist, as the WKRP lawyers would've needed to do with regard to securing music rights for distribution of the show on DVDs twenty years down the road.

 

[NashGuy]

Go to ESPN.com, look at schedule for plus, you will be surprised.

Juan is actually the one who posted the link that it would be on ESPN+.


from the link-

ESPN will continue to be the home of Monday Night Football, while ESPN+ subscribers can stream one International Series contest on an exclusive national basis each season. ESPN can also simulcast all ABC and ESPN games on ESPN+.

Once I read that, I went to ESPN and checked the schedule, every game for September is listed for ESPN+ ( too soon for October’s schedule ).

Last season, the MNF games that streamed on ESPN+ had alternate audio with play calling from the Peyton brothers. AFAIK, that's still the plan for this season.

In two or three years, you watch, we'll see the main MNF telecast live stream on Disney+. But that won't happen until after they fold Hulu into Disney+, which probably isn't happening until 2024. (They have to buy out Comcast's remaining 1/3 stake in Hulu first.)

 

[Bruce]

It may not come as soon as 2024 (when I predict) but you can rest assured that a DTC version of ESPN isn't "many decades" away. Linear channel cable TV isn't going to even exist decades from now...

I give it to 2025 at the most, by then ESPN will have lost another $2.5 billion in per sub fees ( 2 million leaving every quarter, 8 million a year, $9 in per sub fees for ESPN 1 and 2, so 8 million x $9 x 12 months, which means $864 million in per sub fees is gone by the end of the year, so by the end of 2024, $2.592 Billion will be gone in per sub fees, never coming back.

That is in addition to the per sub fees of the 30 million that have left paid Live TV already over the last 8 years.

Probably will be more if the losses of subs increase.

 

[Juan]

It will still be on ESPN, so that means DirecTV and, I believe, Joe Hand Productions.

We are now in a transition period, before just on Traditional Providers, now on both, some exclusive to streaming ( this year’s game in England will only be on ESPN+).

By the end of the current contracts, it should be only streaming unless Traditional Proviers can figure out how to stop 2 million ( and increasing) a quarter from leaving and start.gaining new subscribers.

Till 2033..then streaming will have evolved into something else

 

[Juan]

Streaming is like CDs were in the late 80s and early 90s
Record companies rushed to replace vinyl with more profitable CDs
But nobody for saw the internet and how easy it would be to strip music from a CD and " share" it across the internet

With cable and satellite security is pretty tight but with internet its more like the wild wild west

As prices go up on streaming ..consumers will find other avenues to watch sports and such without paying outrageous prices

Most corporations are clueless until their bottom line is affected..by then its too late

 

[Yespage]

You mean SOME of it, right?

Not every game, like linear ESPN, right.

Life remains too short to try to save four cents.

ESPN remains linear only. And will for many decades to come.

As predicted.

The ESPN model breaks down as cable/sat numbers continue falling. ESPN worked because everyone paid for ESPN even if they didn't watch it. They eventually would overpay for content, expect everyone to foot the bill. This lead to the inflation of Sat/Cable bills and people looking for an out, even sports fans. Life is too short to waste money on banal programming on ESPN. ESPN as a standalone will cost a good deal of money. Makes one ponder ESPN being bundled in to Disney+ in order to re-establish their model of everyone pays for ESPN.

 

[Bruce]

As prices go up on streaming ..consumers will find other avenues to watch sports and such without paying outrageous prices

Traditional Providers have Sports, do they have some kind of Price Freeze I do not know about that prevents these outrageous prices?

 

[Juan]

Traditional Providers have Sports, do they have some kind of Price Freeze I do not know about that prevents these outrageous prices?

You missed the point

SECURITY

 

[SamCdbs]

Last season, the MNF games that streamed on ESPN+ had alternate audio with play calling from the Peyton brothers. AFAIK, that's still the plan for this season.

Correct. But it tastes a lot like chicken. And you are saving so much money.

Life is too short. Get real ESPN. From a linear provider and enjoy it TODAY. Now back to predicting that “someday” they will change their minds.

 

[televisionarchivesorlando]

Our Local CW showed the Tampa Bay Bucs game in HDR OTA. Too bad our CBS, FOX, and NBC Stations haven't turned it on yet.

 

[Bruce]

Correct. But it tastes a lot like chicken. And you are saving so much money.

How about you post what you pay for DirecTV, including all fees to be fair, but not things like HBO which would costs extra no matter what or NFLST.

This is if you had no Live TV-
I have posted this before-

All ABC, Disney, Fox, Nat Geo, FX is on Hulu/Disney+, you can get the Bundle which includes ESPN+ for $19.99 Commercial Free
All Viacom Stuff (CBS, NICK, etc) is on Paramount+ for $9.99 Commercial Free
All Universal (NBC, USA, SyFy, etc) is on Peacock for $9.99 Commercial Free
Discovery/Food Network/HGTV, etc is on Discovery+ for $6.99 Commercial Free
AMC+-$8.99 for Commercial Free

Of course there are discounts around, for example I picked up Peacock Commercial Free for $30 Annual last year.

So, at regular Price, all the above would be roughly $56.00, I would never subscribe to Discovery, so $7 off the total for me.

I have read the average price for DirecTV is $120 a month with all fees ( boxes, sports, etc).

All everything above is in either 1080P or 4K ( Hulu has the FX stuff in 4K for example) and Dolby Digital+.

Life is too short. Get real ESPN. From a linear provider and enjoy it TODAY. Now back to predicting that “someday” they will change their minds.

Again, we are not that far away from the same content being on ESPN+ ( renamed of course), MNF is the start ( a big start), they really need to get some new revenue, 30 million household gone already in per sub fees, 8 million more every year.

Again, by the start of 2025 at the latest.

 

[slice1900]

Looks like BTN is part of the Fox Sports App ...

HOW TO LIVE STREAM BIG TEN NETWORK - Big Ten Network

btn.com

That's for BTN+, which is to BTN what ESPN+ is to ESPN - i.e. subscribing to BTN+ doesn't give you all the stuff that's on the BTN channel.

 

[Bilbo1]

Last season, the MNF games that streamed on ESPN+ had alternate audio with play calling from the Peyton brothers. AFAIK, that's still the plan for this season.

My recollection was that the Eli and Peyton commentary version was also on ESPN2. I remember swapping between the two.

In the past, content on ESPN or ESPN2 were available with WatchESPN, requiring authentication of a cable/satellite subscription. This year, it shows ESPN/ESPN+, so I assume ESPN+ or authentication will allow access.

 

[Joe The Dragon]

It may not come as soon as 2024 (when I predict) but you can rest assured that a DTC version of ESPN isn't "many decades" away. Linear channel cable TV isn't going to even exist decades from now...

and will dish be the 1st one to make the push of make an opt in channel or we drop it?

 

[NashGuy]

and will dish be the 1st one to make the push of make an opt in channel or we drop it?

What I envision happening at some point in the next few years after Disney makes ESPN available as a standalone DTC service -- maybe in the 2025-27 timeframe -- is that major MVPDs like Comcast and Charter (and perhaps also DISH/DirecTV, which will be merged together by then) will shift from selling the current kind of cable channel bundle that includes lots of channels owned by different companies toward just selling the individual apps owned by each individual company -- Disney's Disney+ and ESPN; Paramount's Paramount+; NBCUniversal's Peacock; WBD's HBO Max/Discovery -- but those apps will also come with the linear broadcast and cable channels owned by those same companies. So, for instance, subscribe to Disney+ and also get ABC, FX, FXX, Freeform, Disney Channel, Disney Jr., Nat Geo, etc. If you want the "full cable channel bundle," you'll need to subscribe to all the apps owned by those companies.

 

[Joe The Dragon]

What I envision happening at some point in the next few years after Disney makes ESPN available as a standalone DTC service -- maybe in the 2025-27 timeframe -- is that major MVPDs like Comcast and Charter (and perhaps also DISH/DirecTV, which will be merged together by then) will shift from selling the current kind of cable channel bundle that includes lots of channels owned by different companies toward just selling the individual apps owned by each individual company -- Disney's Disney+ and ESPN; Paramount's Paramount+; NBCUniversal's Peacock; WBD's HBO Max/Discovery -- but those apps will also come with the linear broadcast and cable channels owned by those same companies. So, for instance, subscribe to Disney+ and also get ABC, FX, FXX, Freeform, Disney Channel, Disney Jr., Nat Geo, etc. If you want the "full cable channel bundle," you'll need to subscribe to all the apps owned by those companies.

and in that case they have an linear feed of the app only live content (at least on satellite) to save on bandwidth and to stop the live feed meltdowns that can happen with big live events. Maybe with cable internet they multicast the live feeds and have local caching servers in the cable co network.
Now you may need to suck it up and at least pay the LOCAL TV fees (just along as internet only subs are not stuck with an $30/mo local tv fee) with that setup but pushing ESPN is to much in that setup.

 

[Yespage]

I figure ATSC 3.0 will help the local networks sell service as well, over the air.

I wonder whether they get rid of no-ad streaming all together and forces ads. It won't be popular, but if they all did it...

 

[SamCdbs]

How about you post what you pay for DirecTV, including all fees to be fair,

OK.

It is included in my rent. I could live elsewhere, but life it too short. But to be fair, the package I get is $65/retail.

I also, BTW, get in the rent the best ISP available in my area.

Life is too short.

This is if you had no Live TV-
I have posted this before-

All ABC, Disney, Fox, Nat Geo, FX is on Hulu/Disney+, you can get the Bundle which includes ESPN+ for $19.99 Commercial Free

Have all of that. Nice supplement to live TV/

All Viacom Stuff (CBS, NICK, etc) is on Paramount+ for $9.99 Commercial Free

Got that too. Nice supplement. Although STD is garbage. Free from T Mobile.

All Universal (NBC, USA, SyFy, etc) is on Peacock for $9.99 Commercial Free

Got it. Free from T Mobile.

Discovery/Food Network/HGTV, etc is on Discovery+ for $6.99 Commercial Free

Wouldn’t watch it if it reduced a life sentence. Garbage.

AMC+-$8.99 for Commercial Free

Nothing much on it. Pass.

Also get HBO Max (free T Mobile), Amazon (I consider that free, had Prime anyway, and Apple (free from Apple).

Life is too short to miss out.

Again, we are not that far away from the same content being on ESPN+ ( renamed of course), MNF is the start ( a big start), they really need to get some new revenue, 30 million household gone already in per sub fees, 8 million more every year.

It is never going to happen. The math not only doesn’t work out, but the customer marketing doesn’t work out. The people that left are not random. They are, mostly, people that just don’t like sports, plus a few people who like money a little more. The sports fans have live TV.

Again, by the start of 2025 at the latest.

See me then.

It will NEVER happen.