Since I am one of the Big Ten alums in Chicago, I can confidently tell you that no one in this city gives a rats ass about Big Ten football. They love minor league football here, I think they call them Da Bears. Don't look at the small picture of this year's football season, but next year's when U-verse is all over the Midwest including Chicago, Columbus, Detroit, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, etc. Comcast won't have a leg to stand on.
Big Ten Network
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Since I am one of the Big Ten alums in Chicago, I can confidently tell you that no one in this city gives a rats ass about Big Ten football. They love minor league football here, I think they call them Da Bears. Don't look at the small picture of this year's football season, but next year's when U-verse is all over the Midwest including Chicago, Columbus, Detroit, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, etc. Comcast won't have a leg to stand on.
What corner do you buy your narcotics on dude? You have to be amazingly high to say that Big Ten alums in Chicagoland don't care about Big Ten Football and "no one gives a rat's ass about Big Ten Football."
Why do Chicago area fans travel each Fall weekend IN DROVES to Madison, Champaign, Iowa City, etc... to watch Big Ten College Football?
It should be an RSN..But my understanding is the network wants to be a national channel..That's where I object..I have no interest and I don't want to pay for it..
The problem is that it's not an RSN either. Michigan fans have little interest in seeing a football between Illinois & Northwestern especially when Michigan is playing at the same time. I think there are 4 football games with Michigan or MSU, and there will probably 10-12 basketball games with either one of those 2. That's a far cry from the 70 baseball games(ALL TIGERS), 40 NHL games(ALL REDWINGS), and 40 NBA games(ALL PISTONS) that's on FSN for I think $2/month.
This channel isn't worth anything close to $1.10/month.
You misunderstood my post. Of course, Big Ten alums living in Chicago love the Big Ten. Big Ten alums living in Siberia love the Big Ten. That is not what I was saying at all. I'm saying Chicagoland, as a community, doesn't give a rat's ass about the Big Ten. It's a pro sports/Notre Ame town.
You live in North Carolina ... gee that's 1.20 per year. Chances are you won't be affected.
You really have no way of proving that people in Chicago could care less about Big Ten football. They are Bear fans but that is Sunday and on Saturdays they could be fans of a lot of Big Ten teams.
Jeff ... when my team isn't playing I would much rather watch a Purdue/Michigan State game than Florida/Mississippi for example. You can't generalize and say that Michigan people don't care about watching other Big Ten teams. You really don't know that. Granted they want Michigan first. You say 1.10 is too much ... I feel it is a bargain. The weekend tailgate show and the other Big Ten coaches shows are priceless for me.
I wish for all sakes they would be put in the Multi-sports package .... but it is all about advertising dollars and all sides will be playing hardball until the last minute or beyond. Hopefully all will be settled so that the current 80% of the Big Ten country that will be without will be able to see these upcoming games.
But I do agree
Jeff ... when my team isn't playing I would much rather watch a Purdue/Michigan State game than Florida/Mississippi for example. You can't generalize and say that Michigan people don't care about watching other Big Ten teams. You really don't know that. Granted they want Michigan first. You say 1.10 is too much ... I feel it is a bargain. The weekend tailgate show and the other Big Ten coaches shows are priceless for me.
I wish for all sakes they would be put in the Multi-sports package .... but it is all about advertising dollars and all sides will be playing hardball until the last minute or beyond. Hopefully all will be settled so that the current 80% of the Big Ten country that will be without will be able to see these upcoming games.
But I do agree
Chicagoland is largely Notre Dame fans. Of course you have your Big Ten alums/fans scattered throughout the area including Illinois, Michigan, and Northwestern alums. Of course you have some from the other remaining schools as well.
I am a Missouri alum. They are rarely on tv because 1)Chicago isn't geographically in the Big XII and 2)they are usually only a .500 team or maybe marginally better. If they are not on tv, I'll find something else.
That said... I don't really care about the Big Ten. I'd rather watch a matchup involving two ranked teams. If that happens to be Wisconsin/Ohio St., I'll watch it. But if it's Florida/Auburn or Rutgers/Louisville, etc. I'd rather watch that too.
In all, if you're not a Big Ten alum while living in Chicago, I think there is some merit to say some Chicagoans don't care about Big Ten sports. I don't think I'm in the majority. I'm just sayin'...
I am a Missouri alum. They are rarely on tv because 1)Chicago isn't geographically in the Big XII and 2)they are usually only a .500 team or maybe marginally better. If they are not on tv, I'll find something else.
That said... I don't really care about the Big Ten. I'd rather watch a matchup involving two ranked teams. If that happens to be Wisconsin/Ohio St., I'll watch it. But if it's Florida/Auburn or Rutgers/Louisville, etc. I'd rather watch that too.
In all, if you're not a Big Ten alum while living in Chicago, I think there is some merit to say some Chicagoans don't care about Big Ten sports. I don't think I'm in the majority. I'm just sayin'...
I agree...But to diehard Big 10 fans it's Gold..But to we who reside in other areas, it is nothing. BTN is going to have a lot of work to do to convince E* to put their channel on the grid.
Good luck to them and their fans...But it had better not cost me one thin dime. I am not subsidizing an Ohio State fan's desire to see their team beat the living sh*t out of New Mexico State.
Why NMSU continues to schedule Texas, Arkansas and Ohio State level teams is a mystery to me, except that they make more money on these games (guarantees) than most of the rest of the season combined.
Mystery solved...It's the $$$$$....Why else would a coaching staff subject their kids to a yearly bitch slapping.
If E* does sign a contract like the one we were discussing, I think that those who have opposed E* carrying the BTN and who live out of the B10 region, will have more to complain about than ever.
Those people did not want to see E* spend a lot of money on the BTN. Yet E* would be doing exactly that. Perhaps spending $40M instead of $50M, but that's still paying the vast majority of what the BTN wanted.
Now if E* puts it into AT100 within the B10 region and on a sports tier elsewhere, then even though E* paid all of that money, 70% of the nation will have to pay more to see it.
So this could be a worst-case scenario for those who came down on the side of E* saving the money and keeping rates down. E* still spent almost all of the money, yet 70% of the country wouldn't get the channel for free.
It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Those people did not want to see E* spend a lot of money on the BTN. Yet E* would be doing exactly that. Perhaps spending $40M instead of $50M, but that's still paying the vast majority of what the BTN wanted.
Now if E* puts it into AT100 within the B10 region and on a sports tier elsewhere, then even though E* paid all of that money, 70% of the nation will have to pay more to see it.
So this could be a worst-case scenario for those who came down on the side of E* saving the money and keeping rates down. E* still spent almost all of the money, yet 70% of the country wouldn't get the channel for free.
It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Commercials Are Capitalism.
I know that because the BTN is themselves admitting it.
DIEHARD=PREMIUM CHANNEL
Nothing that diehards want should be considered when deciding what should be a basic channel and what shouldn't. $1.10/month is way to much for a channel that is really only demanded by DIEHARDS. If DIEHARDS want this channel so much than they will have absolutely no problem with paying for it as premium station.
If the BigTen thinks diehard bigten fans are the norm, then they should put their money where their mouths are and instead of letting cable/dbs companies take the advertising, BTN should make their money FROM the advertising and give the station away for free or a lot cheaper. If they are RIGHT and there is intense demand, then they will make FAR MORE than by charging $1.10 for just the midwest states. This is what capitalism is about. Not by forcing a BigTen tax on everybody who wants cable/dbs in the midwest. The fact that BTN is demanding this be on expanded basic while giving cable/dbs companies all the ad revenue is their adminission that people wouldn't pay for if given the choice and that advertising companies won't pay for advertising at significant rates. Yes, nobody watches every station but has to pay for them all, but none of them will have as little original programming and cost $1.10 while being demanded by as few people.
I KNOW FOR A FACT THAT THERE IS NO DEMAND FOR THIS STATION.
I know that because the BTN is themselves admitting it.
DIEHARD=PREMIUM CHANNEL
Nothing that diehards want should be considered when deciding what should be a basic channel and what shouldn't. $1.10/month is way to much for a channel that is really only demanded by DIEHARDS. If DIEHARDS want this channel so much than they will have absolutely no problem with paying for it as premium station.
If the BigTen thinks diehard bigten fans are the norm, then they should put their money where their mouths are and instead of letting cable/dbs companies take the advertising, BTN should make their money FROM the advertising and give the station away for free or a lot cheaper. If they are RIGHT and there is intense demand, then they will make FAR MORE than by charging $1.10 for just the midwest states. This is what capitalism is about. Not by forcing a BigTen tax on everybody who wants cable/dbs in the midwest. The fact that BTN is demanding this be on expanded basic while giving cable/dbs companies all the ad revenue is their adminission that people wouldn't pay for if given the choice and that advertising companies won't pay for advertising at significant rates. Yes, nobody watches every station but has to pay for them all, but none of them will have as little original programming and cost $1.10 while being demanded by as few people.
People, can you believe that Michigan AND EVEN MICHIGAN STATE think that there is such intense demand locally for their games that they don't really take any money for the rights to broadcast their football games over the radio. THEY ACTUALLY GIVE IT AWAY THE TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER WHO WILL GIVE THEM THE BEST CUT OF COMMERCIAL REVENUE!!!!!!!!! That's what people do when they are confident there is a demand for their programming.
Almost every business venture attempts to maximize revenue. If the BTN didn't have any leverage on DBS & Cable companies, due to customer interest, then an attempt to force their way into the basic cable lineup would be laughed at.
However if they do have leverage and are able to use it to pressure providers into meeting their demands, then they are using the right tactics. It would be sheer stupidity for them to take tens of millions of dollars less than what they could make.
They are not "forcing" themselves on anyone. They are simply asking a price and it looks like a lot of people/providers are willing to pay it.
Look at what ESPN demands and gets away with. $3/mon per sub, inclusion on basic tier, and they keep the advertising revenues.
However if they do have leverage and are able to use it to pressure providers into meeting their demands, then they are using the right tactics. It would be sheer stupidity for them to take tens of millions of dollars less than what they could make.
They are not "forcing" themselves on anyone. They are simply asking a price and it looks like a lot of people/providers are willing to pay it.
Look at what ESPN demands and gets away with. $3/mon per sub, inclusion on basic tier, and they keep the advertising revenues.
Ok no offense, but how can you honestly say that they are not forcing themselves onto anybody? They are DEMANDING that every cable/dbs provider in the midwest put BTN on their most basic programming package or else they will continue with their unrelenting POLITICAL( AND THIS IS 100% PURE POLITICS NOT SPORTS) CAMPAIGN. If that's not forcing, I don't know what is. And well people are clearly NOT AT ALL WILLING TO PAY FOR IT or else we'd have a deal right now.
Well, then I have to say that you don't know what is.
I could start a TV channel named "McNutty TV." I could set a price of $1/month and must be included in the basic tier. I could demand E* and D* to meet my terms.
How does that "force" anyone to pay me for it???
I could release it on the Internet and maybe 5 million people would start watching it. Then I could demand that E* and D* pay me for it. Hundreds of thousands of people could start a campaign to get them to offer it.
Still, that is not "forcing" them to do anything.
The motivation to add it would be due to customer demand, not politics. Why does E* pay for and carry the USA Network channel? The Sci-Fi channel? Not due to politics but due to customer demand.
The BTN has a product that they feel a lot of customers will want to see. Those customers will pressure their providers to carry it. Why should the BTN give such a product away? In the spirit of capitalism, they will try to price it at the maximum price that people will pay. Just like every other product on the market.
D*, E*, Time-Warner, Comcast, Charter, etc., all have a choice in this matter. They can pay and make a certain number of customers happy, or they can not pay and run the risk of losing those customers to their competitors.
If E* does sign and thus joins D*, AT&T, and 75 small cable companies in signing up, then cries that the BTN has overpriced their product will be unjustified.
I could care less about Big10 sports. To all of you who keep complaining about not getting, YET, another sports channel....go to Direct TV already and quit whining...the decision is yours. As for me, I find more than enough sports programming to watch in HD, and movies, and variety shows and news and......
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