NFL Network, Stop Crying; The Fans Aren’t Sympathetic
- 2
- Add a Comment
In fact, your attempts at laying the blame at the feet of the cable companies is pitiful. You sleep with the cable companies who charge hundreds of dollars in extra fees to carry your network and games and fan packs. But you’ve found that their market penetration isn’t growing like you thought it would.
That is because they offer an inferior product. The picture on plain old TV isn’t as good. When it rains I lose my signal. Too many places don’t allow you to install a dish, my goodness I could go on ad infinitum with the reasons.
The latest antic by the NFL and its fledgling network is to ask you to send an email to the FCC voicing your concern and as an attempt to force the cable companies to provide the service free. Hell I’d love it if they would, but I’m not buying the BS the NFL is trying to feed me.
Why?
Because they are the reason it costs me a weeks salary to take my family to a game.
They are greedy. They make money hand over fist but it isn’t enough. Football teams are worth 100s of millions, but that still isn’t enough.
So I went to the site, and I filled out the form to send an email to the FCC. Following is that email:
Thank you for using NFL Network Mail System
Message sent to the following recipients:
Kevin Martin
Michael Copps
Jonathan Adelstein
Deborah Tate
Robert McDowell
Message text follows:
Ben Ice
(Address Info Deleted)
November 15, 2007
[recipient address was inserted here]
Dear [recipient name was inserted here],
I am a writer in the fantasy football industry, and I handle business development for an up and coming site as well. So I think I am a fairly savvy fan.
The NFL would like me to use this platform to lobby for the addition of the NFL Network to my local cable company. I even kept their email below. It is typical PR spin, looking to incent fans by pointing out issues that aren’t at the heart of this dispute. Yet their deals with the satellite companies cost me hundreds of dollars in additional fees, so who are they trying to kid? They are equally responsible but trying to push all the blame on the cable networks. There is no party free of guilt here, but I believe the NFL owns 90% of it.
The NFL is trying to incite fans to pressure their cable companies to carry the NFL Network. Yet it is the NFL who is purposedly punishing fans, and I am not the only one who feels this way.
Tell the NFL Network that they are hurting themselves with their core fans. Every game they televise upsets us even more. They make so much money, the teams’ value continues to spiral upwards, as does the cost of going to a game or buying hats, shirts, etc.
Tell the NFL to go to hell. Come back to the table and negotiate in good faith instead of like a bunch of spoiled brat greedy bastards they are acting like.
I DO NOT agree with the message below - Ben Ice
————————————————————-
Cable companies are announcing another round of rate hikes, and they want me to pay extra to get the NFL Network. This isn’t fair - and I know the FCC is looking into how to resolve these types of disputes. I urge you to change the rules to allow for a fair and fast mediation process with an arbitrator to make sure that football fans aren’t blocked from watching football programming anymore - and that other people also get to watch the programs that interest them.
My cable bill gets bigger and bigger, but I probably watch less than half the channels that I get. I want to get the NFL Network, but I don’t think I should have to pay extra for it - after all, the cable companies make me buy other sports channels that they own, like the Golf Channel and Versus, in the basic package, even though I’d rather watch NFL Network.
Cable companies are taking advantage of the millions of football fans in this country and singling them out to pay extra for the premium sports package. Unless this is resolved quickly, there will be a huge public outcry in just a few weeks as the NFL Network starts telecasting regular season games on Thanksgiving night.
I hope the FCC will change its rules to allow for an arbitrator in these kinds of disputes. Football fans and other consumers shouldn’t have to pay the price when a simple solution could be made available.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Ben Ice
2 Comments
Steve Boyce
December 9th, 2007
at 7:15pm
I wish people would wake up and smell the coffee! It’s not the NFL network punishing the fans, it’s the cable companies. Direct TV offers this netwrok as part of normal programming and is provided with no extra charge to their customers. Some Cable companies only charge for NFL network DURING the football season and then providing it free during off-season. If the cable company is charging their customers yet directTV is not then what does that tell you? It tells you that the Cable companies are the one’s trying to gouge you!
I am a Direct TV subscriber and have had NFL netwrok for several years now and have never had to pay extra for it. I do pay for the privelage to View NFL Sunday Ticket which i am glad to pay for. I have the option to watch any game i want and would never complain about having to pay for it. If you CHOOSE to have cable tv then you reall y have no right to complain about the inadequacies of the service.
Here’s a thought: If you dont like the fact you can’t see NFL netowrk on your locaL cable netwrok then…
A) Compalin to your cable comapnmy about charging you for something that Direct TV gives their customers for free.
B) Pay for it if you really want to see it.
C) Dump cable and get a Direct TV, which is always digital quality picture and more reliable than cable.
D) Go to your local Pub to see the game.
E) Just quit whining about something you have full control over changing.
NFL network is a business. It costs them millions of dollars to run that production. they bring us many things that a regular network does not such as NFL Filoms, NFL replay, etc…. Do you really expect them to give away their product for free? ask your cable company for something for free. ;)
abenjamin
January 29th, 2008
at 11:47am
Obviously you didn’t read the post. DirectTV doesn’t work where I live. Between the rain and the poor southern exposure my reception was terrible. And you are wrong about who is to blame.
The NFL Network gets paid by DirecTV and dish and they pass those costs on to the consumer. They also expect the cable networks to pay them, but the hitch is they don’t want the cable companies to charge consumers.
You are the one who needs to wake up and smell the coffee. The cable companies want the NFL Network. They want to also be able to offset their costs. I’d pay for the channel if my cable operator carried it, but they aren’t given the option.
So in essence the NFL Network isn’t treating the cable companies fairly. Why should they provide it as a free channel when it costs them money AND their competition is charging for it? That makes no sense.