NFL Kicks Dirt At Comcast, Other Cable Operators
By Ted Hearn -- Multichannel News,09/13/2007
Washington – The National Football League, which rakes in $3.7 billion a year in TV revenue alone, is accusing the cable industry of favoring channels it owns and discriminating against unaffiliated channels such as the NFL Network through less favorable economic terms and channel positioning.
“[Cable operators] commonly disadvantage independent services by forcing them to accept inferior compensation or channel placement – or both,” the NFL Network told the Federal Communications Commission in a Sept. 11 filing related to cable system carriage of independently owned program networks.
The NFL Network and some cable operators have been at loggerheads over the price and channel position of the fledging pigskin network. The clash began after NFL leaders decided to air a few games on their own cable network, and try to recover hundreds millions of dollars in lost TV revenue through NFL Network license fees charged to cable and satellite operators.
The league is hoping that the NFL Network will also give the game year-round TV luster.
In the FCC filing, the NFL had strong words for Comcast, the largest cable operator with more than 24 million subscribers. Comcast and the NFL Network have had an especially rocky relationship.
“Comcast routinely places its affiliated channels on its basic tier or digital basic tier while refusing to make comparable independent channels available on the same basis,” the NFL said.
The NFL is highlighting an issue that has been associated with the cable industry for more than two decades: vertical integration, or the common ownership of cable systems and cable networks, both regional and national.
In 1992, cable operators owned 57% percent of 68 national cable networks in existence, compared to 20% today because of the explosion in cable programming services. The FCC has identified more than 500 cable networks.
“This isn't the first time someone has looked for leverage in contract negotiations by getting the government involved. But a fight between the top sports league and the biggest video distributor is a pretty big deal,” said Paul Gallant, a media analyst with Stanford Group in Washington, D.C.
The NFL filing didn’t mention that it lost a tier-placement law suit to Comcast and that it won’t license “NFL Sunday Ticket to Comcast” or any other U.S. cable operator. DirecTV, a satellite pay-TV provider, has exclusive rights to Sunday Ticket.
Comcast, which is vertically integrated with about 10% of the networks on its systems, has programming ownership interests in the Golf Channel, Comcast SportsNet, E! Entertainment Television, Versus and Style.
“Most of our sports networks are multi-sport, with multiple professional leagues on each network and with hundreds of games to watch. This is a major distinction between them and the NFL Network,” said Comcast spokeswoman Sena Fitzmaurice. “The cost to carry Golf and Versus is significantly different from what the NFL Network is demanding. There is vastly more programming on these networks, which are national in scope with broad interest across many demographics.”
The NFL filing included a chart showing that Comcast placed affiliated channels on the widely viewed basic tier and the NFL Network on lesser viewed sports tiers, hurting the ad sales of the latter. But the NFL’s chart, for the sake of comparison, did not show the tier location given Comcast-owned programming and the NFL Network by other cable operators and satellite TV providers.
The attack on Comcast comes as the FCC considers revising rules that ban cable operators from discriminating against a cable network based on the network’s ownership.
The NFL Network urged the national media regulator to adopt rules requiring Comcast to “bargain in good faith,” as it must when dealing with local TV stations. The FCC, the NFL Network added, would need to back up breakdowns in good faith with binding arbitration initiated by the programmer.
“This approach would ensure the continued development of independent services and protect consumers’ interest in promoting continued media diversity,” the NFL Network said.
The National Cable & Telecommunications Association told the FCC that the agency has reviewed just two program carriage distribution complaints in a decade, with one of them jointly dismissed. Speaking on behalf of all major cable operators, NCTA said that the FCC should handle all future disputes and reject the imposition of binding arbitration as beyond its legal authority.
Post a comment Return to article View other article discussions
| Submitted by: | Steve Whitaker 10/3/2007 6:56:02 PM PT |
| Location: | Cincinnati, Ohio |
I love football, I love the NFL. I want the NFL Network. However, I DO NOT feel that the NFL should charge a cable company a fee based on the total subscribers to thier service. I know that the majority of people probably would not watch the network. I don't feel that it is right to charge these people for a service that they do not want. I pay extra for sports packages because that's what I want to watch. If I don't want to watch HBO, I wouldn't pay for it. Why charge the masses for something that a few of us love? The NFL network seems to believe that they are the only network that the sports fan like myself would recieve, but that's not true, there are several others. I feel the same way about the Big Ten Network as well. I would love to have these networks, but I don't think that it is right to charge a cable company the rate that they are demanding. That would only raise the prices for everyone else. I want the NFL Network (and the Big Ten Network also!), but I don't want to raise the cable bill of the whole nation, I'll pay for it myself. Too bad the NFL & the Big Ten have thier eyes on everyone's wallet, they can't see those of that are reaching for ours. They want to nickel & dime the masses to death, but they don't want the dollars from those of us that actually want their product.
| Submitted by: | Alyssa 10/3/2007 5:37:35 AM PT |
| Location: | Pittsburgh |
| Occupation: | Customer Service |
Really... I'll tell you what it comes down to: The NFL Network wants money. Here's the thing, the NFL Network in 2006 decided to take 8 games and broadcast them only on "their" NFL channel. For cable : The only other consumer's that could see these games would be those customer's that are located in the home team's demographic area and the visiting team's demographic area. Everyone else would be screwed due to blackout restrictions unless they subscribe to the NFL channel. For satellite, unless you are a subscriber to the NFL Sunday Ticket, you aren't even guarenteed to see the games if you are in the demographic area of either team because local channels aren't available in all areas thru satellite. ... I think a good question here is for the NFL network: Why did you take 8 games that have always been available to football fans and place them only one "your" channel? Money? Hmm... And the NFL network has always charged companies like Comcast for their channel, but increased the rate 400% when they added only 8 games!!! What? No wonder Comcast and Direct TV have special football packages. Really, if I'm looking for the football games, I shouldn't have to pay for the package because they shouldn't be only broadcast on the NFL's stupid channel. And if I enjoy all the other programming or the year-long greatness of the sport, then I would be willing to purchase an extra package. And as for the NFL Sunday Ticket... well Direct TV paid out the *** for exclusive rights. Even if Comcast and Dish wanted/could provide it, It won't happen. And after that, you know why the NFL Network favors Direct TV....money!! I would favor one company over another if they paid me millions of dollars. Oh, and at least Comcast offers the NFL network in a sports tier so you do get more than just that channel for a price of like $5-10 a mo. Direct TV is charging $69.99/mo for 4 months just for football games. This is outrageous. Personally, I think it's all outrageous, and this whole thing started last year when the NFL network sucked up 8 games away from viewers. And they say cable is taking away from football fans? I think they need to re-evaluate!
| Submitted by: | BRADY SIMS 9/30/2007 10:45:02 PM PT |
The sad truth is that both the NFL and Comcast are two overstuffed Bemouths that are so rich and greedy that they cannot come to an agreement that will benefit both entities. In the end, the loser is the consumer who has to pay to see something that should be free to all. But neither of them seem to care about that.
| Submitted by: | sef somar 9/21/2007 8:59:13 AM PT |
| Location: | Chicago |
| Occupation: | teacher |
I wonder what Comcast would have done if they had won the rights to the NFL games that are shown on NFL network for their own VS channel. Would VS be on a sports tier or would rates for basic cable or digital basic rise to cover the costs. Of course VS is a Comcast channel. Hmmm....
| Submitted by: | DeWayne Ralston 9/19/2007 10:42:59 AM PT |
| Location: | Tennessee |
I have comcast cable. I had the NFL network for 4 years included in with the basic tier. Now, with no warning, they pull the channel and want me to pay for what I'd been getting already. Did they offer me a discount for the missing channels? No. All I got was a middle finger and told to cough up more money if I want the channel back. There was no problems giving me the channel before, now there is? Whos' the greedy party? How much do the cable companies rake in a year? I noticed you didn't bother to print that.
| Submitted by: | Anonymous 9/18/2007 7:31:25 PM PT |
| Location: | Milwaukee, WI |
| Occupation: | Engineer |
If the NFL wants to cry foul on cable for not giving into their demands, why shouldn't the NFL have to then, in turn, allow any cable/dish operator to come to a "fair" agreement on Sunday Ticket?
I dont know about the bandwidth for cable companies, but im pretty sure Dish network can handle the ticket, but oh no, we wouldnt want to allow everyone to get access to the most popular sport in america. Let's just make us all have to bow down to DirecTV.
If the NFL wants fair, then let everyone have access to the ticket. I cant understand why they wouldnt anyway, it's just more money in their pocket. And isnt that what this is all about to begin with, GREED!!
| Submitted by: | John Masterson 9/17/2007 11:30:25 AM PT |
Comcast doesn't seem to have "bandwith" issues seeing as they have NBA, MLB, College Football, NHL & MLS season packages to view all those leagues games. Does the NFL have ownership in DirecTV?
| Submitted by: | Larry L (lml2000@yahoo.com) 9/14/2007 12:10:26 PM PT |
| Location: | Los Angeles |
| Occupation: | Attorney |
These are just two industry giants with big corporate egos going at "it." Neither likes to lose, or be on the short end of a deal.
Comcast is a big gorilla that is used to getting its way because of its dominant market position. It uses this to push its cable-owned programming. Disney does the same, but does so based upon the demand for its content rather than control over cable infrastructure.
IMHO, the argument that the NFL network caters to a narrow audience is half-hollowed one. Sure, its content is only football, but football is the market's most dominant sport. On the other hand, it's tough to argue that NFL football is of year-round interest many within that market segment.
| Submitted by: | JohnD 9/14/2007 9:55:52 AM PT |
| Location: | USA |
| Occupation: | Manager |
It's neither price nor bandwidth, it's the greedy NFL having an exclusive agreement with Dish, yet both the NFL and the dish companies are crying foul when they have a hard time getting Comcast and other cable operators to open up the channels they have ownership in. Mr. FCC Martin if you are really so interested in making things equal for all the players then take care of these issues. And as a subscriber don't force me to pay for a sports network (BTN) that sells its top drawer games to the networks and cries when the cable operators balk at carrying lackluster games the nets wouldn't touch. Besides who wants to watch intermural badminton at 2:00AM once football, soccer, basketball and baseball seasons are over.
| Submitted by: | John B 9/14/2007 9:08:06 AM PT |
| Location: | NYC |
| Occupation: | marketing |
Roddy,
You're apparently the bonehead, you couldn't be more wrong. The major cable companies absolutely have the bandwidth for Sunday ticket if the NFL stops being predatory and greedy.
Bandwidth was never an issue. It's the ludicrous price they want to charge to watch a bunch of over paid men chase a ball. I can watch my dog chase a ball for free and at least I won't get an unhealthy beer belly doing it. Know the facts, they'll set you free.
Next »
Post a comment Return to article View other article discussions