BU's New TV Deal

[BradleyBrave]

I certainly cant speak for grassman, but I think that the major part of this when I posted was and or is the unknown.. I live in the central Illinois area in the country where we will never see a cable hook up for my area. Therefore, a satellite company is our only source
to get these channels. Da Coach's posting cleared this up for me to a large extent. I am hoping for a Fox sports midwest and or a comcast channel to carry the BU games. Webcasts are an alternative and I think could be the future of all this, but the area I am in is not conducive for the bandwidth needed to properly watch the webcasts. All in all, I feel a lot better about this now.

Just to clear things up, I wasn't trying to be a wise-@ss. I was just trying to point out that the distribution through a cable company (which is about to be acquired by a media giant) is a good thing. As a DirecTV subscriber myself, I am certainly hoping that this eventually means more games televised on channels DirecTV broadcasts. I have every sports package known to man, hopefully BU will someday be a part of it.

[Beninator]

Just to clear things up, I wasn't trying to be a wise-@ss. I was just trying to point out that the distribution through a cable company (which is about to be acquired by a media giant) is a good thing. As a DirecTV subscriber myself, I am certainly hoping that this eventually means more games televised on channels DirecTV broadcasts. I have every sports package known to man, hopefully BU will someday be a part of it.

All good BradleyBrave... I never thought that of you at all. Just having a constructive discussion thats all.

[Da Coach]

Here is an article from today's PJ Star about the Insight TV deal--

http://www.pjstar.com/stories/101907/BRA_BEM8IF17.071.php

[ph]

I do find it particularly ironic that Grand Prarie is sponsoring this deal. I wonder what the Digital Store (Dish provider and a retailer near Dick's) thinks about this? There's also a satellite store in one of the Prarie outlots that sells Dish and DirecTV, but I am not 100% certain if those outlots are owned by the same management company..

[Old Coach]

WEEK reaches every television household in this DMA. Insight only reaches between 50% - 55% of television households in the market... you do the math.

I'll believe that that some other cable companies will pick these games up when I see it.

[amckillip]

WEEK reaches every television household in this DMA. Insight only reaches between 50% - 55% of television households in the market... you do the math.

I'll believe that that some other cable companies will pick these games up when I see it.

Out of curiousity, what kind of deal would you have preffered? I am always curious to see what kind of alternatives people have who are not supportive of progress made. BU had about a month and WEEK and WMBD as well as local netowrk other channels would not pick them up because they lost money showing because ESPN and other channels have the rights to the good games. What are your ideas so we can suggest them to BU Sports Marketing and KK?

[Da Coach]

Old Coach,
I understand what you are saying, but it was WEEK that was unwilling to do the games, and the other local TV stations weren't pounding down Bradley's doors for the rights either.

So if not for the Insight deal, the local people like you wouldn't have any option but the ISU game on WMBD and the 1 game WTVP took.

I think BU did a great job arranging this deal, considering the lack of alternatives. Yet in the end, people will have the capability of seeing possibly 19-20 or more Bradley games on TV this year, far more than have ever been carried.

[Old Coach]

Out of curiousity, what kind of deal would you have preffered? I am always curious to see what kind of alternatives people have who are not supportive of progress made. BU had about a month and WEEK and WMBD as well as local netowrk other channels would not pick them up because they lost money showing because ESPN and other channels have the rights to the good games. What are your ideas so we can suggest them to BU Sports Marketing and KK?

I have Insight, so I'll get to see the games.

As for what I think, I believe this is the kind of deal that gets done when everybody else (network stations) calls your bluff.

[Da Coach]

I have Insight, so I'll get to see the games.

As for what I think, I believe this is the kind of deal that gets done when everybody else (network stations) calls your bluff.

Again, nobody bluffed anyone. WEEK and the others were not willing to televise the games. And the TV deals in the past have never been money makers for Bradley.

[Old Coach]

WEEK and the others were not willing to televise the games.

Perhaps KK wasn't so willing work things out (negotiate) with WEEK, or WMBD for that matter?

[Da Coach]

I can see why a skeptic could see it that way, but I don't believe that's the way it was. Bradley wants their games on TV, and wasn't looking to squeeze anyone. The facts as they are presented seem believeable to me.
I have a friend who works for WEEK and they are happy to be out of the deal. They lost money and made a lot of viewers angry when they preempted their network programming.

[Old Coach]

I can see why a skeptic could see it that way, but I don't believe that's the way it was. Bradley wants their games on TV, and wasn't looking to squeeze anyone. The facts as they are presented seem believeable to me.
I have a friend who works for WEEK and they are happy to be out of the deal. They lost money and made a lot of viewers angry when they preempted their network programming.

Which brings up the bigger question... If WEEK couldn't make money airing Bradley basketball, how can a cable delivery system that only reaches 1/2 the market?

[ph]

WEEK reaches every television household in this DMA. Insight only reaches between 50% - 55% of television households in the market... you do the math.

I'll believe that that some other cable companies will pick these games up when I see it.

Technically, WEEK's signal is currently broadcast across the entire northern half of the US via DirecTv. (It is broadcast from an old CONUS or non-spot beam satellite that they sold to a Canadian company, that owned the 72.5 location in exchange for use of a few transponders to provide some locals) Legally you can only receive it if you live within the Peoria DMA.

[MacabreMob]

Which brings up the bigger question... If WEEK couldn't make money airing Bradley basketball, how can a cable delivery system that only reaches 1/2 the market?

They will probably pass it off to the consumer in hidden prices for other services.

[it's boogie time]

Isn't a strike looming for one of WEEK's unions.