By Jesse Temple
In the topsy-turvy, fight-for-the-biggest-dollar-sign world of sports carriage and TV rights, this one really takes the cake.
You've probably heard of the price gouging involved with airing the premiere sports networks on basic or expanded cable packages. ESPN, for example, charges more than three dollars for its total sports programming network. But at least the boys from Bristol are offered on those packages.
From the disastrous world of the NFL and its flagship station, cleverly coined the "NFL Network", comes a saga dripping with so many plot twists, it should be split into a five-part made-for-TV miniseries (aired on an expensive, tiered movie package, of course).
This story comes from the Cincinnati Enquirer. It appears a bit of a rift has surfaced with the NFL Network and Ohio's biggest cable provider, Time Warner Cable. When the Cincinnati Bengals face their biggest rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers, in a prime-time game on Nov. 20, the game likely won't appear on most fans' TV boxes.
That means thousands of fans won't get to watch the game if Time Warner Cable and the NFL Network don't end a long-running dispute over carriage of the channel before then.
According to the story, "Viewers in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky won't have a problem, because the game will be carried on over-the-air broadcast TV. But Bengals fans outside Cincinnati - in Dayton or Columbus, for example - won't see it if they are Time Warner subscribers."
The crux of the battle is this. The NFL Network wants the channel on a basic programming package, where it can be seen by most cable subscribers. That arrangement helps networks garner more advertising dollars, since advertisers pay higher rates for bigger audiences.
On the other side, Time Warner wants to put the channel on a sports tier, where it could charge subscribers an extra fee to watch it. The company's argument is that football is niche content and those who want to see it should pay extra.
Who is in the right? It actually sounds pretty reasonable to this average viewer to just put the channel on basic cable. The whole concept of charging for niche content to begin with seems absurd. There is plenty of "niche" content on regular cable, and customers aren't paying out the wazoo for it. Why the NFL, then?
Of course, if paying for an extra tier on Time Warner was the only option, I'm inclined to believe that many people would pony up, anyway. JUST OFFER IT to the darn viewers in some capacity. The root of the feud is money. And viewers are the ones who suffer.
The NFL Network has a history of alienating local football fans. Just more than two years ago, the same situation occurred between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Denver Broncos, who met for a Thanksgiving night game -- produced, directed and aired exclusively by the NFL Network.
While the NFL Network allowed Denver's Fox affiliate to air the game, viewers out of range were out of luck. People in Colorado Springs or Pueblo needed their radio sets to tune in.
According to the Denver Post article, the NFL Network has "been criticized for trying to strong-arm cable TV companies into carrying its product at an exorbitant rate. It's been scolded for blacking out loyal fans who can't get the proper cable connections. It's even been called in front of a U.S. Senate committee to explain its future intentions and answer questions about antitrust laws."
In Time Warner's case, the company has said it would have to pay $140 million a year to provide the channel to all 13.5 million of its subscribers in 33 states. The cable giant's stance is that the NFL Network belongs on a sports tier, where true NFL fans will pay for it.
Looks like some loyal Bengals fans in Ohio better get ready to shell out some dollars for a bucket of beer at their local bar, where the game would be offered on satellite.