WCVB in court today over simulcast

[pats1]

According to Fred Kirsch. They want to keep exclusivity in the Boston market.

 

[Gwedd]

Good for them. The NFL signed a contract with them and needs to honor it. Maybe they can also name Kerry as a co-defendant for running his mouth about the situation. He was only trolling for votes anyway. I doubt he even understands what football is.

Respects,

 

[ShrewBeer]

with all this sht happenin, it goes to show how much legal bullcrap and planning goes into a big game, and what happens when they are unprepared.

 

[BradyManny]

Good for them. The NFL signed a contract with them and needs to honor it.

Good point.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Exactly. If CVB entered into a good faith exclusive contract with NFLN that allowed them to sell advt time at certain market rates with CVB and its advt customers believing that they had an exclusive audience outside the few who subscribe to NFLN and suddenly NFLN has opened the broadcast to everyone then CVB has been damaged and has good grounds for a suit.

 

[spacecrime]

Good for them. The NFL signed a contract with them and needs to honor it. Maybe they can also name Kerry as a co-defendant for running his mouth about the situation. He was only trolling for votes anyway. I doubt he even understands what football is.

Respects,

His next step is to ensure that everyone can watch HBO for free, and that PPV events are put on all local stations for free.

It isn't just that he doesn't understand football. He doesn't understand how television works, how networks bid for the right to show games and events.

 

[Patsfanin Philly]

Exactly. If CVB entered into a good faith exclusive contract with NFLN that allowed them to sell advt time at certain market rates with CVB and its advt customers believing that they had an exclusive audience outside the few who subscribe to NFLN and suddenly NFLN has opened the broadcast to everyone then CVB has been damaged and has good grounds for a suit.

The same goes for all those advertisers who signed contracts to pay $200K for an ad spot on NFLN. Are they going to get rebates now that there are changed circumstances, especially since ( according to PFT) both NBC and CBS get to keep their ad revenue. It's a winner for them and a loser for those that had exclusivity and paid accordingly....I don't think that we've heard the last of this....

 

[Charlotte Pats Fan]

Good job by the Government Threaten the NFL with congressional hearings and than Eff up the free market by penalizing the people who did the right thing (WCVB ,etc) But it's all good for the lazy, whiners they get to watch the Pats for free.

 

[PatsDeb]

The same goes for all those advertisers who signed contracts to pay $200K for an ad spot on NFLN. Are they going to get rebates now that there are changed circumstances, especially since ( according to PFT) both NBC and CBS get to keep their ad revenue. It's a winner for them and a loser for those that had exclusivity and paid accordingly....I don't think that we've heard the last of this....

The first thing I thought when I saw that NBC and CBS were going to get the game is, boy is Channel 5 going to be pissed. ABC in NH also negotiated to show the game. The NFL really screwed this up. They should give a rebate to advertisers who signed up for Channel 5 or NFLN, but I'm sure that has a snowball's chance in hell of happening.

 

[sieglo]

Good job by the Government Threaten the NFL with congressional hearings and than Eff up the free market by penalizing the people who did the right thing (WCVB ,etc) But it's all good for the lazy, whiners they get to watch the Pats for free.

That's what government is all about -- creating handouts for idiots and screwing the people who have their **** together.

For example, the housing bailout. If you're dumb enough to take a mortgage you can't afford, you should have to live with the consequences when the bank forecloses. Instead, thanks to the government, all the smart people who managed their finances correctly are now paying extra tax to subsidize some *******'s McMansion.

 

[NYPatsFan]

Good for them. The NFL signed a contract with them and needs to honor it. Maybe they can also name Kerry as a co-defendant for running his mouth about the situation. He was only trolling for votes anyway. I doubt he even understands what football is.

Respects,

John Kerry knows football.

Long snapping and shaking hands at the same time.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

It's win-win for the pols from NY, VT and MA who panicked NFLN into this litigious nightmare, because their big campaign contributors, the Trial Lawyers Assn, will be the real winners as this clusterfluk plays out.

 

[37Harrison]

IMO, the NFL did the right thing. This isn't only about the Patriots. This is about NFL history and every football fan should be able to witness history being made, not just Patriot fans.

I understand why CVB would be pissed but, again this is something that has never happened and should be broadcast for all to see.

This may not be the ideal solution but it seems to be the only and right solution at this point.

 

[sebman2112]

The same goes for all those advertisers who signed contracts to pay $200K for an ad spot on NFLN. Are they going to get rebates now that there are changed circumstances, especially since ( according to PFT) both NBC and CBS get to keep their ad revenue. It's a winner for them and a loser for those that had exclusivity and paid accordingly....I don't think that we've heard the last of this....

Here's a question regarding those companies who paid NFLN $200K for ad time. Wouldn't their ad's be getting increased viewership now that the NFLN's broadcast of the game is getting simulcast on two major networks? So, wouldn't those particular companies be happy about the increased viewership?

I do completely understand WCVB's complaint though, and if they can prove contractual agreement, they should win. That shouldn't limit the NFL's ability to simulcast the game in other markets though, just WCVB's.

 

[Charlotte Pats Fan]

The first thing I thought when I saw that NBC and CBS were going to get the game is, boy is Channel 5 going to be pissed. ABC in NH also negotiated to show the game. The NFL really screwed this up. They should give a rebate to advertisers who signed up for Channel 5 or NFLN, but I'm sure that has a snowball's chance in hell of happening.

How ironic is this. The Government threatens the NFL with hearings if they don't show the big game, the NFL hastily gives in but screws up the people who did the right thing, Those people in turn sue the NFL in a Government Court for damages that were in effect caused by the Governments intervention in the first place.

 

[Gwedd]

Here's a question regarding those companies who paid NFLN $200K for ad time. Wouldn't their ad's be getting increased viewership now that the NFLN's broadcast of the game is getting simulcast on two major networks? So, wouldn't those particular companies be happy about the increased viewership?

I do completely understand WCVB's complaint though, and if they can prove contractual agreement, they should win.

Here's the deal. The NFLN's commercials won't necesarily run on the other channels, even though the game is simulcast. The other stations have the right to sell advertising and publish their own commercials over the top of the NFLN's ads. The feeds from the game always have a countdown to pre-agreed commercial time, so the stations can cue up their ads. Sometimes stuff happens and it get's overlapped due to things happening on the field like injuries, etc. However, every station has someone standing by with ad copy spooled up to run on a given due.

So, those advertisers who paid mega bucks for what they were told would be exclusive spots during a limited-market game, are now shagged big time. I suspect that there are any number of ancillary suits being filed even as I type this. That rock that the NFL tossed into the broadcast pool with this simul-cast is creating some big ripples that apparently no one thought about.

Way to go Goodell.

 

[Charlotte Pats Fan]

IMO, the NFL did the right thing. This isn't only about the Patriots. This is about NFL history and every football fan should be able to witness history being made, not just Patriot fans.
I understand why CVB would be pissed but, again this is something that has never happened and should be broadcast for all to see.

This may not be the ideal solution but it seems to be the only and right
solution at this point.

Why. There is no such right.

The NFL was threatened and coercied and you think it's the right thing to do.

 

[groundgame]

You can best believe the NFL had fine print in the contract which allows them to wiggle out of committment due to unforseen changes in conditions.

 

[Charlotte Pats Fan]

Here's the deal. The NFLN's commercials won't necesarily run on the other channels, even though the game is simulcast. The other stations have the right to sell advertising and publish their own commercials over the top of the NFLN's ads. The feeds from the game always have a countdown to pre-agreed commercial time, so the stations can cue up their ads. Sometimes stuff happens and it get's overlapped due to things happening on the field like injuries, etc. However, every station has someone standing by with ad copy spooled up to run on a given due.

So, those advertisers who paid mega bucks for what they were told would be exclusive spots during a limited-market game, are now shagged big time. I suspect that there are any number of ancillary suits being filed even as I type this. That rock that the NFL tossed into the broadcast pool with this simul-cast is creating some big ripples that apparently no one thought about.

Way to go Goodell.

As much as I dislike him it wasn't Goodell's fault. It was the Governments' threats of Congressional hearings that caused the NFL to hastily cave.

 

[sebman2112]

Here's the deal. The NFLN's commercials won't necesarily run on the other channels, even though the game is simulcast. The other stations have the right to sell advertising and publish their own commercials over the top of the NFLN's ads. The feeds from the game always have a countdown to pre-agreed commercial time, so the stations can cue up their ads. Sometimes stuff happens and it get's overlapped due to things happening on the field like injuries, etc. However, every station has someone standing by with ad copy spooled up to run on a given due.

So, those advertisers who paid mega bucks for what they were told would be exclusive spots during a limited-market game, are now shagged big time. I suspect that there are any number of ancillary suits being filed even as I type this. That rock that the NFL tossed into the broadcast pool with this simul-cast is creating some big ripples that apparently no one thought about.

Way to go Goodell.

I know that NBC and CBS are going to be allowed to play different ad's, but do any of us really know they didn't also commit to play the AD's of companies the NFLN had already sold time to?