Cont'd - NHL makes 12-year/$5.2 billion Canadian TV deal w/ Sportsnet, CBC, TSN out

[ThisYearsModel]

So.........ESPN/Disney owns 20% stake in TSN, and now are completely out of the NHL broadcasting business. As a fan south of the border, I am sad to see TSN's personalities out. I have enjoyed their contribution and their chemistry. Does this mean the HNIC theme song will be back on HNIC?

 

[boredmale]

Our partnerships with the Leafs, Jets, Canadiens, Sens, & Hockey Canada remain core to our @TSN_Sports & @RDSca properties. (3/4)—
Bell Media PR (@BellMediaPR) November 26, 2013

So basically screw anybody west of Saskatoon?

 

[Jack Bauer]

So.........ESPN/Disney owns 20% stake in TSN, and now are completely out of the NHL broadcasting business. As a fan south of the border, I am sad to see TSN's personalities out. I have enjoyed their contribution and their chemistry. Does this mean the HNIC theme song will be back on HNIC?

Nope. Sadly Bell(TSN) owns the song and would have to sell it to their main rival Rogers(Sportsnet) for use on HNIC.

 

[Warden of the North]

One thing Wyshynski is wrong about is fans without cable being losers. I cancelled Rogers over an year ago and I watch more hockey now than I did back then. All you need is some basic computer knowledge and a good internet connection, the folks who don't have that or are unwilling to have that or cable are the losers.

I do consider OTA hockey to be important in growing the game especially amongst the immigrant demographic. If Rogers is smart then what they'll do is beef up CityTV so that it reaches areas outside of big cities via OTA and move HNIC to CityTV once the CBC deal ends in four years but I doubt that they do this. Would be huge for their brand though if they did and if CityTV had the American prime-time programming it has now plus Saturday night hockey.

Prior to OTA TV going digital I could get CityTV OTA on the bunny ears at my cabin, 300km away from Toronto.

 

[Blitzkrug]

TSN is putting up a brave front but seriously...

We congratulate the @NHL on today's announcement. (1/4)—
Bell Media PR (@BellMediaPR) November 26, 2013

We submitted a bid we believed was valuable for the @NHL and appropriate for our business, but were ultimately outbid. (2/4)—
Bell Media PR (@BellMediaPR) November 26, 2013

Our partnerships with the Leafs, Jets, Canadiens, Sens, & Hockey Canada remain core to our @TSN_Sports & @RDSca properties. (3/4)—
Bell Media PR (@BellMediaPR) November 26, 2013

With an on-air broadcast team unmatched in terms of talent & experience we’re committed to TSN remaining Canada’s Sports Leader. (4/4)—
Bell Media PR (@BellMediaPR) November 26, 2013

Can't do that with just CFL and Raptors basketball.

Sportsnet is now the undisputed king of Canadian Sports TV

 

[Jack Bauer]

So basically screw anybody west of Saskatoon?

No, screw anyone they don't currently have a TV or rights deal with.

Pretty self explanatory.

 

[Warden of the North]

So basically screw anybody west of Saskatoon?

They can throw buckets of money for the regional rights when they become available

 

[bigred50]

I can only home that the removal of blackouts will also apply to weekly games on Gamecentre, and that free streaming will continue for the Saturday games.

This is what I'm worried about too. I cut my cable a couple of years ago and have gotten by swimmingly using Gamecenter Live.

Giving Rogers full control of GCL across Canada has me a little concerned. I have an awful feeling that you'll have to be a Rogers subscriber and have the Supreme Extreme Ultra Sportsnet PLUS (!) package to access Gamecenter now...

 

[Kyle McMahon]

so then nothing really changes for you as a fan of your non-Canadian team then.

Sure it does. National broadcasts are blacked out on Center Ice. So now a Canadian who wants to watch an American team will probably only be able to watch half their games on CI. He'll have to order up garbage channels like SN 360 and SN One since they'll be showing his team on Saturday nights, and possibly Sunday and Wednesday nights as well. This deal is disastrous for somebody in Canada who likes an American team, even more so if it happens to be a popular American team.

 

[madhi19]

For the love of god does it mean the stupid regional blackout on sporstnet are over.

 

[Hemlor]

This is what I'm worried about too. I cut my cable a couple of years ago and have gotten by swimmingly using Gamecenter Live.

Giving Rogers full control of GCL across Canada has me a little concerned. I have an awful feeling that you'll have to be a Rogers subscriber and have the Supreme Extreme Ultra Sportsnet PLUS (!) package to access Gamecenter now...

They might still have a GCL only package, or morph it into some other online only package. The real concern will be cost

 

[Jack Bauer]

Can't do that with just CFL and Raptors basketball.

Sportsnet is now the undisputed king of Canadian Sports TV

Yep and with Rogers owning the Jays and showing all 162 games combined with this...TSN can literally go grab every other North American sport and they won't have many Canadians turning away from the Rogers brands.

Rogers played the ultimate trump card.

 

[Hemlor]

Yep and with Rogers owning the Jays and showing all 162 games combined with this...TSN can literally go grab every other North American sport and they won't have many Canadians turning away from the Rogers brands.

Rogers played the ultimate trump card.

For a hefty price. They obviously think they can make money, and I don't doubt them, but man, that is a huge investment

 

[MaskedSonja]

IMO this really is a changing of the media guard. Yes CBC still has HNIC, but by the sounds of it they lost a fair bit of coverage. Cherry and Maclean's contracts are coming up in a few years, and I wonder if CBC will still pay out the huge contracts to them with less coverage.

Note, I'm not saying it's right or wrong, not laying out any sort of quality opinion of the coverage that was issued. But to me this suggests that while NHL/Bettman may still want to support the HNIC (and "tradition" therein), money talks and games walk, and in this case, they walk to Rogers it seems.

EDIT: wait what, did I misread, or did TSN get no games at all?? Or no more than they have now?

Oh my goodness, I thought TSN got to keep the same amount of games, but blanked right out?? With the "hockeycentric" layout they've done over the years....wow......

 

[Osprey]

Someone correct me if this is out of the question, but could not NBC simply sub-contract their games to TSN? They already have a partnership in which TSN (usually TSN2) simulcasts occasional NBC games, and NBC simulcasts TSN events like the draft and the occasional game in the playoffs. Could Comcast/NBCUniversal not simply step in and expand that partnership? They'd probably like more of a foothold in the Canadian TV market. They have their all-sports NBCSN channel in the U.S., but not something similar in Canada. TSN, either through a partnership or being acquired, could become like NBC's NBCSN for Canada. That could mean as many as 4 games per week during the regular season, plus special events like the Classic and Outdoor series, and most playoff games, including all of the final two or three rounds.

Is that not possible? CBC and Sportsnet may have "national rights," but surely that just means that those are the only entities in Canada that the NHL is directly selling licenses to. If a company outside of the country (NBC) wants to share its license, it should be able to, it seems. The only barrier that I can think of is if it's in NBC's deal with the NHL that they can't, but they've been doing it so far with the simulcasts and it seems unlikely that both parties would've known when they signed it that this would end up happening (TSN losing the NHL).

 

[bigred50]

It's a total love-in listening to Rogers Sportsnet 590 right now... Kypreos spouting hyperbole. ugh.

 

[htpwn]

Not a chance Rogers lets Maclean and Cherry go.

I can't see it either.

Rogers likes Money.
Don and Ron make Money.

Is there an intermission that draws more viewers in North America?

I just hope Don doesn't get muzzled. His appeal has always been the straight shooting, over the top persona.

Prior to OTA TV going digital I could get CityTV OTA on the bunny ears at my cabin, 300km away from Toronto.

The deal may be a mixed bag, but the CityTV is a major plus.

Another OTA HD Channel to watch Hockey on and not a surprise either. Rogers has been looking to "legitimatize" the station and bring it up to the likes of CTV, Global, and CBC for a long time now.

 

[Beukeboom Fan]

The negativity from Canadians on this definitely amuses me. More options, more games available, HNIC not killed off, but "Rogers has a high school broadcast, this is crap!"

From an American's perspective with Center Ice - there is a huge difference in both production value and analysis provided on TSN compared to SN. The thought is thought that SN is going to have to step up there game, and is likely able to poach a significant amount of the talent from TSN. I think it's way too soon to tell, but to evaluate the SN deal strictly based on the current production & talent @ SN is not fair and pretty short-sighted.

Other than continuing the tradition of HNIC.. I'll say I honestly don't understand why CBC entered into this deal.

If they don't get the revenue from their air time, what is the point?

They are basically acting as an extension of Rogers any time they are broadcasting an NHL game but at their own expense..

I think that CBC saw that they couldn't compete with the $'s that Rogers would throw, so they made the best deal they could out of a bad situation. I think that the NHL probably also applied some pressure to Rogers to make them at least keep an appearance of HNIC's integrity as free OTA.

 

[BeardyCanuck03]

Of course they need more talent. They also now have 2 groups of people to go after from TSN and HNIC. it's inevitable that it happens but until it does those people are all working for companies that have nothing to do with national NHL coverage.

TSN will hold onto a lot of the talent though. Miller and Cuthbert also do play by play of the CFL. Mckenzie, Dreger and LeBrun are gonna continue to dig and write about stories (their jobs don't rely on having the NHL TV rights). Duthie could still stay with TSN as a host of a special hockey show.

 

[bigred50]

Someone correct me if this is out of the question, but could not NBC simply sub-contract their games to TSN? They already have a partnership in which TSN (usually TSN2) simulcasts occasional NBC games, and NBC simulcasts TSN events like the draft and the occasional game in the playoffs. Could Comcast/NBCUniversal not simply step in and expand that partnership? They'd probably like more of a foothold in the Canadian TV market. They have their all-sports NBCSN channel in the U.S., but not something similar in Canada. TSN, either through a partnership or being acquired, could become like NBC's NBCSN for Canada. That could mean as many as 4 games per week during the regular season, plus special events like the Classic and Outdoor series, and most playoff games, including all of the final two or three rounds.

Is that not possible? CBC and Sportsnet may have "national rights," but surely that just means that those are the only entities in Canada that the NHL is directly selling licenses to. If a company outside of the country (NBC) wants to share its license, it should be able to, it seems. The only barrier that I can think of is if it's in NBC's deal with the NHL that they can't, but they've been doing it so far with the simulcasts and it seems unlikely that both parties would've known when they signed it that this would end up happening (TSN losing the NHL).

Nope. Rogers has exclusive national rights to all NHL games. NBC can't show games to Canadian viewers directly, nor could TSN simply pick up an NBC feed and televise it to Canadian viewers.

 

[Avs_19]

It has nothing to do with being dumb

These people have contracts just like the players do. Hopefully for those at CBC and TSN they have out clauses in case of the national rights going elsewhere so they're not stuck reporting on the QMJHL trade deadline next season.

Even if they don't have out clauses at CBC, what is CBC going to do with them if they're not used on NHL broadcasts? If Rogers wants the CBC talent on their broadcasts, I don't think that will be a problem. Hopefully Rogers does the smart thing and keeps some of them around rather than shoving Kypreos and D. MacLean down everyone's throat.

 

[jigglysquishy]

I think that CBC saw that they couldn't compete with the $'s that Rogers would throw, so they made the best deal they could out of a bad situation. I think that the NHL probably also applied some pressure to Rogers to make them at least keep an appearance of HNIC's integrity as free OTA.

It was more than a dollar thing. Bettman re-iterated how important it was to have one network control the TV. CBC is only interested in Saturday nights, so they're auto-excluded. That leaves Bell and Rogers.

The NHL must have forced Roger's hand to include CBC.

 

[Blitzkrug]

I'm still curious as to what happens with the random NBCSN simulcasts during the week now.

Obviously Wednesday Night Rivalry is covered under the the new weekly schedule but what about the random MIN/LA games they pick on on Mondays and Tuesdays? Those games can be godsends when channel surfing, lol.

I assume Sportsnet would pick that up too, they only have like 39 channels to put it on..

 

[Avs_19]

Will all the national games be Sportsnet broadcasts now or will they just take the regional feeds and show them in Canada? TSN had their own broadcasts as well as some NBC feeds. At times they even had a feed from the regional channel with their own intermission show.

For example, that Saturday night layout across Rogers' networks they showed, would they just take the Avs or Kings feed and have their own intermission show?

 

[Yukon Joe]

TSN will hold onto a lot of the talent though. Miller and Cuthbert also do play by play of the CFL. Mckenzie, Dreger and LeBrun are gonna continue to dig and write about stories (their jobs don't rely on having the NHL TV rights). Duthie could still stay with TSN as a host of a special hockey show.

Not saying it will happen, but you don't have to have the rights to cover a sport.

ESPN covers the NFL like nobodies business, and has for a number of years. But until they got Monday Night Football 5-6 years ago, they didn't actually have any NFL rights. They still don't on Sunday. But they still do a Sunday pre-game and post-game show that IIRC gets better ratings than the equivalents on CBS or Fox.

On the radio side in several places one station will have the rights, but people will switch over to another station for what is perceived as the "better" post-game show.