BChockeyfan
Registered User
Has anyone else heard or read the NHL is considering offering the Center Ice Package free for 05-06? Assuming there's a season, this would be a great move to bring back the fans along with ESPN being out of the picture.
Could you provide some idea of how year heard of this?BChockeyfan said:Has anyone else heard or read the NHL is considering offering the Center Ice Package free for 05-06? Assuming there's a season, this would be a great move to bring back the fans along with ESPN being out of the picture.
missK said:P.S. Center Ice will never be free for the whole season, especially now since the NHL is not getting ANY upfront money for broadcasting any games on national TV. The least I have every paid for Center Ice was $99, the most was $149 and my cable company will even break up the payments on 4 monthly bills.
HeShootseyScores said:I'd pay triple what I pay for it now, but free is a good idea too.
Jester said:it might be when one is attempting to get fans back to the sport...
PepNCheese said:If they want to do it, great. I don't know if "free" is realistic, but maybe a discount to attract viewers might work.
Larionov said:Are you kidding me? This is a nice fantasy, but the reality is that the cost for things like Center Ice is going to go up, not down. The powers that be realize that while the NHL's fan base isn't as big as the big three in the U.S., it is cult-like in its loyalty. The league needs that revenue, and will need it even more absent larger deals like ESPN. As other posters have suggested, you might see the free preview for a big longer, but that's it.
missK said:I don't watch Center Ice to watch my home team because those game are blacked out due to broadcast rights.
marknuck311 said:Me too - I'm a Canucks fan, but Centre Ice is useless to me 'cause their games get blacked out for me in Ontario.
Question: when the NHL does come back with whoever chooses to show them, will the blackout still be in effect?
missK said:The companies that broadcast their local team games pay $ to that NHL team for the rights (i.e Lightning broadcasts on Sun Sports TV). Why give those broadcast rights in their local "Exclusive" area to NHL Center Ice for free? Then it's not exclusive.
EDIT : Now I'm all for the following happening - If the local broadcast provider who owns the rights to a team say the Lightning decides not to broadcast a specific game (say a game in Edmonton), then they should give up the rights JUST for that game and then NHL Center Ice can show the opposing games feed if available to the local team's area.
Separate note: Vancouver games blacked out in Ontario on Center Ice? That I think is a totally different situation. Ontario is not Vancouver's "local area" so I don't know why that happens.
BChockeyfan said:Has anyone else heard or read the NHL is considering offering the Center Ice Package free for 05-06? Assuming there's a season, this would be a great move to bring back the fans along with ESPN being out of the picture.
marknuck311 said:Me too - I'm a Canucks fan, but Centre Ice is useless to me 'cause their games get blacked out for me in Ontario.
Question: when the NHL does come back with whoever chooses to show them, will the blackout still be in effect?