So there really is no option to legally watch oilers games without cable within the edmonton region? Even if I'm willing to pay?
Interesting...
I got excited for this "limited" cable package that shaw offers now, for 25.00 a month, but with the required hd boxes and the 8 dollars for the sports channels, I'm saving maybe 5 dollars a month.
Maybe I'll just have to frequent more bars
I just wanted to bold the key point above for emphasis. It is really a sad state of affairs.
The CRTC and FCC are really letting us all down. The companies are engaging in anti-competitive behavior which is hurting the consumers.... and I'm sure it could be argued it is illegal.
The fact that a willing customer has NO LEGAL WAY to stream a game is just wrong.
Asking a prospective customer of a copyright to have to acquire a lease to 1000's of other unwanted copyrights per month (through a cable TV subscription) is just wrong.
The only way they get away with this is that the major networks happen to own the sports channels, so they happen to negotiate the best deal for live sports and then they happen to only offer said live sports through an outdated subscription model.
The copyright holders, especially the NHL and NFL, are either too stupid or too in-bed with the conglomerates that they refuse to distinguish the streaming rights from the cable rights, and that is what limits your choice.
Were the NHL to offer Game Center directly to you through NHL.com without blackouts... were NFL and MLB to do the same, cable TV subscriptions would disappear like the dinosaurs (since Apple has already made enough headway on per-episode/per season subscription models and netflix/Hulu have replaced "bundled" copyrights akin to monthly cable).
Some year soon, Apple is going to outbid everyone for the Superbowl, and that will be the end of these old ways and the start of true customer choice. I say that not as a fan-boy, but because they have enough of an installed user base and enough negotiation power to make it happen (and the motivation to take a loss on the initial bid which strikes the fatal blow on the old model).
I think it interesting times... and if I were a lawyer, I'd be filing a class action on behalf of well-meaning consumers like you.