Can the Canadian broadcasters low ball the NHL?

[viper0220]

As of right now the NHL is in discussions, with the Canadian broadcasters for tv contracts. Can the big three Canadian broadcasters CBC, Bell, Rogers collude together and low blow the NHL by offering the least amount of money. Can they do this? They get together and they just come up with a plan where they pay the NHL least amount of money for rights, in other words they team up. I mean what can the NHL do?

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[Fish on The Sand]

I'm pretty sure that is illegal

 

[viper0220]

I'm pretty sure that is illegal

When you are playing in poker tournament, this happens as well, say 4 players are left and 1 player(poor soul) goes in and the other 3 players call but no one bets or raises, they just check around, hopefully that one of them can beat can the short stack but they just say a word. The same can happen here, where they just don't say anything and they just do it.

 

[Walkingthroughforest]

When you are playing in poker tournament, this happens as well, say 4 players are left and 1 player(poor soul) goes in and the other 3 players call but no one bets or raises, they just check around, hopefully that one of them can beat can the short stack but they just say a word. The same can happen here, where they just don't say anything and they just do it.

That's naive thinking. Of course the NHL will know, and they will be taken to court before they can say the word "Hockey".

 

[kdb209]

When you are playing in poker tournament, this happens as well, say 4 players are left and 1 player(poor soul) goes in and the other 3 players call but no one bets or raises, they just check around, hopefully that one of them can beat can the short stack but they just say a word. The same can happen here, where they just don't say anything and they just do it.

Ignoring the fact that they might have problems "not saying anything" when they are investigated and subpoenaed by the Canadian Competition Bureau, they would also face the Prisoners Dilemma - while acting in concert might be in the best interest of all, they each risk that one of the other parties might go behind their backs, scoop up the whole thing at a discount, leaving them out in the cold.

 

[jigglysquishy]

I'm pretty sure that is illegal

Bell, Rogers, and Telus are currently colluding on telecom prices and the government isn't doing anything to stop it.

 

[Llama19]

As of right now the NHL is in discussions, with the Canadian broadcasters for tv contracts. Can the big three Canadian broadcasters CBC, Bell, Rogers collude together and low blow the NHL by offering the least amount of money. Can they do this? They get together and they just come up with a plan where they pay the NHL least amount of money for rights, in other words they team up. I mean what can the NHL do?

That would be a violation of the Competition Act (i.e., C-34) now wouldn't it...

 

[Diamondillium]

This is incredibly obvious collusion, which is incredibly illegal and yeah...

Wouldn't happen, if it did, it wouldn't end well. Simple as that.

Simply not formally talking about it isn't enough to get you off the hook for collusion.

 

[Dirty Old Man]

Or they could just all not bid. That's legal, right?

 

[MarkGio]

And if they did collude together, they'll pass all the savings onto the consumer, right?

.... right?

Guys?

 

[He Lied to Mario]

As of right now the NHL is in discussions, with the Canadian broadcasters for tv contracts. Can the big three Canadian broadcasters CBC, Bell, Rogers collude together and low blow the NHL by offering the least amount of money. Can they do this? They get together and they just come up with a plan where they pay the NHL least amount of money for rights, in other words they team up. I mean what can the NHL do?

I think you mean low ball. Low blow is what Bryan Marchment or Ulf Samuelsson used to do.

 

[Butch 19]

I think you mean low ball. Low blow is what Bryan Marchment or Ulf Samuelsson used to do.

maybe the metric system makes it ok to say "low blow, eh?"

 

[GuelphStormer]

why is this collusion?

the competition bureau is charged with protecting consumer interests, not those of a private, albeit not-for-profit corporation (ie., the nhl). there is no more or less direct "public interest" in how much these networks are willing to pay for content than there would be in how much CTV or CBC would be willing to pay for broadcast rights of any random television program like ncis or the kardashians.

i would think the more problematic aspect would be the fact that the networks are also themselves owners (ie., they are the nhl). ... and that would create huge infighting among all 30 owners.

it is interesting how a non-trivial number of teams are owned (wholly or partially) by media companies. and there might indeed be some opportunity for some sort of concerted effort that would benefit them more as media companies than as nhl franchise owners. or, would folks here think that sort of aggressive strategic missive would be too dangerous and/or not worth it?

 

[mouser]

Anti-trust and price fixing are two terms that come to mind.

 

[realgoodleafs]

They can only collude against their Canadian customers.

 

[IU Hawks fan]

Low blow? Is that was you guys call low balling up there?

 

[DyerMaker66*]

Low blow? Is that was you guys call low balling up there?

It's what we call punching peeps in the nads.

 

[BigZ65]

Bell didn't low ball the CFL. And Bell (TSN) was the only bidder capable of televising all games in HD, they had no competition.

 

[Krishna]

Yeah, that's definitely illegal. And not saying Anything to each other doesn't make it any less illegal

 

[htpwn]

Anti-trust and price fixing are two terms that come to mind.

Not that the NHL is known for its generous respect of anti-trust laws.

 

[colchar]

When you are playing in poker tournament, this happens as well, say 4 players are left and 1 player(poor soul) goes in and the other 3 players call but no one bets or raises, they just check around, hopefully that one of them can beat can the short stack but they just say a word. The same can happen here, where they just don't say anything and they just do it.

Just because something happens in some random poker game does not mean that it happens in the real world.

In the real world it is called collusion and it is illegal.

 

[Killion]

Ya, I think as everyones aware, even the hint or intimation of bid rigging, collusion, absolutely illegal. End of discussion, thread closed...