Re: Versus on Directv - Enough is Enough!!!
I can't say I blame Comcast to want more from Directv if Directv is going to bring it less viewers. I think its wrong for Directv to blame Comcast when it is they that initiated this whole thing.
But that's not the big hang-up as I understand it.
Comcast wants Directv to keep Versus on the
same subscriber tier it's always been on, yes. That we agree on. But that's not the main issue as I've understood it -- and it's something Comcast conveniently leaves out of all their press releases.
Comcast wants to charge Directv the SAME money per-subscriber that they charge Dish Network for carrying Versus.
The whole problem is that Dish
doesn't have Versus on a "basic" package -- it's on a higher, more
premium package of some kind. That enables Dish to offset Versus' higher per-subscriber costs (which most feel are too high anyway given the channel's ratings and overall programming) by charging a premium for the package it's in. Given how low the interest is in Versus overall, that seems to be the most equitable thing to do -- but Comcast isn't allowing Directv to do that.
What Comcast wants is for Directv to keep Versus in the basic package it was in -- but charge Directv as if it's in a premium package, when it isn't. Ultimately, under Comcast's demands, one article guessed that Directv could pay up to 20% more per-customer than Dish Network does -- can you blame them for not agreeing to go along with that deal?
I'm not going to cry a river for Directv either when two big corporations go at it, but to me, seems like Comcast is the one making the most demands for a channel that has, in the big picture, very limited appeal.
What makes the most sense is for Comcast to allow Directv to move Versus to the premium Sports Pack (which is where it ought to be, most hockey fans like us already have it, and you'd have a hard time justifying Versus being on a "basic" package given its paltry ratings) like they allow Dish Network to do. Then Comcast gets their fees. But Comcast, apparently, wants to have their cake and eat it too -- they want the most viewers, while also charging a premium for them. At this point in time with a channel that has very, very small ratings outside of the NHL I'd say they're the ones demanding more than Directv is.
And it might be more complicated than that -- Directv and Comcast have been bickering over some of the regional sports networks' contracts, so that's probably tied in to some degree.
Either way, we're all the big losers in the end.
