Connect with us
Jim Cutler Demos

Sports Radio News

The Future For NFL Sunday Ticket Depends On Pricing, Creativity and Reliability

“How do you assure me that the experience they’re going to have with the product is superior to what they had been seeing?”

Avatar photo

Published

on

NFL Sunday Ticket DIRECTV

If DirecTV’s Sunday Ticket were a professional football team, one could argue that it’s off to a losing start this season.

The NFL is entering Week 5 having played less than a month of regular-season football. Out of the first four weeks of action, at least three saw fans vent their frustrations about DirecTV’s Sunday Ticket package. From error pages to inconsistent streaming to quality issues, Sunday Ticket has seen its fair share of online criticism in what could be its last season as a DirecTV exclusive.

It’s widely believed that after the 2022 season, DirecTV will cede control of Sunday Ticket, which will face intense competition from streaming providers. Apple is widely believed to be the future home, but Amazon, Disney and Google are all believed to be vying for rights as well.

As the streaming giants face off against one another, it’s likely that they’ll have to be creative in their pitch to the NFL. In an NFL Sunday Ticket survey of 2,562 fans conducted by The Streamable, which covers streaming services, increased accessibility isn’t the only thing that viewers want to see from a new provider.

According to the survey, only 26% of fans are willing to pay up to Sunday Ticket’s current $300 base price. If that price were in the $150-to-$200 range, the survey says that it could result in an increase in subscribers. It also states that 50% of fans are willing to pay $150, while 43% are willing to pay $200. 

“If [the Sunday Ticket provider] is able to drop the price to something lower, something more in line with other out-of-market packages, like $150 to $200, you can see somewhere up to a 2x increase in the number of people who might sign up for this service,” Jason Gurwin, co-founder of The Streamable, said in an interview. 

The price any company will pay for the rights to Sunday Ticket is also a point of discussion. Amazon’s 11-year streaming deal for the NFL’s “Thursday Night Football” package will cost the tech company $1 billion per season. Apple’s 10-year contract with Major League Soccer for rights to all regular season and League Cup matches cost it $2.5 billion total. The iPhone creator is also spending $85 million annually over the next seven years to stream MLB’s Friday Night Baseball on Apple TV+. 

According to Gurwin, the competition for the package will be heavily dictated by the creativity of the streaming giants. DirecTV’s history with the package has been hindered by only being accessible to customers with satellite dishes. 

If a company wants to win Sunday Ticket rights going forward, Gurwin believes that it’ll have to show flexibility in the market.

And with the bidders likely coming to the NFL with similar offers in the billions, they’ll have to assure the league that they can offer more than just cash given Sunday Ticket’s dwindling reputation, said Chris Lencheski, CEO of Phoenicia Sport, a private equity consultancy specializing in media, sports and entertainment.

“How do you assure me that the experience they’re going to have with the product is superior to what they had been seeing?” Lencheski said. “Low bar, so that shouldn’t be hard, but also superior in the sense of a digital product that they compared to many other players out there in the space.”

Lowering the Sunday Ticket price for fans isn’t the only way to lure new consumers, Lenchenski argued. It could come down to a viewer consuming games in ways that DirectTV couldn’t offer under its Sunday Ticket ownership. 

Lencheski envisions alternate broadcast strategies akin to ESPN’s ManningCast program or the Worldwide Leader’s “Kayrod” Sunday Night Baseball edition with Alex Rodriguez and Michael Kay. The possibilities provide streaming companies an endless number of ways to entice Sunday Ticket followers.

“Whomever wins this product comes at it from the customer experience,” Lencheski added.

Apple’s willingness to experiment with its sports services thus far makes it a heavy favorite to win the Sunday Ticket bid, according to Gurwin. MLS matches are not only available for free through the Apple TV app, but also for those who have Apple TV+ subscriptions and even traditional linear TV viewers. And, when the Yankees’ Aaron Judge faced off against the Red Sox on Friday, September 23rd, to see if he’d match Roger Maris’ homerun record, fans (myself included) were able to stream on Apple TV for free.

“It seems like their team is willing to try different options in order to see what works best for the consumer,” Gurwin said. 

Another popular way for Apple to strengthen its chances at securing Sunday Ticket is through bundles. Both Gurwin and Nick Rizzo, research director at Vertical Scope, believe that Apple’s diverse product offerings can be incorporated into deals with Sunday Ticket. 

Gurwin envisions a scenario where Apple offers a free year of Apple TV+ to get people to sign up for Sunday Ticket. Rizzo could see the tech giant offering free Airpods or Apple Music gift cards. 

To Rizzo, these kinds of hypothetical incentives are what Apple needs to offer if it wants to secure the Sunday Ticket rights. He recently conducted a preliminary survey asking participants to rank the four companies — Apple, Amazon, Disney and Google — that they are most excited to join if they offered Sunday Ticket. 

The company that participants were least excited to join? Apple. 

With streaming numbers well behind its competitors, Rizzo thinks that bundles and enticing offers will make customers more accepting of Apple being another streaming service in their monthly subscriptions. 

“It’s kind of clear that people don’t want to add that other service,” Rizzo said. “But all signs are pointing in the direction that Apple TV’s likely to win [Sunday Ticket]. So you can see why from Apple’s perspective why they’d want to do that, because it’s going to force the hand of more fans to say, ‘Okay, well, I guess I’ll sign up.’” 

“If they provide some incentives to get people to sign up and join Apple TV,  it’s going to start giving them exposure and get more people on their platform.”

Sign up for the BSM 8@8

The Top 8 Sports Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox, every morning at 8am ET.

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Sports Radio News

Kirk Minihane: WEEI is “Going to be Andy Gresh and Rich Shertenlieb in Afternoons”

“Maybe the two most sensitive c***s in the history of radio. That’s a show we are going to ruin.”

Published

on

Photos of Kirk Minihane and Rich Shertenlieb

As the speculation continues on where Boston sports talker Rich Shertenlieb will end up, one former WEEI host said he has the scoop on what is going to happen. Kirk Minihane, now with Barstool Sports, said, “What I heard was, initially, was they were moving Rich Keefe from nights to middays, moving Adam Jones from afternoons to middays and keeping Fauria there, and moving Andy Gresh to afternoons…But now it appears Rich Shertenlieb is going to do afternoons with Andy Gresh.”

On Wednesday, Boston Globe sports and sports media columnist Chad Finn had put out a post on X, saying, “Didn’t think Rich Shertenlieb would end up at WEEI after leaving Sports Hub. I do now, most likely in afternoon drive. Audacy management has been telling people to expect changes.”

Minihane continued commenting on the matter, saying, “It’s going to be Andy Gresh and Rich Shertenlieb in the afternoons, which is going to be so awful. Maybe the two most sensitive c***s in the history of radio. That’s a show we are going to ruin…we haven’t done that in a while, we are going to take that show down…Once that show starts, we are just going to blitz them with phone calls because Gresh can’t handle that.

“What they don’t understand, because they are so dumb, is that…Rich Shertenlieb has no fan base…no fan of [Toucher and Hardy] in the morning is going to be like ‘I’m not going to listen to Felger in the afternoons, I’ll now listen to Andy Gresh and Rich Shertenlieb.’ It’s going to be dreadful.”

Recapping what he has heard the rest of the WEEI lineup will be, Minihane said, “…And then in middays you have Adam Jones, failed afternoons. Rich Keefe who has now failed middays, drivetime, nights and is now going to fail again in middays… and Christian Fauria who has never drawn a rating in his life.”

WEEI has not commented on any of the speculation. BSM will have more as the story unfolds.

Sign up for the BSM 8@8

The Top 8 Sports Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox, every morning at 8am ET.

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading

Sports Radio News

Former 670 The Score Host Tommy Williams Has Died

Published

on

Photo of Tommy Williams
Courtesy: Lakeshore Public Media

Tommy Williams, who was heard for a decade on 670 The Score, died on Wednesday at the age of 66.

Williams began his broadcasting career in his hometown of Gary, Indiana in 1982 at WLTH before moving on to The Score. In 2003, Williams became the PA Announcer for the Gary Southshore RailCats of the American Association where he had his signature call to get the attention of the fans, “People, People, People.”

A story in The Times of Northwest Indiana said, “The longtime RailCats public address announcer and Lakeshore Public Media sports journalist was known for broadcasting countless games, interviewing countless athletes and covering Region sports at all levels. The Gary native and co-host of “Prep Sports Report,” “Prep Football Report,” and “Lakeshore PBS Scoreboard” often signed off shows saying, “Gary, Indiana, you know I love you.”

“The cadence he had in his voice echoed across the Region in a way we may never see again. He was widely known and widely loved,” Tom Maloney, vice president of radio operations at Lakeshore Public Media told the paper.

“He’d want to be remembered as the voice of Lakeshore sports,” his Regionally Speaking co-host and producer Dee Dotson told The Times. “Most people will remember him for covering prep sports all the way up to semi-pros. He’ll be remembered for treating each of his subjects like they were world champions. His depth of knowledge of sports at all levels is commendable. He was a walking encyclopedia of stats.” 

Sign up for the BSM 8@8

The Top 8 Sports Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox, every morning at 8am ET.

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading

Sports Radio News

Compass Media Networks Promotes Three Members to Oversee Play-by-Play Sports Platform

“It is our pleasure to give these three talented executives their day in the sun, knowing that they will continue to work incredibly hard to carry on this tradition of excellence.”

Published

on

Logo for Compass Media Networks

Compass Media Networks has announced the promotions of three long-standing executives, Robert Blum, Tyler Brewer, and Chris Kleiber, who will collectively oversee the content creation, production, and distribution of the company’s play-by-play sports platform.

“For over 16 years, Compass Media Networks has set a standard of excellence for national play-by-play sports with Chris, Rob, and Tyler playing a vital part in our success,” said Peter Kosann, CEO/Founder of Compass Media Networks. “It is our pleasure to give these three talented executives their day in the sun, knowing that they will continue to work incredibly hard to carry on this tradition of excellence.”

Robet Blum has been appointed Vice President & General Manager of Sports and will also continue to serve as Vice President of Affiliate Sales for News-Talk and Sports. Tyler Brewer has been appointed Executive Producer – Sports Programming. And Chris Kleiber has been appointed Senior Producer – Sports Programming.

Compass Media Networks broadcasts annually over 100 play-by-play sporting events involving college men’s basketball and football (including the Big Ten Tournament and the Big Ten Championship Game), NFL 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Sunday Doubleheaders, and complete coverage of the Dallas Cowboys and Las Vegas Raiders. The broadcasts are distributed across hundreds of terrestrial sports, news-talk and music stations as well as digital distribution platforms such as SiriusXM, Verizon Mobile, and the Varsity App.

Sign up for the BSM 8@8

The Top 8 Sports Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox, every morning at 8am ET.

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading
Advertisement

Advertisement

Upcoming Events

Barrett Media Writers

Copyright © 2024 Barrett Media.