Empire Sports Network? Nope. "MSG Western New York"

[LTS]

Look...

 

If this can exist -> http://www.back9network.com/

 

Then anything is possible.

[Huckleberry]

Ah yeah fox sports, they are trying to break into the european football market to.

 

They were in on acquiring the right to the belgian league, think they got the dutch though.

[Stoner]

Is babe still alive?

 

Yes, they threw him back in.

[PromoTheRobot]

A WNY sports network could work.

 

(This is basically going to be like Ink's post):

 

All Sabres games

Amerks games

Bandits games

Bisons games

St. Bonaventure (who have TV rights available outside of A-10 commitments)

Canisius (hello college hockey)

UB

Niagara

 

Maybe even go just outside of the area for the Otters.

 

Bills and the rest of these teams will have content to fill some live shows.

High schools...load up with high school sports.

[SwampD]

High schools...load up with high school sports.

Don't forget some of the concerts in the Square. MSG in New York has music on all the time.

[PromoTheRobot]

Truly doubt that it would. It's AAA baseball and there isn't an underlying pent up demand for minor league baseball. The 1 way it MIGHT move the needle is if people believed Buffalo had a shot at getting an MLB franchise. The place was packed when it was brand new and Bob Rich had people believing he could get one of the expansion teams that ultimately went to Miami and Denver.

No but there is more than enough potential content available to fill a week. Not everything is going to be major league but really few regional sports networks are. Sabres are your flagship, throw in Amerks, Jackals, Otter and Ice Dog games, Buffalo Bills ancillary programs, Canisius, RIT and Niagara hockey, Big 4 basketball, UB football, high school sports, Bisons and Red Wings baseball local golf and fishing shows, and so on. There is plenty to show and still be 99% local.

Edited November 10, 2014 by PromoTheRobot

[Eleven]

No but there is more than enough potential content available to fill a week. Not everything is going to be major league but really few regional sports networks are. Sabres are your flagship, throw in Amerks, Jackals, Otter and Ice Dog games, Buffalo Bills ancillary programs, Canisius, RIT and Niagara hockey, Big 4 basketball, UB football, high school sports, Bisons and Red Wings baseball local golf and fishing shows, and so on. There is plenty to show and still be 99% local.

 

I know you and I have gone back and forth over the years, but I'll waste everyone's time and reiterate my opinion just because, well, anyway....

 

I don't see Buffalonians watching Erie and NF (Canada) junior hockey teams other than in the rare year where there is a can't-miss prospect playing for them.

 

UB football barely gets viewers as it is.

 

Canisius and Niagara hockey probably would draw; so would some Big 4 basketball.

 

Cities with regional sports networks usually have three or four major league sports and/or major college sports. (UB is not major college sports.) Buffalo isn't there. This would be a commercial failure.

 

Forget about AAA baseball, local golf and fishing shows, and probably the "and so on."

Edited November 10, 2014 by Eleven

[tom webster]

I know you and I have gone back and forth over the years, but I'll waste everyone's time and reiterate my opinion just because, well, anyway....

 

I don't see Buffalonians watching Erie and NF (Canada) junior hockey teams other than in the rare year where there is a can't-miss prospect playing for them.

 

UB football barely gets viewers as it is.

 

Canisius and Niagara hockey probably would draw; so would some Big 4 basketball.

 

Cities with regional sports networks usually have three or four major league sports and/or major college sports. (UB is not major college sports.) Buffalo isn't there. This would be a commercial failure.

 

Forget about AAA baseball, local golf and fishing shows, and probably the "and so on."

 

 

I agree with you on most of this but I will throw out a couple of points that might change my opinion.

 

1) It is "Pegula Sports and Entertainment" and they may have other "non-sports" content they would want to showcase.

2) I think the business model is a lot different now for regional networks and a lot more providers looking for content now

[Stoner]

Would there be a pay-per-view KimCam™?

[Taro T]

 

No but there is more than enough potential content available to fill a week. Not everything is going to be major league but really few regional sports networks are. Sabres are your flagship, throw in Amerks, Jackals, Otter and Ice Dog games, Buffalo Bills ancillary programs, Canisius, RIT and Niagara hockey, Big 4 basketball, UB football, high school sports, Bisons and Red Wings baseball local golf and fishing shows, and so on. There is plenty to show and still be 99% local.

But nearly all regional SN's are owned by major broadcasters (Fox Sports or CBS Sports) or major cable companies (Comcast) and most of the handful that aren't are in major metropolises. They already have the infrastructure and typically are complementing other offerings &/or increasing utilization.

 

Pegulas would have to procure all the equipment (assuming they have facility space and reasonable ability to set up in HC, otherwise they have to get that as well) and the production costs only are spread across the 1 network. There is no economy of scale and no sharing of fixed costs. Unless TP & KP are more magnanimous than they've already appeared or are looking extremely LT and see something down the road that isn't there now, it doesn't happen because they can't get a RoI.

 

There is enough to "fill the week." The question is "is there enough to profitably fill the week?" There doesn't seem to be. Now if the equipment and facilities were already sunk costs? The equation changes and it could (dare I say would?) be profitable. Which is why scuttling Empire & WNSA was such a friggin' travesty. Had Adelphia sold them, literally EVERYBODY would have won. (Adelphia, buyers, teams covered, viewers, etc. all would have been better off.) :censored:

[PromoTheRobot]

 

 

I know you and I have gone back and forth over the years, but I'll waste everyone's time and reiterate my opinion just because, well, anyway....

 

I don't see Buffalonians watching Erie and NF (Canada) junior hockey teams other than in the rare year where there is a can't-miss prospect playing for them.

 

UB football barely gets viewers as it is.

 

Canisius and Niagara hockey probably would draw; so would some Big 4 basketball.

 

Cities with regional sports networks usually have three or four major league sports and/or major college sports. (UB is not major college sports.) Buffalo isn't there. This would be a commercial failure.

 

Forget about AAA baseball, local golf and fishing shows, and probably the "and so on."

You say no one watches UB football yet ESPN just gave them a million a year for 13 years to show their games nationally. They also gave them their own portal on WatchESPN to show all their sports.

 

Even if the Sabres were the only thing people wanted to watch, to fully control the revenue of their own broadcasts is huge. I also feel slightly insulted that WNY has to depend on an NYC cable channel for our games, as if we aren't capable of handling that.

[Eleven]

You say no one watches UB football yet ESPN just gave them a million a year for 13 years to show their games nationally. They also gave them their own portal on WatchESPN to show all their sports.

 

Even if the Sabres were the only thing people wanted to watch, to fully control the revenue of their own broadcasts is huge. I also feel slightly insulted that WNY has to depend on an NYC cable channel for our games, as if we aren't capable of handling that.

 

Think about how incredibly low that is. ESPN needs to fill five networks with college football on Saturdays and two or three on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. $13M through 2026? Laughable.

[Claude Balls]

Maybe they could bring back Art Wander and Larry Felser for a new version of the "Hot Stove".

[inkman]

Maybe they could bring back Art Wander and Larry Felser for a new version of the "Hot Stove".

They could rename it cold prune juice

[PromoTheRobot]

 

 

Think about how incredibly low that is. ESPN needs to fill five networks with college football on Saturdays and two or three on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. $13M through 2026? Laughable.

Maybe....but you'd think there would be endless other options besides UB to give a million to, no? And yet they do.

[Eleven]

Maybe....but you'd think there would be endless other options besides UB to give a million to, no? And yet they do.

 

And probably every other minor 1-A school, too.

[PromoTheRobot]

 

 

And probably every other minor 1-A school, too.

Actually no. But feel free to assume.

[eQuiNoX40]

There's not enough content, especially during the summer months.

Could put some fishing on it during the summer or golf lol!

[Eleven]

Actually no. But feel free to assume.

 

You're right; they probably have more lucrative contracts. Come on, you're in the business; you know that a million a year for college football is dirt cheap.

 

More importantly, if ESPN has the rights to UB football, how is UB football going to be part of any new regional network?

[PromoTheRobot]

You're right; they probably have more lucrative contracts. Come on, you're in the business; you know that a million a year for college football is dirt cheap.

 

More importantly, if ESPN has the rights to UB football, how is UB football going to be part of any new regional network?

Now that is a good question. There must be some way because WGRZ has a contract with UB to show nothing but UB sports on their HD-2 channel. (Wow, that's TWO TV contracts for something allegedly no one watches!)

 

As to your first point, I work in radio and newspaper more than TV, but yes $1M/yr is not that much money if you compare it to what the SEC or NFL get. But ESPN is not a charity. A million dollars is still a million dollars and they don't hand that out for giggles.

 

Just an FYI, UB played Akron (shown on ESPNU) right up against the Sabres last night, and while I flipped back and forth I mostly watched UB because they won 55-24. (A new single game scoring record I believe.) I'd rather watch that than Tyler Myers looking for his jock on the ice.

 

Could put some fishing on it during the summer or golf lol!

As much as I would rather do ANYTHING else than watch a golf and fishing show, people do watch them.

Edited November 12, 2014 by PromoTheRobot

[Eleven]

I wonder how many people in Buffalo even knew that last night's UB game was televised. I have WGR on at my desk all day long; had no idea. I was at a sports bar for a little while last night; the UB game wasn't on. And I would have watched it.

[darksabre]

I wonder how many people in Buffalo even knew that last night's UB game was televised. I have WGR on at my desk all day long; had no idea. I was at a sports bar for a little while last night; the UB game wasn't on. And I would have watched it.

 

UB has a football team?

[SwampD]

I wonder how many people in Buffalo even knew that last night's UB game was televised. I have WGR on at my desk all day long; had no idea. I was at a sports bar for a little while last night; the UB game wasn't on. And I would have watched it.

I knew it was on and couldn't find it. I forgot about ESPNU.

 

Can't really blame WGR for not promoting an alternative to the Sabres on a competitor.

Edited November 12, 2014 by SwampD

[ubkev]

I love college football and I didn't even know they were playing last night until one of my Co workers asked me to put it on at half-time, because he bet the game.

[inkman]

I wonder how many people in Buffalo even knew that last night's UB game was televised. I have WGR on at my desk all day long; had no idea. I was at a sports bar for a little while last night; the UB game wasn't on. And I would have watched it.

I had no idea they were even playing.