http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/11408326p-12322654c.html
Now you'll get Kings, dish owners
Comcast SportsNet signs deals with DirecTV and Dish Network.
By J. Freedom du Lac and Clint Swett -- Bee Staff Writers
Published 2:15 am PST Saturday, November 13, 2004
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In news that ought to send area satellite TV subscribers into orbit, Dish Network and DirecTV have reached agreements to carry Comcast SportsNet West, the 24-hour regional sports channel that features the Kings as its centerpiece.
Dish subscribers will see tonight's Kings-Suns game on Channel 409, but DirecTV customers must wait until Tuesday's home game against Chicago, will be shown on Channel 656.
OAS_AD('Button20');DirecTV spokesman Robert Mercer said the delay was caused by technical issues. "It's not as easy as flipping a switch," he said. "There are operational issues to sort out."
While the Dish Network deal had been widely anticipated, DirecTV's Friday evening announcement was something of a surprise, as negotiations between the company and Comcast seemed to have hit a snag, with DirecTV officials apparently balking over Comcast's asking price.
DirecTV's disclosure -- which came after business hours Friday -- seemed to take even Comcast SportsNet West representatives by surprise.
A pleasant surprise, of course.
"Our goal was always to reach as many fans as possible," Comcast SportsNet West spokeswoman Susan Gonzales said. "These two agreements will allow us to provide the network to many, many fans."
Terms of the deals were not disclosed.
Announced within an hour of each other Friday, the deals with Dish Network and DirecTV will bring the remainder of the Kings' regular-season schedule to most of the estimated 372,000 satellite subscribers in the Sacramento-Stockton-Modesto TV market.
The programming will be available at no extra charge to Dish subscribers who take the Top 60 Plus package or higher. It also will be included in DirecTV's Total Choice programming package, and higher.
Of the 77 games still on the schedule, 48 will be broadcast by Comcast SportsNet. The balance will be carried by a combination of national cable channels (ESPN, TNT) and the Kings' local over-the-air affiliate, Channel 10 (KXTV).
"We were extremely motivated to get this done, because we know how much our Sacramento customers enjoy the Kings games," Dish spokesman Steve Caulk said.
Kings fans expressed relief that the deals were finally done. "I didn't cancel DirecTV, but I was seriously considering it," said Arnie Golub of Sacramento. "I'm absolutely delighted."
Mark Chase of Auburn, also a DirecTV subscriber, said he had been eager for the deal. "We've just been gritting our teeth and catching what we can on Channel 10," he said. "I'm glad they signed. I'm ready for it."
Neither Dish Network nor DirecTV releases regional subscription figures, but DirecTV is larger nationally, with about 13 million customers to Dish's 10.1 million.
Locally, Comcast is the dominant pay-TV provider, with more than 770,000 subscribers from Chico to Fresno.
Starstream Communications and SureWest Broadband previously purchased the rights to Comcast SportsNet West programming. That leaves Charter -- which covers West Sacramento, Dixon, Woodland, Auburn and Reno -- as the last major holdout, though a handful of smaller cable companies throughout Northern California still are negotiating for the programming rights, as well.
"We continue conversations with other providers," Comcast SportsNet's Gonzales said. She would not address individual negotiations.
Since Comcast announced the formation of the new sports network this summer, the cable giant's competitors in the region have been besieged with customer requests to pick up the programming.
That's been especially true for Dish Network and DirecTV, Comcast's chief competitors in the pitched battle for pay-TV subscribers throughout the Central Valley.
Whether Dish Network was influenced by customer feedback, however, spokesman Caulk would not say.
"Every decision we make on programming is going to include consideration of how important it is to our customers," he said. "I'm not going to characterize how avid the request was from our customers to carry this package; but our final conclusion was that this would be a good component for us." DirecTV spokesman Robert Mercer said his company was aware of Dish's impending deal, but that didn't influence the timing of the announcement.
Now you'll get Kings, dish owners
Comcast SportsNet signs deals with DirecTV and Dish Network.
By J. Freedom du Lac and Clint Swett -- Bee Staff Writers
Published 2:15 am PST Saturday, November 13, 2004
Get the latest news in sacbee.com's Kings Alert newsletter. Sign up here.
In news that ought to send area satellite TV subscribers into orbit, Dish Network and DirecTV have reached agreements to carry Comcast SportsNet West, the 24-hour regional sports channel that features the Kings as its centerpiece.
Dish subscribers will see tonight's Kings-Suns game on Channel 409, but DirecTV customers must wait until Tuesday's home game against Chicago, will be shown on Channel 656.
OAS_AD('Button20');DirecTV spokesman Robert Mercer said the delay was caused by technical issues. "It's not as easy as flipping a switch," he said. "There are operational issues to sort out."
While the Dish Network deal had been widely anticipated, DirecTV's Friday evening announcement was something of a surprise, as negotiations between the company and Comcast seemed to have hit a snag, with DirecTV officials apparently balking over Comcast's asking price.
DirecTV's disclosure -- which came after business hours Friday -- seemed to take even Comcast SportsNet West representatives by surprise.
A pleasant surprise, of course.
"Our goal was always to reach as many fans as possible," Comcast SportsNet West spokeswoman Susan Gonzales said. "These two agreements will allow us to provide the network to many, many fans."
Terms of the deals were not disclosed.
Announced within an hour of each other Friday, the deals with Dish Network and DirecTV will bring the remainder of the Kings' regular-season schedule to most of the estimated 372,000 satellite subscribers in the Sacramento-Stockton-Modesto TV market.
The programming will be available at no extra charge to Dish subscribers who take the Top 60 Plus package or higher. It also will be included in DirecTV's Total Choice programming package, and higher.
Of the 77 games still on the schedule, 48 will be broadcast by Comcast SportsNet. The balance will be carried by a combination of national cable channels (ESPN, TNT) and the Kings' local over-the-air affiliate, Channel 10 (KXTV).
"We were extremely motivated to get this done, because we know how much our Sacramento customers enjoy the Kings games," Dish spokesman Steve Caulk said.
Kings fans expressed relief that the deals were finally done. "I didn't cancel DirecTV, but I was seriously considering it," said Arnie Golub of Sacramento. "I'm absolutely delighted."
Mark Chase of Auburn, also a DirecTV subscriber, said he had been eager for the deal. "We've just been gritting our teeth and catching what we can on Channel 10," he said. "I'm glad they signed. I'm ready for it."
Neither Dish Network nor DirecTV releases regional subscription figures, but DirecTV is larger nationally, with about 13 million customers to Dish's 10.1 million.
Locally, Comcast is the dominant pay-TV provider, with more than 770,000 subscribers from Chico to Fresno.
Starstream Communications and SureWest Broadband previously purchased the rights to Comcast SportsNet West programming. That leaves Charter -- which covers West Sacramento, Dixon, Woodland, Auburn and Reno -- as the last major holdout, though a handful of smaller cable companies throughout Northern California still are negotiating for the programming rights, as well.
"We continue conversations with other providers," Comcast SportsNet's Gonzales said. She would not address individual negotiations.
Since Comcast announced the formation of the new sports network this summer, the cable giant's competitors in the region have been besieged with customer requests to pick up the programming.
That's been especially true for Dish Network and DirecTV, Comcast's chief competitors in the pitched battle for pay-TV subscribers throughout the Central Valley.
Whether Dish Network was influenced by customer feedback, however, spokesman Caulk would not say.
"Every decision we make on programming is going to include consideration of how important it is to our customers," he said. "I'm not going to characterize how avid the request was from our customers to carry this package; but our final conclusion was that this would be a good component for us." DirecTV spokesman Robert Mercer said his company was aware of Dish's impending deal, but that didn't influence the timing of the announcement.
