Big Ten Network

[Buckeye Nut]

Originally Posted by cincibuck

Of course, in defense of TW, if we were playing, say Texas Tech or Vanderbilt or Kentucky or even Navy or Air Force; anybody other than an in-state Division subliminal team, ESPN might carry the game and we wouldn't need BTN.

That maybe true, but Big Ten Network is still guaranteed three Ohio State games a year, including one conference game, so sooner or later you're going to have to switch if you want to see those three games without leaving your home.

[Dryden]

Time Warner Cable: Big 10 Network

Big Ten Network Update

Columbus, OH (Aug. 20, 2008) - Time Warner Cable issued the following statement regarding the Aug. 20 letter to Buckeye Fans from OSU Athletic Director Gene Smith:

"We were disappointed to see the University falsely report that we've made a 'decision' not to carry Big Ten Network. We are actively negotiating with Fox for BTN's carriage on Time Warner Cable.

It appears the University is not being fully briefed on the status of the negotiations. We've had positive discussions with Fox in recent days -- including the active exchange of proposals. There's no stalemate or breakdown in discussions as Smith's letter would have our customers believe. On the contrary, talks are moving in the right direction.

We have every intention of continuing to work through the negotiations with Fox until we are able to reach a mutually acceptable agreement. We are ready to carry the Big Ten Network."

My bull[censored]-to-english translator reads:

Dear Ohioans and Buckeye fans, please don't switch to Direct TV en masse. Our bad. We [censored]ed up. We'll get BTN on here in a week, just don't leave.

[exhawg]

Originally Posted by Dryden

Time Warner Cable: Big 10 Network



My bull[censored]-to-english translator reads:

Dear Ohioans and Buckeye fans, please don't switch to Direct TV en masse. Our bad. We [censored]ed up. We'll get BTN on here in a week, just don't leave.

The thing is TW probably doesn't even know the effect yet since most people that have switched to DirecTV like myself won't cancel TW service until the DirecTV gets setup in a week. They'll probably strike a deal this weekend and wonder why so many people cancel next week. "But we have the BTN, why are you leaving".

[Dryden]

I think TW understands that having OSU's AD advising your customers to switch is bad news, and they certainly had to see an effect from last year. The only thing that would have been worse is for Tressel to say it himself. There is also the bundled services like internet and phone that former TW customers are canceling, so TW probably has some preliminary numbers.

The larger point in this spat is that the University is a BIG advertiser. The OSU Medical Center alone has had an advertising budget of over $5M in recent years. Why pay for commercial time on TW when the target customer is on DirecTV? If a good bit of Central Ohio jumps ship from TW, just consider what that does to advertising services. All these 18-35 year old football-watching males that would impulsively switch from TW to DirecTV for one channel of football are the coveted demographic!

There's more to it than the nickels and dimes to add a channel or the $100 per household per month that TW stands to lose. There's tens of millions of dollars in annual, recurring ad revenue walking out the door.

[cincibuck]

Originally Posted by Dryden

I think TW understands that having OSU's AD advising your customers to switch is bad news, and they certainly had to see an effect from last year. The only thing that would have been worse is for Tressel to say it himself. There is also the bundled services like internet and phone that former TW customers are canceling, so TW probably has some preliminary numbers.

The larger point in this spat is that the University is a BIG advertiser. The OSU Medical Center alone has had an advertising budget of over $5M in recent years. Why pay for commercial time on TW when the target customer is on DirecTV? If a good bit of Central Ohio jumps ship from TW, just consider what that does to advertising services. All these 18-35 year old football-watching males that would impulsively switch from TW to DirecTV for one channel of football are the coveted demographic!

There's more to it than the nickels and dimes to add a channel or the $100 per household per month that TW stands to lose. There's tens of millions of dollars in annual, recurring ad revenue walking out the door.

Hmmmmm, I like the concept, but do you buy ad time from the cable company or from the station you advertise on? I think, don't know, that the cable company is merely a middle man, taking the product from the producer and putting it through their own transportation (transmission) system.

[ORD_Buckeye]

Originally Posted by Dryden

Time Warner Cable: Big 10 Network



My bull[censored]-to-english translator reads:

Dear Ohioans and Buckeye fans, please don't switch to Direct TV en masse. Our bad. We [censored]ed up. We'll get BTN on here in a week, just don't leave.

My corporate translator reads slightly differntly:

Dear Ohioans and Buckeye fans, please don't switch because we're going to string you along and hint that a deal is just around the corner until half way into the season when it will be too late. That way, we'll have you at least until next Summer without having to give in to the BTN. At which time, we can go through this whole song and dance again.

[Dryden]

Originally Posted by cincibuck

Hmmmmm, I like the concept, but do you buy ad time from the cable company or from the station you advertise on? I think, don't know, that the cable company is merely a middle man, taking the product from the producer and putting it through their own transportation (transmission) system.

You (well, your marketing firm) buys both. TW is very aggressive about selling advertising packages directly that cross multiple channels based on time slot.

The firm representing OSU Medical Center, Northlich, might buy their time on some stations, such as the local ABC, NBC, or CBS affiliates directly, while buying the slots for the non-over-air cable stations through Time Warner Media Sales. The reason for this is that, while national cable channels may have the technical capability to offer regional feeds, those regions are still proportioned into too large of segments for local advertisers. TW Media Sales is who you go to if you want to advertise your discount tire company during a break in SportsCenter.

I don't go 15 minutes without seeing some commercial for The James on whatever channel I'm watching. It's viral.

Northlich isn't buying that kind of time at a national or even regional (Great Lakes) level, so the bulk of it is probably through TW Media.

EDIT: According to TW Media Sales, there are 905,690 TV households for the Columbus, OH market that are reached through their sales dept. Columbus, OH ranks #32 in the country by penetration, and is immediately trailed by #33, Cincinnati, at 904,340 TV homes. Cleveland-Akron is #17 with 1,533,710. All three are TW. Add Toledo (72) and Dayton (62) in that's five markets just in Ohio out of the top 72 nationwide.

http://www.cablemediasales.com/pages...&sp=list&ord=2

Gene Smith just told over 4M TW subscribers to switch.