Directv Press Conference Recap
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Update on the DirecTV mystery. Asking around at the AVS forum party tonight, I found 2 people who saw the DirecTV suite at Caesars. Allthough they didn't describe what it was like, they said it was there.
No, they are just listed as a corporate hotel suite (Hilton 580) And that, was a no show during hours. There were several businesses that had suites on thye same floor and those were open and meeting people but the rooms are not exhibits that I saw. I assume the D* room was similar but the door was locked.
There was not much in the DirecTV suite that wasn't reported from the press conference. They didnt even have press kits available when I went up.
That would be Billy-Bob. Only he don't do no more flips since his back went out. Taught the dog to do 'em for him, every time he pops a brew.
Yes, NASCAR - NASCAR! is going to help spread the HD revolution "down heah." A big TV with purty pictures- yep. Put it in HD and it'll sell HDTVs.
Not being insulting. Its just facts. NASCAR is not nearly as big in the north as it is in the south. Conversely hockey doesnt translate as well in the south as it does in the north. I like NASCAR. I used to go to Loudon to watch the summer and fall races every year. (wish theyd bank the turns so they could pass in the corners..the race is kinda boring when its single file all day long) Up here people make fun of guys making left turns all day long.
Oh and by the way I dont wanna hear from some guy who lives in the south who likes hockey or the guy in the north that likes nascar. We are talking whole viewing markets not individuals.
There are fans, of all sports, equally distributed around the country. That is why we see Nextel Cup races from Florida to New Hampshire and professional hockey teams from Florida to Boston.
As people move around the country the area domination of popularity of any sport is diminishing.
In 1972 here in Florida you rarely got to see hockey, even on TV. Today we have 2 NHL teams and the entire 6 state New England area has only 1.
As people move around the country the area domination of popularity of any sport is diminishing.
In 1972 here in Florida you rarely got to see hockey, even on TV. Today we have 2 NHL teams and the entire 6 state New England area has only 1.
Here are pics from the DirecTV booth. Not sure if it's that suite or an actual booth:
http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=75677
And here is an interview with the DBSTalk guys: http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=75717
So I'm not sure if you guys missed their booth or they are just doing interviews and stuff on an appointment basis. But it sounds like they are open and willing to talk to just about anybody. Perhaps their suite was closed last night due to their Citi financial conference they had.
http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=75677
And here is an interview with the DBSTalk guys: http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=75717
So I'm not sure if you guys missed their booth or they are just doing interviews and stuff on an appointment basis. But it sounds like they are open and willing to talk to just about anybody. Perhaps their suite was closed last night due to their Citi financial conference they had.
I am actively subscribed to both Dish and DirecTV. While the D* account is in suspension til August, the HR20 I owned would not let me watch like 50% of the recordings, it was horrible, and barely functioned for live TV. You should see my rants about the 622 for crying outloud. The HR10-250 is the best DVR around, period.
Anyway, on topic the press conference was quite disappointing and this new rumor about all this HDlite they will have is silly. They said the SAME THING last year, but I guess it was not coupled with a press release then.
I know it is really confusing, especially to those who aren't here. There is NO DIRECTV display booth at CES. They only have a Hilton Hotel ROOM suite so they could get listed in the directory but it is closed. I got thios from the head Concierge official at CES. The display you saw at dbstalks was photos taken by dbstalks members who went to the Caesars Palace Hotel suite where their other meeting room is located. If I have the time, I may run over there but the trek won't be easy. Much easier for people staying at Caesars to visit before coming to the CES show. From the photos, I have to ask the big question. Where are all the people? None in the shots, even the wide shots. This would be impossible to take at the CES show and therefore tells me this is not for the public or else they just have no traffic. Either way it does not bode well for the future of DirecTV.
Now to be fair, DirecTV is not the only one who failed to show up that I planned to see. Dwin projectors cancelled but the rumor is they are going out of business due to some bad decisions in 2005 / 2006 and no sales. Just a Rumor. JVC has been boycotting CES for years and have a huge display each year off site too. I'm not going to it, wherever it may be because JVC products just don't interest me this year. One thing is most certain, CES display is about cost per impression. Compaqnies who put up off site don't get the traffic that CES brings. Even JVC in tyhe past years was like a ghost town compared to CES traffic and then they had a shuttle for it!
Personally, I had planned to ask some general questions about bandwidth, you all know what I'm talking about but on a more personal level, I wanted them to convince me why I should continue to be a subscriber. Based on this performance and public image, I plan to drop them and sell off my investment in DirecTV. Heck they could have, at least a person at the HIlton to field questions from CES attendees to explain their absence even if that were a pack mof lies, it would have looked like they wanted to be my DBS provider. Customers are earned; you don't flip them the bird and expect to keep them.
And why is that? I'd wager it's because there are not as many Northerners who drive as there are Southerners. How did I come to this conclusion? My parents, who are in their 80s, have been captivated by NASCAR in the last few years. The reason? They live in New Jersey, and are great fans of Martin Truex, Jr., who grew up in the town they live in. Having a hometown boy in the Nextel Cup series makes it more interesting. It doesn't hurt that their granddaughter-in-law (my daughter-in-law) is Truex's cousin!
However, lots of people who live in central New Jersey who wouldn't have given NASCAR a second thought are now following it closely. The town fathers of Stafford Township (Truex's home town) have even renamed a road Martin Truex, Jr. Way. So the answer, as I see it, is that as NASCAR expands the pool of drivers to include more people from states outside the South, it will grow larger in those areas.
Not entirely wrong, but not entirely correct either.
Re: NASCAR, your point only applies to the inner-cities. There are extremely successful tracks in New Hampshire, Indiana, PA, Delaware, upstate NY, Michigan. There is even a proposed track for the Meadowlands, right across the river from NYC. The popularity is definitely there, in many areas, but perhaps not among your associates.
Re: hockey, you're also not correct. Hockey popularity follows team-success. Rangers, Bruins etc. have loyal followers from decades of success. More recently the Devils' success has made them a hot ticket. NY loves hockey. But the Isles are another story... pathetic franchise = fan apathy. I lived in CT, where the old Whalers couldn't get 1,000 fans per game... now I'm very close to Raleigh, where the same team (with the same owner) is selling-out on a regular basis. The Panthers are quite popular in Tampa. The Pens were once great but now can't make a dime. Even the Flyers suffer at the gate at times.
REAL hockey fans are rare. Casual hockey fans are fickle bandwagon-jumpers. It's not geography or weather-related; it's about fielding a good team. Hockey fans want winners.
Surely having a hometown hero doesn't hurt.
But don't you think the geography is also a factor? Central/South Jersey is easily within driving distance to tracks at Dover and Pocono, both hugely successful facilities. I contend that Truex has some fans, but is probably not even a fan-favorite in the NJ area in comparison to other drivers.
Well stated...but,we are definitely talking tickets here and frankly the league or teams success depends on the TV deals and ratings. I worked for the Columbus Bluejackets in Marketing for a couple of years and I can tell you the ratings are currently still in the toilet, not just local but national and the TV deals are still years behind where theey once were.
There is talk of bringing the Whalers back if someone is willing to part with their team. Hartford, the state, and Northland Properties are trying real hard to find a team to buy. I believe they can get a new arena built but they cant find a team willing to sell and move!
As for 1,000 fans for Whalers, its a bit off. In the last year I think there was somewhere around 7,000 season tickets sold but it fell short of what the Karmonos wanted. That and the combination of the state unwilling to give Karmonos all the concession revenue (a new arena was agreed to be built) caused him to bolt. In the end, he got a better deal but I agree that if the Whalers won, had a good orgainization and didnt do dumb things year after year, it would have worked.
As for racing, its popular everywhere. Even Connecticut has several small tracks that are emensely popular and profitable (Waterford Speedbowl, Lime Rock, Stafford Motor Speedway, Thompson International Speedway). Not a fan but NASCAR and car racing is very happening right now.
But that's just hockey nationwide. Even the very popular teams have very few fans who'll tune-in all season. Until mid-playoffs, the games aren't compelling to tv-watchers. Regional intrests don't even play into tv ratings.
There is talk of bringing the Whalers back if someone is willing to part with their team. Hartford, the state, and Northland Properties are trying real hard to find a team to buy. I believe they can get a new arena built but they cant find a team willing to sell and move!
I'd be very, very surprised if any NHL team decides to move to CT. Geographically it's awful for pro sports. Central CT is driving distance to both Boston and NY. The fan-bases are split between the two cities, and fan-loyalty is very high.
Any NHL team in CT would need to convince some number of Rangers-fans and Bruins-fans to defect, and that just won't happen. The same for basketball: you can't convince Knicks-fans or Celtics-fans to just up and change their colors.
You might as well be sticking a new AL team in Hartford. Red Sox' fans and Yankees' fans aren't going to cast-aside their loyalties to root for a Hartford team, just because they happen to reside in CT.
CT has some extremely lucrative TV markets and a great deal of market-exposure. It's the perfect demographic complement to Boston and NY. But economically it's a terrible place to put a major pro sports team, aside from the women's team at Mohegan Sun.
This may be a good thing. Last year we were discouraged as they had a high profile and had very little encouraging announcements. DISH made the major announcements about their HD programing. This year D* is keeping a low profile and they have made many MAJOR announcements over that last few days.
Maybe that low profile is better.
I agree. There was talk about putting in 20 million into Civic Center, kicking out the Wolf Pack AHL team, bringing in a team called Whalers, seeing how it does and go from there. I thought a great idea. Quite frankly its better then spending $500 million of taxes on a dead sport that only has a marginal chance due to geography. Give me $18 tickets to AHL before $70-100 NHL. Hard to take a family to that and have money to feed them.
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