Mets' Television Station to Debut in Mid-March

[cablewithaview]

SportsNet New York, the new Mets-owned television channel, will debut March 16, SNY officials announced Monday.

Last year the Mets left Cablevision-owned Madison Square Garden Network and Fox Sports New York to launch their version of the Yankees' YES Network. While YES focuses most of its professional sports programming on the Yankees, SNY President Jon Litner said that his channel "will provide viewers with in-depth coverage and unparalleled access to all teams and events important to New York sports fans."

SNY spokesman Andrew Fegyveresi said that the channel was in "ongoing discussions" with Cablevision to try to finalize a deal that would allow the channel to be seen by Cablevision's 3 million viewers in the New York region. SNY will air at least 125 of the Mets' 162 regular-season games annually.

"We expect to be fully distributed by the time we launch in March," Fegyveresi said.

The YES Network was unavailable to Cablevision viewers throughout its debut season in 2002 because of disputes about the cost of the channel and about whether YES could be placed on a premium cable tier.

The Mets' network is partially owned, however, by Comcast and Time Warner Cable, the region's other two cable giants. Since Cablevision needs the cooperation of those cable operators to ensure that its MSG and FSNY channels air throughout the region, a blackout similar to the one experienced by YES is considered less likely by industry experts.

SNY's first game coverage will be of the Mets' spring training game against the Atlanta Braves on March 16.

http://www.northjersey.com/page.php...lRUV5eTY4NjcwNjMmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk2

 

[cablewithaview]

Mets games on Time Warner

Time Warner Cable Inc. will air at least 125 New York Mets games this season on SportsNet New York.

Plans for the channel are "starting to heat up," as Time Warner is now conducting an analysis of all channel line-ups to make room for SportsNet, said David Whalen, vice president of public and governmental relations for the company.

"Within the next week to 10 days, we will know where exactly, in each particular area, the channel will be seen," he said. "And it will be on standard cable."

Depending on the location, some cable systems may already have room for the channel, while on some systems may need to have channels switched.

SportsNet New York, for example, could be moved closer to YES Network, which broadcasts Yankees games.

SportsNet will also air college football and college basketball games, as well as New York Jets programming. The network will be available in the greater Binghamton area, Oneonta, Elmira, Watkins Glen, Jamestown and Montrose, Sayre, Athens and Waverly, Pa., markets.

Prices are not affected by the new channel, Whalen said.

http://www.pressconnects.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060124/SPORTS/601240332/1003

 

[BobMurdoch]

Glad to hear it.

How much of a percentage price increase have you wire heads averaged each year over the last five years and how big are the hard drives in your PVRs?

Just wondering....

 

[JonUrban]

Any deals with E* or D* announced yet???

 

[BobMurdoch]

Not yet. I doubt we'll see anything until at least the week before opening day.

It still isn't obvious whether SNY will be negotiating a decent price, or whether they will go the YES route and try and play hardball.....

 

[OneEyedWonder]

I saw a blurb in the NY Post late last week saying that D* and SportsNet NY have reached an agreement. I haven't seen an offical announcement as of yet but I sent an email to D* on Thursday night so stay tuned.....

 

[BobMurdoch]

BTW, I was referring to E* carrying SNY. D* has a rep of carrying the RSNs at whatever price they want, so they rarely have a tiff over price.....

 

[ccash]

1 Eye - Please post any additional info you get on SportsNet NY. I'm a 10+ year Dish sub with a new HDTV. I will not order the 622 and commit to 18 more months without SNY

 

[Sean Mota]

It also looks like SNY will have the home games in HD as WPIX our local WB station will televise a few HD home games. When the Mets where in MSG, WPIX used to have the Home HD feed for their games. It sounds like SNY has invested in HD cameras to carry their home games in HD. Imagine both NY Teams in HD every night... It will be heaven in NY.

 

[ccash]

In Mondays Newsday here on Long Island:

Mets close to TV deal

BY NEIL BEST
STAFF WRITER

February 27, 2006
SportsNet New York and Cablevision have reached a tentative agreement for the cable giant to carry the Mets' new regional sports network, a person familiar with the negotiations said last night.

No contract has been signed, and it is not clear precisely when one will be, but it appears almost certain that when SNY launches March 16, Cablevision's 3 million customers, most of them on Long Island, will have access to the channel.
The March 16 fare will feature a Mets-Braves spring training game. Opening Day is April 3.

It had been believed that SNY was closer to a deal with DirecTV than with Cablevision, but in recent days, it became increasingly evident that there would be nothing like the 2002 battle between Cablevision and YES that kept the Yankees off Cablevision for an entire season.

YES set a precedent by getting placed on expanded basic cable in 2003. Three years later, SNY and Cablevision primarily were left to haggle over money rather than any fundamental issues.

SNY is partly owned by Comcast and Time Warner, so it immediately could count on distribution from those outlets. Cablevision, which until last year showed the Mets on its MSG and FSNY channels, would have risked alienating the many Mets fans in its market if it did not carry SNY from the start.

DirecTV most likely will fall into place once the Cablevision agreement is finalized. Customers of the other major satellite service, Dish Network, might have a longer wait.

There now will be four regional sports networks in Cablevision's expanded basic package - YES, SNY, MSG and FSNY.