NHL Fans Will Experience a Whole New Game on OLN

[korsjs]

STAMFORD, Conn. and NEW YORK, Aug 18, 2005 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- OLN, a television leader in action and adventure sports, and the National Hockey League (NHL) today announced that OLN will be the new national cable television home for the NHL.

Under the terms of the multi-year agreement, OLN will televise at least 58 regular-season games. These games will air consistently on Monday and Tuesday nights and be exclusive to the network. OLN will carry the NHL All-Star Game exclusively in the US and will provide wall-to-wall coverage throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including exclusive Conference Finals action and the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final. OLN will kick off NHL coverage beginning with the Rangers-Flyers matchup October 5, the first day of the new season.

OLN and the NHL will bring television viewers closer to the ice by leveraging the League's new telecast enhancements - increased behind-the- scenes access, microphones on the players and coaches, netcams and in-game interviews.

The partnership between OLN, Comcast and the NHL will redefine the sport for hockey viewers. More action on video on demand (VOD), in HDTV and online will create an experience like never before, including:

VOD game highlights and library footage of hockey's greatest moments with full fast-forward, rewind and replay capability;
HDTV game coverage in a crisper, faster-moving, more exciting game for hockey fans every week;M
Online streaming of two live games per night (subject to local blackout), broadband highlights, commentary, and library footage;
Round-the-clock coverage on the NHL Network, to be launched in the US in the future; and
Comcast will have the ability to carry and/or syndicate additional games on Comcast's regional sports networks where it has the consent of the local team and team's rights holder.
"We are entering into a great partnership with the NHL. Hockey is excellent, exclusive programming for OLN and will be a marquee sport for the network. We are proud to be the new national television home of the NHL when the puck drops on October 5," said OLN President Gavin Harvey. "Adding hockey to our lineup when the NHL returns to the ice with a fresh season, new energy, new players and a new attitude adds tremendous value to OLN and builds upon the momentum of our other premier sports programming like the America's Cup and The Tour de France."

"We recognize and appreciate that Comcast is making a tremendous investment in the NHL and that hockey will be a priority on OLN," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said. "This multifaceted partnership with OLN and Comcast creates exciting opportunities for our fans and for us, and we look forward to a terrific relationship in the years ahead."

The NHL revised its schedule format, to emphasize divisional and conference rivalries, and implemented a number of changes that will reduce the number of play stoppages while heightening hockey's action, flow, offense and excitement. The attacking zone has been enlarged, and the goaltenders have been limited - not only in the size of the equipment they will be allowed to wear but also in the areas of the ice where they will be allowed to play the puck. As well, the introduction of the shootout as a tiebreaker, featuring hockey's most exciting play, the breakaway, will ensure that every contest has a winner.

"Comcast's leadership and innovation in delivering integrated sports and other entertainment on HDTV, VOD and on the Internet is being met with rave reviews from our customers. We will use this experience to bring the NHL to hockey fans in ways that they have never seen before," said Jeff Shell, President of Comcast Programming for Comcast Corporation.

Additional details about the OLN television schedule, hockey commentators, HDTV and VOD schedules will be released as details become available.

About OLN:

OLN is the leader in competitive and adrenaline-charged content. Now in more than 64 million homes, OLN is the cable home of the National Hockey League and best-in-class events like The Tour de France, The America's Cup, Professional Bull Riders (PBR), the Boston Marathon and USSA Skiing. The network offers unique programming in four primary areas: Action Sports, Field Sports, Bulls & Rodeo and Awe-Inspiring Series, and is the exclusive home of "Survivor" in syndication. OLN, a wholly owned company of Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK), is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.

About the NHL:

The National Hockey League, founded November 22, 1917, is the second oldest of the four major team sports leagues in North America. Today, the NHL consists of 30 Member Clubs based in the United States and Canada. More than 33 percent of NHL players hail from outside North America from 22 different countries. Through the NHL Foundation, the League's charitable arm, the NHL raises money and awareness for Hockey Fights Cancer, Hockey's All-Star Kids and NHL Diversity, and supports the charitable efforts of all NHL players. For more information on the NHL, fans may log on to http://www.NHL.com .

http://www.cmcsk.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=147565&p=irol-newsArticle&t=Regular&id=744836&

 

[Sean Mota]

I guess the DBS subs will never get to see these in HD!

 

[Neutron]

Except for the few that HDNet shows.

 

[korsjs]

if they are smart, they will work with the other cable/dbs providers to bring olnhd to everyone. the nhl understands it is a lot eaiser and pleasent to watch these games in hd. i would not be surprised to see olnhd start popping up on different providers.

 

[riffjim4069]

I guess the DBS subs will never get to see these in HD!

It looks like I made the right decision to boycott this years season.

 

[angiodan]

I don't think Comcast put up money like this without planning to get games on OLN HD, and making it attractive for DBS companies to carry.

If they want to compete against ESPN, they have to be available on all providers.

 

[lou_do]

I don't think Comcast put up money like this without planning to get games on OLN HD, and making it attractive for DBS companies to carry.

If they want to compete against ESPN, they have to be available on all providers.

I guess hockey is not low budget enough for ESPN, like about 90% of the rest of their programing. Looks like I will put a block on ESPN, now they won't have any programing worth watching, this winter. Last weekend they sank to a new all time low with the regional Little League games. That may have been interesting if you live in the area where the teams were from, but as a National coverage event, that was poor. I can see the final few games, when it gets near the end of the Little League World Series, but come on ESPN give us a break.

 

[Chado]

I guess hockey is not low budget enough for ESPN, like about 90% of the rest of their programing. Looks like I will put a block on ESPN, now they won't have any programing worth watching, this winter. Last weekend they sank to a new all time low with the regional Little League games. That may have been interesting if you live in the area where the teams were from, but as a National coverage event, that was poor. I can see the final few games, when it gets near the end of the Little League World Series, but come on ESPN give us a break.

If I remember correctly, ESPN was getting better ratings with the PBA then they were for National Hockey Night.... It's sad and it sucks, but the problem is the NHL, not ESPN.

 

[korsjs]

I don't think Comcast put up money like this without planning to get games on OLN HD, and making it attractive for DBS companies to carry.

If they want to compete against ESPN, they have to be available on all providers.

exactly what i have been saying.

 

[BFG]

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooo

 

[stone phillips420]

does comcast have a minority share in the philly flyers organization?
i thought i heard that.

 

[Barry Erick]

Hockey started to get better in HD. The first games I saw sucked on shots. The cameras tried to show half the rink and the crowd, instead of framing it like they had a NTSC block on their viewfinders and then gave all outside that frame to HD. All other sports were fine, but the "Zoom back and see how much we can show" stunk.

Also, the score board graphic in the top corner was so small, that on my 36" HDTV, I could not read it. The layout was made for a Home Theater projector.

Near the end of the season, two years ago, ESPN's crew (which ever truck they used), were shooting much better. HDNet's crews (again, which ever truck they used), did mostly the "show em all you can" shots.

 

[riffjim4069]

I don't think Comcast put up money like this without planning to get games on OLN HD, and making it attractive for DBS companies to carry.

If they want to compete against ESPN, they have to be available on all providers.

I don't see this happening in this day and age. I think each provider, or provider group (DBS, Cable, etc.), will purchase exclusive sports content in the hope of keeping subscribers from jumping ship. The reality is that we may be paying more $$$ to follow our local sports teams.

 

[riffjim4069]

If I remember correctly, ESPN was getting better ratings with the PBA then they were for National Hockey Night.... It's sad and it sucks, but the problem is the NHL, not ESPN.

You can blame Gary Bettman for the sorry state of the NHL: he took a delicious Rib Eye, wrapped it in a froufrouu covered baggie, and tried to sell it as Creme Brulee. Look up the words Rube and Dolt in the dictionary and you will see this guys picture.

 

[Sean Mota]

NEW YORK (AP) -- Get the clicker ready, hockey fans. The NHL is taking its games outside the traditional realm of sports television.

The NHL announced Thursday it has reached a two-year deal that will put games on Outdoor Life Network, starting on opening night in October.

OLN joins NBC in providing NHL regular-season broadcasts and will also show early-round playoff games, the conference finals and the first two games of the Stanley Cup finals. NBC will then take over for the rest of the championship series.

OLN will have exclusivity for its Monday night telecasts.

Comcast Corp. -- which owns OLN, The Golf Channel, E!, Style and others -- will pay the NHL $65 million this season and $70 million in 2006-07 for the broadcast rights. ESPN had a $60 million option to renew its contract next season, but declined in June.

After the NHL board of governors approved this deal with Comcast, ESPN had a brief window to match it and keep cable broadcast rights. But the network passed again late Wednesday night.

"It seems clear that OLN is certainly setting itself up as a competitor to ESPN," said George Bodenheimer, president of ESPN and ABC Sports. "We welcome it. It will make us better."

OLN telecasts will include increased behind-the-scenes access, net cameras and in-game interviews. Comcast will bring the NHL Network, currently only available in Canada, to cable systems in the United States.

"It will allow hockey fans to see a whole new game and get closer to hockey than ever before," Bettman said. "This is so cool. We're really looking forward to it."

Comcast officials and Bettman are counting on the game and OLN expanding together.

"OLN is anticipating, as are we, subscriber growth," Bettman said.

Steve Burke, Comcast's chief operation officer, said the increased coverage of Armstrong and the Tour de France shows "once you get behind a sport, you can bring it to a new level."

"It's a unique opportunity," Burke said. "Hockey will change and evolve tremendously in the next two years with brand new technology."

Source

 

[Sean Mota]

A: Better get used to it: That's hockey's new home on the tube. The NHL is leaving ESPN for OLN -- formerly the Outdoor Life Network -- after completing a two-year deal with Comcast Corp. to be its new cable TV partner.

Late Wednesday, the league officially parted ways with ESPN, its broadcast partner since 1992. Even though the NHL and Comcast were busy Thursday touting their plan to "supercharge" what they promise will be an improved NHL product, the truth is it's a marriage of necessity, in many respects.

In May, with the NHL's labor situation still unresolved, ESPN took a pass on its $60 million option to broadcast the 2005-06 season. But even after Comcast swooped in with an offer that is worth $135 million for the next two seasons, with options to extend the deal through 2011, ESPN had the right to match. Instead it declined, citing the NHL's subpar ratings and the damage done by last season's lockout.

As George Bodenheimer, the president of ESPN and ABC Sports, put it, "No financial model even remotely supports the contract terms offered."

Q: So why did Comcast make the deal?

A: Many in the industry believe this is the first step in Comcast's move to create an all-sports network that would compete with ESPN. Just last year, Comcast actually tried to buy ESPN as part of a failed $66 billion bid for Walt Disney Co. Comcast also is reportedly trying to land network deals with the NFL -- targeting a Thursday-Saturday package beginning in 2006 -- and NASCAR.

Q: What about NBC? I thought it already bought the NHL rights?

A: NBC is the free-TV, over-the-air partner for the NHL, for which the network didn't have to pay any up-front rights fees. Instead, it's a revenue-sharing deal similar to the one NBC has with the Arena Football League.

But you won't see much hockey on NBC, seven regular-season games and fewer than a dozen postseason games. OLN will carry the bulk of the first three rounds of the playoffs, as well as Games 1 and 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals.

Q: OK, what does all this mean for fans in Detroit?

A: Well, that depends on your cable provider, at least for now.

Nationwide, OLN reaches some 64 million households, compared with 90 million for ESPN, though officials from Comcast and the NHL, which has incentive clauses built into the deal, expect that disparity to shrink.

Said NHL commissioner Gary Bettman: "My guess is that by having us, OLN is anticipating, as are we, subscriber growth."

Comcast has 1.4 million Michigan subscribers, with nearly two-thirds residing in Metro Detroit, according to a company representative. But in some areas, OLN is available only to those with Comcast's digital package. If and when that changes remains to be seen.

"In those places where we have to address any shortcomings in distribution, you can bet that, as of today, that job has started," OLN president Gavin Harvey promised Wednesday.

The same might be true for folks with other cable providers -- many Wide Open West subscribers won't find OLN on their channel guide -- but only if the demand is there. Remember, the NHL's ratings last season were minuscule: a 0.5 rating for ESPN games in 2003-04 equates to about 450,000 households, and ESPN2 managed barely half that many.

Q: What will NHL fans who don't get OLN be missing?

A: Plenty, come playoff time.

But the regular-season schedule won't be drastically different from the past. Wings fans will still get a steady diet of the home team, mostly on Fox Sports Net, and the NHL's Center Ice package remains unchanged. Anywhere from 60-80 NHL games will be televised nationally by OLN on Monday and Tuesday nights during the regular season, beginning with the Oct. 5 season opener that features the New York Rangers at the Philadelphia Flyers. (No surprise there: Comcast owns the Flyers franchise.)

Next season, expect OLN's Monday broadcast to be a stand-alone game on the schedule, similar to the NFL's "Monday Night Football." A half-hour wrap-up show -- similar to ESPN's "NHL 2Night" -- will follow each OLN game. On-air talent has yet to be announced, but you can expect to see familiar faces.

Also, as part of the deal, Comcast now must carry the NHL Network -- previously available only in Canada -- on its digital-tier subscriber packages. Games on OLN will be shown in high-definition TV, and Comcast plans to offer on-demand broadcasts and live computer streaming over the Internet.

Source

 

[lou_do]

A: Many in the industry believe this is the first step in Comcast's move to create an all-sports network that would compete with ESPN. Just last year, Comcast actually tried to buy ESPN as part of a failed $66 billion bid for Walt Disney Co. Comcast also is reportedly trying to land network deals with the NFL -- targeting a Thursday-Saturday package beginning in 2006 -- and NASCAR.

That might be a good thing. ESPN's programing has really gone down hill the past few years. Seems like they only want to show low budget events, if they are interesting or not. After baseball season there won't be much else to watch on ESPN, but an occassional Sports Center show. Maybe a college football replay, if you like that, but I can't handle sloppy played, mismatched and poorly refereed college football, even the first time around.