Rock Posted August 25, 2005 Share Posted August 25, 2005 (Another article about this issue. This from the Bergen Record) http://www.bergenrecord.com/page.php?qstr=...2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk2 Short end of stick for hockey fans Thursday, August 25, 2005 By JOHN BRENNAN STAFF WRITER The Rangers' 18-month stretch between regular-season NHL games finally ends Oct. 5. But for most fans in Cablevision territory, they may have to wait one day longer to see the Rangers return to their living room TV sets. That's because the Rangers' season opener against the Philadelphia Flyers will be shown only on OLN (formerly the Outdoor Life Network). That game and at least 57 other NHL games on OLN this season are not expected to be available in Cablevision homes. This latest TV sports skirmish isn't nearly as severe as the one that knocked off most 2002 Yankees games on Cablevision -or the one that knocked the Knicks off Time Warner Cable for several weeks this spring. In this case, no more than eight Rangers, Devils, or Islanders games per season will be shown on OLN, the Comcast-owned channel that last week agreed to a multiyear deal to show an NHL package for roughly $65 million annually. Still, die-hard hockey fans in much of North Jersey may be deprived of watching the NHL's Monday and Tuesday night games of the week -as well as many playoff games -unless OLN can reach a truce with Cablevision. The problem is that while OLN is available as part of expanded basic service in the vast majority of its 64 million homes, Cablevision puts OLN on a "Sports Pak" tier. For $4.95, customers with a digital cable box get OLN plus the Golf Channel, NBA TV, and numerous regional sports networks. The NHL deal with Comcast requires that OLN agree to show its games only on cable systems that make the channel available as part of expanded basic service. So Cablevision viewers who pay for Sports Pak would be able to watch all OLN programming except for the NHL games. Representatives for Cablevision and OLN are promising to try to resolve the conflict in time for the start of the 2005-06 regular season. "Cablevision carries two regional sports networks, MSG Network and FSN New York, that are home to our three local hockey teams and feature hundreds of games," a Cablevision spokesman said in a statement. "We have every intention of delivering the games that will appear on OLN to our customers as well.'' But if talks fail, area hockey fans may have to hit the road -or switch to satellite television -to see the league's national hockey package. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StarDew Posted August 25, 2005 Share Posted August 25, 2005 Another thing that is wierd...I don't pay for sports tier and I have OLN...don't pay for FSNY either and have that too <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Aren't you a Comcast subscriber? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Yes and I don't pay extra for OLN or FSNY...some Concast folks have to pay extra for FSNY ya know...like I said...wierd eh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sammyk Posted August 25, 2005 Share Posted August 25, 2005 When I had Comcast Digital I paid around $7 for FSNY. Without digital it was around $20 I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StarDew Posted August 25, 2005 Share Posted August 25, 2005 I have never paid extra for FSNY....think it was a gift of grandfathering from having SCA prior...with digital I have OLN and a bunch of wasted bandwidth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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