Comcast Sportsnet Philadelphia

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This was posted on dbstalk.com - I though I'd share it here for those in the Phila market:
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Verizon set to take on Comcast's TV service, with SportsNet, starts Monday.
By Miriam Hill
Inquirer Staff Writer
Comcast Corp., which has been snatching Philadelphia-area phone customers from Verizon Communications Inc. for more than a year, is about to get a big taste of its own medicine.

Verizon is expected to announce tomorrow that it will start selling its new $18 billion fiber-optic TV service this week to 100,000 homes in the area, including Bucks, Delaware, Chester and Montgomery Counties as well as in South Jersey, according to sources at both companies. The service will not yet be offered in Philadelphia.

Surprisingly, Verizon will offer the channel that has kept thousands of area customers from abandoning Comcast in favor of one of the satellite systems: Comcast SportsNet, with the Phillies, Flyers and Sixers games it carries exclusively.

Neither company would comment for this story, but the SportsNet agreement comes as something of an eyebrow raiser. DirecTV and the Dish Network, both satellite providers, unsuccessfully lobbied Congress and the Federal Communications Commission for years to force Comcast to share its sports programming in Philadelphia.

Verizon is expected to charge $117.93 monthly for its combined phone, high-speed Internet and FiOS TV package in the Philadelphia area. Comcast charges $99 for a similar package, but that rate is available only for one year to new customers. The company has not said what it will charge after the introductory period, but the three products, if purchased separately, cost about $130.

It may be some time before the competition between the two telecommunications giants has a noticeable effect on prices. Indeed, the service bundles for television alone can be so complicated that they defy useful comparison.

In one Maryland community where Verizon and Comcast have locked horns, consumers have reported that they've been able to negotiate with sales representatives for free add-on services such as the premium movie channel Cinemax. Others make their decision based on their experience with each company's reliability and customer service.

Battle for market share

Philadelphia-based Comcast has won about 1.3 million phone customers in the last year, 80 percent of whom buy a triple-play package of phone, high-speed internet and cable TV service.

Verizon has fought back with a triple-play product of its own, but it includes satellite television, which in Philadelphia means no Phillies, Flyers or Sixers games. With its new FiOS TV product, which is similar to cable, as part of its lineup, Verizon should be able to compete more effectively.

It is not clear why Comcast agreed to share SportsNet with Verizon. As part of this deal, Verizon also agreed to carry three other Comcast channels: PBS Kids Sprout, the Golf Channel and VS., the sports network formerly known as OLN. That gives Comcast a broader audience for its content, potentially allowing it to charge more for ads.

Because of an exemption in federal law, Comcast does not have to share its local content such as SportsNet with competitors.

But while Comcast has kept sports content from satellite competitors, it has shared it with RCN Corp., a cable company with a small number of customers in the Philadelphia suburbs.

Hearing planned

Comcast's decision comes on the eve of a hearing this week by Sen. Arlen Specter that will focus on whether cable companies kill competition by hoarding sports programming.

Comcast also may use local sports programming as a bargaining chip in its bigger battle with the NFL Network. The company has balked at prices the NFL wants to charge for some games, resulting in litigation. Company executives also have complained that it cannot buy NFL Sunday Ticket, a popular package of football games available only to DirecTV subscribers.

Verizon's ability to offer local sports undoubtedly will thrill Philadelphia sports fans, but executives at DirecTV were fuming.

"Comcast continues to deny tens of thousands of DirecTV customers and loyal Philadelphia sports fans access to their home teams while providing their regional sports network to a small cable service and now Verizon, which has yet to sign up a single customer," said Susan Eid, DirecTV's vice president of government relations.

"All they've done is added insult to injury by continuing their anticompetitive behavior and shamelessly demonstrating their disregard for Philadelphia's sport fans."

Satellite companies' inability to get Philadelphia sports programming has hurt DirecTV and the Dish Network here, she said. The two companies have less than 10 percent of the Philadelphia market, compared with 26 percent nationally.

Verizon has agreements with 94 municipalities in Southeastern Pennsylvania to offer FiOS TV. It does not yet have such an agreement with Philadelphia.

Verizon can offer FiOS statewide in New Jersey. Verizon will roll out the service gradually. It is expected to announce which municipalities will get the service first tomorrow.


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Contact staff writer Miriam Hill at 215-854-5520 or hillmb@phillynews.com.

 

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Nothing has changed regarding CSN/Philly and the sat providers. There's been no further follow up to the story I posted in January. However, Verizon FiOS TV does provide CSN/Philly as part of their lineup. So there's at least some competition for Comcast.