The Blue Board

Doesn't matter how many "fans" there are. It matters how many TV sets they can push their package on. That is why Missouri got into the SEC. You think St. Louis gives a damn about the Missouri Tigers? No, but there is a lot of TV sets in the area.

This may be wrong but I was under the impression that potential viewers determine deals with cotent while actual viewers (ratings) determine deals with advertisers.

Again, it has nothing to do with fans. It has to do with houses and TV's. Pure population. For example...

I'm here in eastern North Carolina. I don't want to get the ECU game every week, but I get it anyway because I live here. People in New York might feel the same way about Rutgers, but they still always get the Rutgers game.

I tried to explain the best I could. Hope it makes sense.

But what Delaney wants is to get the BTN into more homes, right? Specifically in NYC. Why does he need Rutgers to do that? I get what you mean about ECU games being on where you live 'cause you live nearby, but would a conference need ECU to get into said homes? How many households tune into ECU games where you live compared to, say, SCar or UNC or someone similar? Or say in a city like Dallas, how many households tune into SMU games when compared to Oklahoma?

I guess I just don't see the point in having to add Rutgers to get into NYC households. There are tons of fans in the city (I'm assuming) of all of the top B1G teams, so why not just push the BTN? No lack of potential viewers. And instead of adding a team like Rutgers, who not that many households are tuning into I'd imagine, go after a team with a big following, thus more potential households tuning in.

Maybe I'm just not grasping how it works all that well.

But why? Is it because having a team in the region makes it look like there will be more viewers? 'Cause like I said, I feel like all you'd have to do is show the number of fans/alums (potential households) of all the teams you have in the area and it would be a staggering number. And then there's no need to add a team like Rutgers.

But why do you need Rutgers to do that is my question. There are plenty of Ohio State, Michigan, etc. fans in NJ and NYC. Do you NEED a team in that area to expand the BTN? Especially one that brings so few unique viewers (IE: Rutgers fans).

Yes. That's how it works. Remember, the B10 was the first conference to make a conference-owned nework work at all. And it wasn't easy. It was a fight with each major cable provider in each market within the B10 footprint. Eventually, the B10 got providers such as Comcast to agree to a fee of about $0.80 per household in every market they serve inside the B10 footprint and $0.10 per household in every market they serve outside the B10 footprint. And they got nearly all the major cable and satellite providers in the current B10 footprint to agree to roughly the same deal. At this point, it would be extremely difficult to renegotiate those existing deals even for new markets until the contracts come up for renewal. Basically, if we add Rutgers or Maryland to the B10, we get the higher subscription fees in their states. That's how it works.

As for advertising, those rates are determined by ratings for each type of programming in each market. But you first need to get access in a market (i.e. get onto the basic cable guide) before you can generate advertising dollars. Getting access is key.

Also, for everyone who says people in NYC do not watch CFB and MBB, that's not correct. It's just a relatively small percentage that are going to want to follow a particular team and that makes it very hard for a niche network like BTN to get onto the basic cable guide. It can be done, but Rutgers alone will not do it. And NYC is controlled by some unique cable providers like Cablevision who are notoriously difficult to deal with.

It pains me, but he's right.

Now fill her up, unleaded.....cash of course.

That's exactly right. The Yankees are what carries the region. Without YES, the BTN would have a hell of a time getting a decent rate in the NYC area.

As for southern NJ, that is already covered because they are in the Philly market which the BTN already has a negotiated rate with (I think it is .70 per sub).

My thought process was this: In NYC or NJ, how many more households would tune in to a Rutgers game (since it's the "local" team) vs. tune in to watch a higher profile team such as Texas. Fans and alumni disperse all over the country these days, not to mention you'll pull more general CFB fans to a higher profile team such as Texas whereas Rutgers really only brings Rutgers fans/alumni/viewers. So, from a sheer potential numbers POV, does Rutgers bring in more NJ/NYC viewers than a Texas?

It's all about the YES network and the Yankees. The Yankees are allowing the BTN to enter NYC, not the popularity of Rutgers. Rutgers is merely needed for contractual purposes (to expand the footprint).

So the point is you HAVE to have a locally or nearby located team in order to move into a new geographic area, correct? It would be one thing if it was, say, Syracuse because of the basketball prestige. But what I was getting hung up on was that I'm under the assumption (and I'm probably 100% wrong) that there are more fans of other B1G teams in NJ than there are of Rutgers, hence why not go after a team like a Texas that also probably has more fans in NJ and offer the BTN there anyway? Maybe I'm just not giving Rutgers enough credit is the problem. I just view them as very small market when it comes to athletic viewership.