Mike Green still needs a deal, but the NHL and the Versus network do not. According to a CBC report, both sides agreed to a 3-year extension.
The NHL and American cable network Versus agreed Tuesday to extend their broadcasting deal by three years.
Financial details were not disclosed.
Versus, formerly known as the Outdoor Life Network, began televising NHL games during the 2005-06 season.
It paid the NHL $65 million US that season, $70 million US last season, and exercised a $72.5-million US contract option this season.
Versus is televising 57 games this season and, so far, average viewership is up 34 per cent over last season, from 195,666 to 261,760.
Thanks to Paul Kukla for the assist.
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I heard them announce this on Hockey Central tonight. Not sure what to think of it.
Is viewership really up 34% this year? Wow, that seems awfully high. Anyone know if the climb is due to VS becoming available in more households or if people who already had it are just finally tuning in to hockey?
I’m not fond of their exclusive game causing blackouts of any other teams scheduled to play the same night (anyone know if this is going to continue?), but their hockey coverage and analysis overall has improved year by year. I hope this is good for the game.
Ugh. Until hockey is on a mainstream channel, it will never reach mainstream America. I can barely find VS and I know what I’m looking for. I don’t think there is a more obscure channel.
I wonder whether this deal means for whether/if the NBC broadcasts more games.
NHL.com is where some of that money should go. It’s a great site - and I am a big fan of the live stats/radio feed combo that lets fans tune into far flung games.
I wonder how many people have purchased the full NHL package on their cable/satellite packages.
More info in today’s New York Times (though no financial details as yet):
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/23/sports/hockey/23versus.html?_r=1&ref=sports&oref=slogin
While I enjoy the quality of coverage on VS, hockey will remain a 3rd tier sport until it is back on a mainstream channel.
On a more positive note, Vogel is reporting that the Caps/Pens game on Monday drew the highest regular season hockey ratings *ever* in the DC area.
I honestly don’t know if you are goofing about the 233k people watching these games on Versus. LOL.
But screw ESPN. That channel sold out long ago, who wants to go and be a b**** sport playing 5th fiddle. The only thing I miss are the announcers. I hate, hate, HATE Emerick. Thorn was the king and the 2nd/3rd tier ESPN guys were great also. Also the Versus studio are a bunch of stiffs with no real charisma and opinion. And don’t get me started on NBC and that chowderhead Ferraro. I’ve said enough, I’m out.
KB and Smitty, I hear you regarding “mainstream channels”, but…well, its not like we haven’t been around this block already.
ABC, CBS, ESPN, FOX, and NBC have all taken kicks at the can over the years. Four of those five national broadcasters are now out of the hockey business altogether, and the one that is still there has a ridiculous deal where it pays the League no rights fees (and also cuts away from playoff games to show horse races, for God’s sake). What does that say about the television market for hockey in the United States–not Gary Bettman’s fantasy market, but the actual market where real people tune in using real televisions?
I think that, after all these years, you can only come to one conclusion: outside of a few core markets, the locals just don’t care very much. I just don’t think its realistic to say that its lack of exposure, not after all these years.
I like that the league is on a network that considers it its marquee product. Their growth is dependent upon the NHL. Not so with most prior TV partners. There’s a shared interest. (And its amusing that Comcast second- or third-tier execs believe that I’ll tune into World Extreme Cage Fighting after the game - more power to ‘em.)
When I was a teenager, back in the Zeigler era, a hockey fan of my same age introduced me to the game, and told me where to watch games - SportsChannel at the time for league games - and then I read the sports page and found where the games were broadcast, and later where the Caps games were. Even easier to find the games now.
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