For the first time in many years I will not be watching the Michigan Football opening game on television. Years ago there was limited coverage and there could only be five regular season games broadcast over a two year period. In recent years it has been extremely rare that any Michigan game didn’t get picked up. Then the Big Ten got greedy and formed their own television network, but what good is a television network which most people cannot pick up?
The network has now gone live but very few cable systems carry it. So far they have deals with Direct TV and some small cable systems but not with the major cable systems in the area. One problem is that the Big Ten Network insists that they be carried on the basic cable tier, arguing that cable systems typically carry channels such as The Food Network which have less interest. On the other hand I believe that these networks are less expensive for the cable systems to carry than what the Big Ten Network is asking.
Presumably the Big Ten Network wants to be carried on the basic tier as it will be viewed by more people than would be seen on a tier requiring additional fees. On the other hand, at present the network is seen by only a small percentage of football fans.
With the season underway I’m hoping that this places increased pressure on both the Big Ten Network and cable companies to compromise. The Big Ten Network will have a hard time selling advertising on a network few can see. The cable companies risk loss of customers to Direct TV and any other systems which might pick up the network.
