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Longhorn Network launching today to a very limited audience

JimmyBuff

Well-Known Member
AUSTIN - The Longhorn Network, ESPN's groundbreaking and controversial partnership with the University of Texas, launches today with great hoopla to a nationwide audience of …

Well, actually, not much.

The network kicks off with probably no more than a few thousand households nationwide - and no access, pending last-minute deals, in such core markets as Houston, San Antonio and, potentially, Austin.

Still, ESPN and university officials are relentlessly bullish on their 20-year, $300 million partnership.

"This is a good thing," said Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds. "I love that we're able to do it. I love that the (Big 12) conference has allowed us to do it. Everybody can do something special and do it in their own way. That's America."

ESPN declined to estimate in how many households the Longhorn Network will be available when it signs on at 6 p.m. today from the university's South Mall with a cast that includes the anchors from ESPN's popular College GameDay program.

It did announce Thursday its first major LHN distribution deal with Verizon's FiOS service, which has about 3.9 million subscribers but is limited within Texas to about 250,000 customers in the Dallas-Fort Worth suburbs. The FiOS agreement begins Sept. 1, two days before the network telecasts Texas' football opener against Rice.

Media reports this week said an agreement was imminent with Grande Communications, which has about 140,000 customers in smaller systems along the Interstate 35 corridor, including Austin. But that deal had not been announced as of Thursday.

ESPN, which reportedly is seeking a monthly carriage fee of 40 cents per subscriber in Texas, has been unable to strike deals with such major carriers as Comcast, Time Warner, AT&T U-verse, DirecTV and Dish Network. So the Longhorn Network will launch with more potential than actual eyeballs for its first live event, a Texas-Pepperdine women's volleyball match.


Texas' decision to go with a programming partner instead of pairing up with cable distributors, as the Pac-12 has done, meant that distribution, not programming, would be a challenge as ESPN negotiated with hundreds of cable carriers. And not surprisingly, gearing up carriage has been a slow process.

Comcast, the largest carrier in Houston, had no comment on its plans for the Longhorn Network, but Plonsky said company officials are scheduled to visit Austin in the coming weeks.

As for Time Warner, the largest carrier in San Antonio, Dallas, Waco and Austin, spokesman Melissa C. Sorola said, "We have had discussions with ESPN about the Longhorn Network, and at this time we do not have an agreement in place." A Dish Network spokesman also confirmed talks with ESPN but said no deal is in place.

As for DirecTV, spokesman Robert Mercer said that while discussions have taken place, "we have no plans right now to carry it. We understand Longhorn has other programming that may be of value to a small segment of our customers, but two UT football games do not constitute a network."



http://www.chron.com/sports/longhorns/article/A-limited-launch-for-Longhorn-Network-2141921.php
Direct TV shoots and scores.. :lol::lol:
 
Holy ****. Allsome. It would be so so SO great if the longwhorn network failed... waitamminute... that would mean that ESPN would try and force UT to either (a) join the pac12 or (b) make it a big12 network in order to recoup their investment... uhoh.

Someone at ESPN royally ****ed up by giving the longwhorns this contract when the whorns couldn't offer the content.
 
Dear cable executive, I do NOT want to for over 20 cents per month for that conference killing network.
 
Texans try as hard as they can to **** up everything. You would think Dodds could look around and see that the most successful conferences have equal revenue sharing (Big 10, SEC). The PAC 12 saw it and moved to that model. But Texans seem simply incapable of accepting an equal share. Even after the NFL built the most successful pro sports league in the country, Jerry Jones has consistently tried to tear it down by diminishing the amount of revenue sharing.

They really are retards. :bang:
 
The majority of people in Austin have Time Warner, followed by Direct TV and ATT Uverse. I have Time Warner and if they try to charge me an extra $.40 a month I will be pissed. I don't want to donate one penny to those assholes and there athletic dept.
 
"This is a good thing," said Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds. "I love that we're able to do it. I love that the (Big 12) conference has allowed us to do it. Everybody can do something special and do it in their own way. That's America."

:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:
 
I'm torn on this. On the one hand, I'm thrilled to see anything associated with UT go down in a giant fireball of death and destruction. On the other hand, as snow points out, it might inch them closer to the Pac 12, which would be catastrophic.

I'm hoping for mild success of the LHN. Nothing amazing, just enough to make them not want to give it up.
 
I'm torn on this. On the one hand, I'm thrilled to see anything associated with UT go down in a giant fireball of death and destruction. On the other hand, as snow points out, it might inch them closer to the Pac 12, which would be catastrophic.

I'm hoping for mild success of the LHN. Nothing amazing, just enough to make them not want to give it up.
Exactly, enough success to keep it going and cement the 12 Pac's opinion. I would love to see a boycott from scheduling UTerus by BCS conference teams.
 
Texans try as hard as they can to **** up everything. You would think Dodds could look around and see that the most successful conferences have equal revenue sharing (Big 10, SEC). The PAC 12 saw it and moved to that model. But Texans seem simply incapable of accepting an equal share. Even after the NFL built the most successful pro sports league in the country, Jerry Jones has consistently tried to tear it down by diminishing the amount of revenue sharing.

They really are retards. :bang:

That is not correct about Jerry Jones. What Jerry Jones wanted was to keep his licensing rights and expand them. The real money was in TV and that he has never asked to keep a lionshare.
 
How long until the Texas legislature passes a law that cable carriers in Texas must carry the LHN?
 
How long until the Texas legislature passes a law that cable carriers in Texas must carry the LHN?
I believe it is in committee...


I find it hilarious UTerus blows up it's second conference to have ti's own TV network...and finds out nobody wants it.
 
Nobody wanted to pay for the Big 10 network in the beginning, either. Texas will shoehorn themselves onto many cable systems in Texas, believe it. Not that it matters, really, isn't ESPN taking the risk on this deal?
 
Nobody wanted to pay for the Big 10 network in the beginning, either. Texas will shoehorn themselves onto many cable systems in Texas, believe it. Not that it matters, really, isn't ESPN taking the risk on this deal?

ESPN is the one making sure LHN gets subscribers not the school itself.
 
Next bride down the P12 aisle:

8664.white-ivory-dress-dress.jpg.resize
 
Nobody wanted to pay for the Big 10 network in the beginning, either. Texas will shoehorn themselves onto many cable systems in Texas, believe it. Not that it matters, really, isn't ESPN taking the risk on this deal?

Slightly different scenario here. B10 network represented content for 11 schools spread over 8 states; LHN represents one school in one (admittedly large) state. That's a lot more customers clamoring to their cable provider to make the B10 network available.
 
I feel sorry for all the Customer Service reps that are being harrassed at this moment and next couple of days in Texas territory.

On another note, if you head to shaggybevo, some are already so p*ssed to the point of spamming/harrassing an AT&T CEO :lol:
 
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I feel sorry for all the Customer Service reps that are being harrassed at this moment and next couple of days in Texas territory.

On another note, if you head to shaggybevo, some are already so p*ssed to the point of spamming/harrassing an AT&T CEO :lol:

CEO of AT&T is a BOOMER SOONER. LOL.
 
So I was thinking today about the pre-season rankings and espn promoting UT as a psudo top 25 team. How much of a conflict of interest is it for the espn employees (Herbstreit, May etc.) to vote on team rankings when they own the team network. I know they broadcast games with conference affiliation, but individual teams seems to be stretching the legitimacy of the AP ranking.
 
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