The NFL and DirecTV extend exclusive Sunday Ticket through 2014

by Ben Drawbaugh posted Mar 23rd 2009 at 11:38PM

Bad news for NFL fans that can't see the southwestern sky, DirecTV and the NFL have once again extended the exclusive pay-per-view Sunday Ticket contract, and this time through 2014. The rumored 4 billion dollar deal includes a few other nuggets like broadband access for Sunday Ticket subscribers who also subscribe to the Superfan package (an additional $99 fee) in 2012 -- although we're not sure how it differs from today's services. The other thing worth mentioning in the deal is that also starting around 2010, the Redzone channel will no longer be exclusive to the Superfan package, and will in fact be offered to other carriers with no strings attached to the leagues other cable channel, The NFL Network.

Filed under: Satellite, Sports

Tags: DirecTV, NFL, NFL Sunday Ticket, NflSundayTicket, Sunday Ticket, SundayTicket

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Neutral

jobob247 @ Mar 24th 2009 12:21AM

The games in HD being "part" of the superfan package is such a scam. Directv had various promotions for Superfan being free for this customer and that, or for this reason or that prior to the season. The last couple weeks before the season it was $99 no matter what. Then 2 or 3 weeks into the season directv ran ads promoting sunday ticket WITH free superfan. The games in HD if you have an HD box should be an implied thing. Man they have a great scam going.

Neutral

mattb0411 @ Mar 24th 2009 1:30AM

If you don't like paying DircTV's prices for HD, then switch to Dish's 25$ per month HD access. Just a hint, it will cost you more per year!!! and to answer your question...I am not a DirecTV employee.

Neutral

Fargus @ Mar 24th 2009 9:27AM

Lets get this straight. Its a "scam" to run early bird specials where superfan is included. And then once it gets closer to the season starting, they dont include it for free since the SPECIAL is over. Then a couple weeks into the season, to generate more sales, they start another SPECIAL to include it again. Sounds like Marketing 101 to me. Where is the scam? And on the implied HD nonsense. Just b/c you have an HD box with their normal programming, doesn't mean you are getting HD. You have to PAY the HD access fee to get the HD channels. So nothing is different with NFL Sunday Ticket. One more thing....You are an idiot.

Neutral

WebDev511 @ Mar 24th 2009 1:26AM

yeah, I dropped Sunday Ticket after 13 years for reasons other than the HD pricing gouge, but it sure did help validate my decision to do so.

Neutral

mitchelljd @ Mar 24th 2009 1:35AM

this superfan package is ridiculously expensive. in order to watch the football games i want. in order to get it in HD. is just crazy over priced.

doesnt surprise me that Directv got the package again, they are holding their customers hostage for more randsom.

I am so sick of over paying for nfl. there shouldn't be such an overpriced HD fee. it just ain't fair, we are already paying for the content.

Neutral

jobob247 @ Mar 24th 2009 1:42AM

@mattb0411 What in the flying hell does Dish network have anything to do with this conversation? We're talking about Sunday ticket which is exclusive to Directv and "superfan" is the add on package to Sunday Ticket which gets you games in HD.

Neutral

miko34 @ Mar 24th 2009 2:29AM

Why is it when they show a game on a local channel, that same game on the Sunday Ticket channel is blacked out? This normally doesn't matter at all to me, but if I Tivo a game while I'm out (with NFL's consent, of course... ;) ), sometimes the local channel will switch to a different game during the fourth quarter. Sure, it might be due to a blow out, but I want to watch the whole game when I come home. I know it switches to the Sunday Ticket channel, but my Tivo doesn't switch the recording. Why can't they play it on both stations?

Also ... who'll be the first to get the UFL?

Anyway, Sunday Ticket is too expensive (especially with HD) and I'm probably going to cancel it for the first time in five years. I'll go to my local pub. Make HD the normal fee and maybe I'll be back.

Neutral

UnnDunn @ Mar 24th 2009 10:02AM

Because Sunday Ticket removes the commercials that your local channel wants you to see. NFL TV rules mandate that local channels MUST stick with the game they are covering until the end, no matter what, or incur a hefty fine. Sometimes though, a game might be so unbelievably boring that the network might think switching to a more interesting game will retain enough viewers to make the fine worth paying.

Highly Ranked

Jeff N. @ Mar 24th 2009 3:54AM

The fact DirecTV had to pay $4 Billion dollars to have exclusive rights to Sunday Ticket is the reason for the Superfan being so high priced. They are trying to get their money back for the high fees.

Neutral

mitchelljd @ Mar 24th 2009 1:33PM

exactly, they are playing games with customers wallets.

Doesn't matter what a fair price is, the NFL wants to extract the most money possible. Directv is too willing to hold their customers hostage for such an over priced package.

Sorry I just don't think that in this economy people should be forced to over pay to get the content they want. FAIR PRICING just isn't what we get in a monopoly situation like this one.

Neutral

jason @ Mar 24th 2009 10:27AM

1. I have Directv and normally buy the Sunday Ticket package.

2. $%#@ the NFL, they allow this to happen. In some ways it is a slap in the face to their fans that make it so popular in the first place.

3. Superfan not exclusively on Directv?!, I usually spend most my time on that channel anyway...hmmmm.

Highly Ranked

ayemac @ Mar 26th 2009 3:26PM

I’ve had DirecTV for 12 years, and they’ve historically treated me very well. I’ve had the Sunday Ticket off and on for years and consistently over the last six or so.

Here’s what really irks me, which mirrors other sentiments by users here – I pay for DirecTV (ding!), I pay for HD on DirecTV (ding!), I pay for the NFL Sunday Ticket (ding!) – so why the hell am I paying for (here goes) NFL games in HD on the Sunday Ticket?!? That’s yet another $99 (ding! ding! ding!).

Don’t get me wrong – I love DirecTV. I can hardly stomach their HD DVRs (I have three, however) as the DirecTivo boxes were far better in functionality (I know, I know – the Tivo boxes are supposed to be coming back in 4Q 09). I don’t mind paying most of the prices, but the SuperFan is redonkulous.

The best thing I’ve heard to date is the RedZone becoming available on other services. I watch the HD RedZone about 90% of the time (see: fantasy football).

Here’s a nugget for you long-time subs, though – I actually called in advised them to cancel my order each time over the last two years. Both times they gave me some hella deals by discounting the SuperFan to free and the Sunday Ticket to 60% less than the original price. Spread that out over six months with the appropriate discounts, and I’ll be your huckleberry, errrr, SuperFan, any day!

Neutral

Caveman @ Mar 24th 2009 3:58PM

How come MLB didn't become exclusive to DirecTV? Didn't congress step in to stop that? So what is the difference between the MLB exclusivity and this NFL exclusivity?

Neutral

blueironchef @ Mar 24th 2009 8:07PM

That's what I was wondering.

How much is D* making off the package. $1B a year is kind of crazy if you ask me.

Neutral

Mark @ Mar 28th 2009 3:18PM

The difference between the MLB and NFL exclusivity was MLB was not exclusive and did not have a firm contract already, government stepped in and allowed MLB to be shared with DIRECTV and the three big cable companies. The NFL deal has been exclusive since the 90s and this is an extension of an existing agreement. Plus NFL really does not have any intention of mass distribution for a the reason of protecting local carriage. Local affiliates might not have a big incentive to carry more than one game a week if NFL had more carriage. I have DIRECTV for NFL and HD (among other things, local cable sucks with 10 HD channels and high cost for low amount of channels).

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