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I can only speak as to why I never watch games anymore in real time. Instead, I watch replays with the NFL pass on Apple TV. Several reasons:
No commercials. There are way too many stoppages in play. The commercials go on forever, and most are bad. Refs take too long to make decisions. All of that slows the game down.
Replay games allow me to rewind and really enjoy the subtle stuff about the game.
I play fantasy football, so I watch the Redzone for the highlights and stats. I also follow along on my ESPN app. My local games are always the Redskins, Ravens, or Panthers. I only watch those teams if the Rams are playing them.
Most commentators are bad. I like some, but most talk too much about issues not related to football. Case in point, the kneeling thing going on now. I don’t care. I watch football for football, not political/social stances being pursued by a bunch of millionaires that are paid to play a game. Turning down the volume helps.
Sideline reporters. Too many of them. Yes, the ladies are pretty, but they’re not needed.
I think the biggest problem the NFL has is supply and demand. The demand for football is still extremely high, but the supply is everywhere. I can watch football on my TV, laptop, desktop, phone, and every bar in Richmond. There must be a thousand sports bars here, all packed with dozens of televisions. There is no reason for me to sit through a 3 hour game that consists of about 45 minutes of actual playing time, when I can watch snippets all day on so many different devices. And I can avoid all commercials and non-football related BS.
Edited because of words and things.
I think it’s probably a generational thing too. Kids today grow up with so many things screaming for their attention. It’s different. Also–fantasy football has changed things a bit. People can be actively involved managing their own teams and so team loyalty isn’t what it used to be. They can follow through stats. You have the Madden games which offer another football like diversion with active participation plus a million other games.
Then there is the internet itself. There is the free streaming.
There is the cost of going to an actual game.
And don’t forget the cost to support a team through merchandise. Not cheap stuff.
It’s lots of things–but I’m not so sure the NFL’s plan to take over the world will work.
Corporations believe growth–one way or another. The reality is there is no such thing.
What’s after the world?
Space? Alien populations?
It can’t grow forever–and people, generations and their interests change.
Quite frankly I don’t think there’s enough interest in American football to expand overseas like the NFL is rumored to want to do. Especially considering how cost prohibitive it is to attend a game. And what will happen to the fan interest when the Munich Muskrats post losing records for 3 or 4 straight years?
I don’t watch as much TV in general and football in particular, because it has become less and less about the game and more about face time for announcers or celebs. You miss plays cause they are interviewing some guy on the sideline or something else of no particular interest. The draft is a good example. I used to take a day off work and get a motel room with cable just watch the draft. Now, I just record and fast forward through it to get the interesting bits.
ESPN has turned into some kind of Disney marketing channel and The NFL’s own channel just repeats and repeats a few stories that cover a limited area of interest. How many times do I have to watch Beckum? or any other media darling?
AgamemnonAT&T bought DirectTV. In a couple of years all of their stuff will be streamed over the internet. Satellites will be cut out. I read that.
http://money.cnn.com/2014/05/18/news/companies/att-directv/index.html
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/ATT-to-Offer-DirecTV-Without-the-Satellite-Dish-136405
AT&T to Offer DirecTV Without the Satellite Dish
by Karl Bode
Tuesday Mar 01 2016 15:59 EDTAT&T today announced the company will be offering not one but three new DirecTV branded Internet video services sometime late this year. All three of the options are aimed at delivering DirecTV television content without the need to attach a satellite dish to your house. In other words, AT&T’s taking DirecTV nationwide in what sounds like a mammoth over-the-top streaming video play. The offerings vary slightly; one subscription offering much like Dish’s Sling TV, one subscription offer aimed specifically at wireless customers, and one ad-supported service aimed at Millennials.
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AT&T clearly hopes that one of the three services will succeed where so many ISP streaming services have failed. Given that such services can cannibalize existing pay TV subscribers, telecom companies often hamstring such offers resulting in a parade of dull services that fail in the market.AT&T executives insist these new services will be different.
“We are looking at these offerings differently than others in the market. We often hear from customers who want more content from streaming services, or who can’t get or can’t afford a traditional pay-TV service,” says AT&T exec John Stankey.
“We intend to offer customers a quality pay-TV experience, including top channels, sports and more, with increased value and flexibility of pure online streaming and no need for home installation.”
Whether customers are actually interested will depend heavily on how much the services cost, something AT&T isn’t yet revealing. Given moves by Verizon, it seems extremely likely that one or all of the options will lean heavily on AT&T’s controversial interest in “zero rating,” or letting a carrier’s own content bypass usage caps. Here’s the three new options coming later this year, and AT&T’s explanation of each:
DIRECTV Now:
quote:The company plans to offer a range of content packages, including much of what is available from DIRECTV today — on-demand and live programming from many networks, plus premium add-on options. Customers will be able to access the service over a wired or wireless Internet connection and on Internet-enabled devices. Consumers can simply sign-up for the service, download the app and begin watching.
DIRECTV Mobile:
quote:This affordable offer will deliver a mobile-first user experience for people wanting to watch premium video and made-for-digital content directly on a smartphone, regardless of the wireless provider. Consumers can start watching video immediately after the same simple sign-up and app-download process.
DIRECTV Preview:
quote:This free offer for anyone with a wired or wireless Internet connection will feature some of the quality programming available on DIRECTV today. The tailored ad-supported service will showcase content from AT&T’s AUDIENCE Network, many networks and other content sources, and millennial-focused video from Otter Media, a joint venture of AT&T and The Chernin Group.
AT&T’s announcement comes on the heels of the news the company is backing away from traditional U-Verse TV, which is delivered over AT&T’s DSL and fiber to the node network. Many new customers are being pushed toward DirecTV first and foremost. Later this year, customers (potential cord cutters especially) will be directed to these new streaming options, but whether they resonate with consumers will again depend on whether AT&T’s seriously willing to compete on price.
AgamemnonGood. Now, instead of having to deal with my dish kicking out, I will only have to worry about cable kicking out. Which of course it does, more often than the dish.
I have had both. Many years ago when cable was analog it suxed. I ran a satellite car for the rail gang that I worked on. It was one of those old time big giant dishes. The dish was set up on a flat car. I ran it through a distribution thing and it had 6 tv channels for the guys to tune to, ~20 bunk cars and a 100 tvs, over a 1/4 mile long. I have stayed in many motel rooms that had the old cable. For many years Dish was the best thing going, but their customer service went way down hill in the last few years. After more than 20 years of them, I got disgusted and went with cable, a DSL modem. I like it just fine. A lot of the old cable problems are gone. it is basically a streaming internet connection. I lost a couple channels, BBC America and Cinemax. But, overall I like it better. I have plenty of experience with both and for many years. I prefer cable now.
Agamemnon
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