Here is How to Eliminate the Night Games FOREVER

[Charles Fischer]

Again, astute businessman, HappyToBeADuck, gives us guidance as he wrote in a post in another thread about how if we went to "only-streaming." We could set our game times to compete with B1G and SEC games during the day, and allow our Duck fans in Portland to get home at a decent time...maybe even in daylight!

 

If we were "streaming-only" we would have no interest about filling an evening slot and more people across the US, (and recruits) could watch us at convenient times. More people around the world could watch Oregon sports via streaming, and we would never have to play on a Friday night...unless we wanted to.  And if we did--who cares who else is on TV?

 

Now the new Canzano article posted hints that "streaming-only" is probably not the way the Pac-12 is going, but a combo approach between conventional TV and streaming.  George wants everyone to be able to see games one way or another, and that is a fantastic start.

 

As long as it generates enough revenue...??

 

[Mic]

How do we feel about ending these late night games?  R we kidding?  Because of traffic congestion our family absolutely refuses to attend night games in Autzen Stadium any longer.  Getting home well after midnight is no longer an option for us, nor for a lot of our friends either.  

 

Speaking of which: isn't the next home game (just announced) one of these ridiculous night games?  I think I heard it was an 8:00 pm start.  That's 11:00 pm on the East Coast!   Against Stanford!

 

If streaming can change that, well ... then maybe I'll become a fan of it after all.

[shawnski]

It's an excellent point. We could move all games back to 1230, which would be glorious!

 

I'm just skeptical the streaming thing is going to pay much.

 

Most people who stream don't watch sports.

 

We'll see, I just don't believe it.

 

If it does, it does 

[Drake]

Streaming subscriptions topped 300 million during the pandemic. There are certainly many sports fans included in those subscription numbers. 
 

Amazon is paying $1.2 billion per year to stream 15 NFL games. That is an increase of 80% over what Fox was previously paying. 
 

Streaming entertainment is here to stay, and the competition to be able to provide content has expanded into mainstream sports. 
 

The PAC 12 network would definitely benefit by selling some of it’s content and expanding viewership capabilities. 

Edited September 20, 2022 by Drake

[Goutes18]

Streaming needs to be part of our future.  Respectfully disagree that people that stream don’t watch sports - all of my friends that are big sports fans do some type of streaming.  It is here to stay.

 

I would do a lot of things differently in order to get away from the stupid late games.  Shocked to hear that the 8pm start for the Ducks Stanford game is the latest ever at Autzen - you must have had someone looking out for you!  Utah gets stuck in that time slot all the time - last week was one.  We have had 8pm starts in the middle of Nov in single digit temps.  Hate it.  

[David Marsh]

I don't mind a night game every now and then. Though in truth I am a at home watcher of games as I really really really hate crowds and loud noises... I don't even like assembly duty as a teacher. So I am happy to watch from home and sometimes a night game is a nice way to end the day. 

 

But I'm also not traveling and sitting in traffic. I go to bed when the game is over. 

 

But we do need east coast eyeballs on the Pac-12 and a game starting at 11 Eastern time is RIDICULOUS! Starting at 10 on the East Coast is doable because there will be some die hard football fans to watch it and it is something more for a west coast audience which is also fine to a degree. But starting at 8pm PST is too late. 

[McDuck]

An accounting giant weighs in.

 

A winning strategy for the future of sports streaming

WWW2.DELOITTE.COM

---

As the future of sports streaming continues to grow, leagues and media companies need to create better experiences for fans.

 

[Dave23]

On 9/20/2022 at 10:21 AM, shawnski said:

Most people who stream don't watch sports

I disagree, streamers have had very limited options for the most no part till recently, if games where on prime, a service I already pay for, I watch a lot more games. Most streaming services also let you watch games on demand years after they aired, just rewatched the  tOSU game a few weeks ago. I'm not paying for sling as I might as well just get Dish Network at that price.

[David Marsh]

On 9/20/2022 at 9:21 AM, shawnski said:

Most people who stream don't watch sports.

I'm pretty much an exclusive streamer and I would love to get rid of the cable I'm paying for as I only use it for football games more or less. There are a few other things but for the most part I don't use my cable for much else. After this season I will be trying out some of the other options out there for games. 

 

It all comes down to ease and options... and how many different networks/apps need to be paid for along the way. 

[noDucknewby]

Hopefully start times are part of GK's negotiation.  I would like to see nothing later than 7:00 and night games distributed more evenly, not at the whim of effing ESPN.

 

I'm feeling a lot more positive about the conference, but still a B1G invite would end late night games.

[David Marsh]

On 9/20/2022 at 3:45 PM, noDucknewby said:

but still a B1G invite would end late night games.

I'm not sure about that... If lets say Oregon and Washington were to join the B1G why wouldn't Fox consider putting Oregon v UCLA on a late night start time, especially if one team isn't ranked and not looking too competitive (that would be UCLA for those wondering). 

 

Oregon v Stanford starts at 8pm this year because Stanford doesn't look so good and we are on the west coast. 

[shawnski]

On 9/20/2022 at 2:42 PM, David Marsh said:

I'm pretty much an exclusive streamer and I would love to get rid of the cable I'm paying for as I only use it for football games more or less. There are a few other things but for the most part I don't use my cable for much else. After this season I will be trying out some of the other options out there for games. 

 

It all comes down to ease and options... and how many different networks/apps need to be paid for along the way. 

Right, I understand that everyone HERE loves sports. 

 

Nationally it has to pencil out. If some service wants to throw the $100 million (or is it billion?) at the Pac great!

 

Articles about cord cutters clearly state they don't want the sports channels which end up driving up the cable costs. The streaming captured them, who didn't want the sports.

 

I hope it works. But after the disaster and lie that was the Pac12 Network and ESPNs late games, I'm skeptical to say the least.

[noDucknewby]

On 9/20/2022 at 4:29 PM, David Marsh said:

I'm not sure about that... If lets say Oregon and Washington were to join the B1G why wouldn't Fox consider putting Oregon v UCLA on a late night start time, especially if one team isn't ranked and not looking too competitive (that would be UCLA for those wondering). 

 

Oregon v Stanford starts at 8pm this year because Stanford doesn't look so good and we are on the west coast. 

That's a fair point if there's a west coast pod, but I seriously doubt you'd have B1G Central/Eastern time zone teams playing at 8:00 PM PST, so there would have to be a lot fewer.

[1Funduck]

I think something is missed in the discussion of streaming and time starts.

 

We tend to think of fans in the radius of attending at Autzen. What's missed is fans around the world that aren't in love with watching the game at 5:00am, but that's them apples. One would surmise that Oregon fans record those games and watch at a later time anyway if they can get it in the first place. Now add 'Prime Video' or AppleTV,  and you stream it anywhere in the world on your phone. Watch it anytime even years down the road. It's readily accessible. Do those fans care about start times? Nope.

 

     However, I see the point made by so many here, cheeks in the seats looks way better than empty stadiums. Getting home at midnight is tough no doubt. But, I must say, I loooove the occasional night game in September early October. Night games have a different atmosphere. Tailgating is waaay different. I applaud 1-2 night games in the first half of the season. Last half? Not so much. It's colder and potentially wetter, (it never rains at....) and that just adds to the increased difficulty in heading home. 

 

     I would love to see a streaming media deal that becomes a full partner with the PAC network. All sports and a clear Marqui game from each team. Pay outs based on linked viewers. The NFL has what, 17 games streaming for Thursday's? We could have 3 each week minimum, possibly 5 during conference play for a total of 45 games in conference and 30 non con. That's for football alone. Throw in some Men's Bball and we have around another 180 games. Women's is another 180 games. Baseball and all the other sports just adds more. 

 

     The money sports are 435 games minimum. Throw in the playoffs and Bowl games and that's more frosting to our cake. How much goes to streaming? But the content is not paltry. 

 

     Another thing, Oregon is a Brand. People in New York don't care about any team from New York. Oregon, with good marketing and favorable time slots, would show well on the east coast. People who want to watch a specific game could set to stream their 'line up'. Now, if only to get rid of the annoying scoring updates running at the bottom of my screen. I want to watch my recorded game and not be burned with the end score. I can get the highlights at the end of the day.

 

 

[2002duck]

An easy way to end night games is by joining a conference based in the Midwest.

 

Problem solved.

[HappyToBeADuck]

Great comments, thoughts,and ideas on this thread. Their are pros and cons to streaming just as with cable.

 

Right now Fox and ESPN have great control over game times. Long before most of the PAC teams kickoff both those networks have made their money. Do you think that Amazon or Apple would have the #15 team in the country kicking off at 11 pm est? No way.......

 

The best PAC games would dominate the 4 or 5 pst slots or 7 or 8 est. Just as Amazon provides easy shopping for their customers they can provide easy viewing. Better scheduling and conference expansion could provide at least one game a week in the noon or 1 pm pst zone.

 

Fox shot their money on the all in BIG media rights contract. Not much left over for the PAC or BIG12. ESPN is cost cutting and strapped for cash. Thus the low ball offer to the PAC. I am all for the PAC being on cable and Amazon. More eyeballs and more money. Let ESPN be in the 2nd position. They gave a second rate offer to the PAC.

 

On a few threads we have seen some valid comments about Amazon cutting back. Upon further investigation they are closing many outdated facilities around the world. They are building many new state of the art distribution centers, also. A few money managers have forcast a 10-20% revenue drop for Amazon. I have no idea if thats factual. Our own business has dropped about 10% this year. But lets put this in proper perspective. Amazon revenues, i read, not confirmed, were about $460 billion. If they drop 10% then their revenues are $414 billion. Hardly falling on hard times.

 

What better way to advertise your sellable goods by oening your own streaming service. Cable needs subscribers and TV sets. Amazon simply needs content for its 300 million plus subscribers.

 

GO DUCKS........

[Tandaian]

Streaming absolutely wouldn't end night games for the Pac 12.  Every TV station or streamer wants the most possible eyes watching games.  Let's say you have tOSU vs Mich, Alabama vs Georgia, Oklahoma vs Texas, Clemson vs Miami all on the same day.  Do you believe the Pac 12 would stream a game on at the same time those teams are playing, if there was no game showing at night?

 

Streaming could help reduce some night games, but it is all about eye balls.  Why do you think the NFL only shows 1 or 2 games at the same time?  Why do you think the NFL shows certain teams in certain areas?  Streaming would not be a cure all for night games.  I'm a season ticket holder in Eugene and I would prefer kick off no later than 5:00, but since we are on the west coast and in the PST, I know we won't ever fully get rid of night games.

[DanLduck]

Night games will never go away.

Never.

 

As we are on the "left" coast, ours is the only conference that can provide for the late time slot. And as we know, the media deals ($$) control start times.

 

Part of the hope for ESPN money is that they need us to fill that exact time slot.

So here is a thought,

 

Use the late games as a chance to resell your tickets to fans who don't normally get to go. Fresh voices to scream in the night air, and we all stay home and feel proud of ourselves for helping Oregon develop more fan accessibility. 

And we avoid those crazy long waits in the travel home.

 

Btw, if you haven't read Canzano's take on a combined media deal of steaming and mainline tv, you should. He makes good points.

 

I too like an occasional night game, but boy, I hate that commute home!

[DUCati855]

I for one would hate to see night games go. I know I'm odd.

 

I'll admit I'm a night owl. You are far more likely to see me awake at 1am than 6am. I would much rather drive in the darkness of night than drive before the sun rises. I'm drinking coffee either way.

 

 I embrace every game at Autzen. However, I find a true night game brings the best fan experience. Something about the roar of the crowd in the cool air that feels like real college football to me. I understand many find the drive home exhausting. To them, I suggest having someone like me do the driving while they take a nap. 

 

As far as the east coast watching... I don't feel they are not likely to anyways. There are three times as many fan bases on that coast all fighting for the same times slots. We live on the west (best) coast. Lets use it to our advantage and play games in the slots ready for us. But, that is just one night owls opinion. Good night everyone!

[Jon Sousa]

The best way to get more day games is to play the best football in the west. ESPN, FOX, etc. want the most eyeballs watching them that they can get. Hence better times for higher ranked teams.

 

I have no clue why nobody wanted USC - OSU this week. OSU should be rated, as should WSU.