TV Coverage

[Goon]

I, for one, am ecstatic we have the type of media coverage that we have. I'm probably one of the few UND fans that is football first then everything else. I won't be able to attend the game this weekend but I'm going to be able to stream the game on my phone. That's pretty damn awesome!

We're only in the 2nd year of the Midco deal and they've already stepped up and given us HD a year earlier than they had to. I'm confident that by the end of this 5 year deal there will be plenty more to be excited about.

I am hoping that I will be able to watch the Football games on my Nook whe UND is out of town on Big Sky Network...

[fightingsioux4life]

Small observation about the FTA issue.

Up until two years ago, the Ralph website actually provided the Satellite coordinates for all the Allumni and fans to access the games in North America. Say you live on a ranch in northern New Mexico, satellite access would be a better option then High Speed Internet. The long term effect of removing easy access for life long UND fans nationwide will result in less money being donated to the University. Being forced "out of mind" will allow potential donators to reassign their funds to other organizations. The Exposure provided by Ralph when he funded the whole concept including the uplink facility at UND took the Hockey program to a whole new level. That all has now been flushed down a drain.

I have two cousins who feel alienated by the current system. One lives in Denver, the other in Red Lake, Ontraio. Both for years watched every UND game off the satellite. Die-hard UND Allumni left out to dry.

Less exposure will equal less interest.

Less interest will be less donations.

I agree with you. But some people will insist that exposure isn't as important as you and I think it is.

[Redneksioux]

I agree with you. But some people will insist that exposure isn't as important as you and I think it is.

I don't think they are insisting exposure isn't as important. I think the exposure issue has been underestimated by some though.

[jdub27]

I don't think they are insisting exposure isn't as important. I think the exposure issue has been underestimated by some though.

Exposure is important but you need to also take into account the financial implications which some people continue to ignore.

[Redneksioux]

Exposure is important but you need to also take into account the financial implications which some people continue to ignore.

I can understand the financial implications as reasoning changes were made. Basically all games should still be available to everyone in some form or fashion still. Just in order to view them more hoops will need to be jumped through and in many cases more money spent by the viewer. Cable one customers will need to watch online. Customers of affiliate cable companies in the region will need to upgrade and spend more in many cases. Past fta'ers will need to watch online. Fans nationwide will need to watch online as well as of right now. There will be many that will subscribe and watch online but I will tell you that many also will not.

[KSSioux]

I apologize if my info was incorrect. I was relaying what I had been recently told by someone with experience in the television production business. Our decision to longer make the coordinates is more of a business decision with relation to our broadcast partners, our webcasts and our ticket sales.

As everyone on here knows, you can please some of the people some of the time, but you can't please all of the people all of the time. The broadcast landscape in college sports is incredibly fluid these days, and we're doing our best to only offer as many options as possible (within good business practices, to be sure), but to also anticipate future evolution and changes within the industry.

I am glad that you are recognizing what is known and what is not known. One additional fact everyone should know is that a GOOD FTA system would cost you only 2.5 times what the cable costs that will connect you to the HDMI port on your TV from the computer (a cable that is about ten feet long). Also, the FTA feed was far superior to the FCS picture that we received last year. There are far more FTA customers and UND donors that received this feed that will now have to rely on the internet feed. Right now the internet feed is not good so I do hope it improves quickly. It is not my computer because I get many other live feeds, even in HD, without a problem. I cannot even watch a replay of the UND coaches show without it blocking and delaying. Also, just FYI, a HD FTA system would cost about 3.5-4 times what that cable costs to connect your computer to the HDMI port on a TV. The reality is that there are not many FTA HD feeds yet, so getting that type of a system would not get you much right now. It is true that I hope UND will realize how much not being on television will hurt recruiting outside of the MidCo area. I am glad they are looking at options,

[Blackheart]

I can understand the financial implications as reasoning changes were made. Basically all games should still be available to everyone in some form or fashion still. Just in order to view them more hoops will need to be jumped through and in many cases more money spent by the viewer. Cable one customers will need to watch online. Customers of affiliate cable companies in the region will need to upgrade and spend more in many cases. Past fta'ers will need to watch online. Fans nationwide will need to watch online as well as of right now. There will be many that will subscribe and watch online but I will tell you that many also will not.

Wondering what the volume of viewers will be for the webcasted hockey games...hoping they factor in a big number so they can provide for all interested parties.

[Redneksioux]

I am glad that you are recognizing what is known and what is not known. One additional fact everyone should know is that a GOOD FTA system would cost you only 2.5 times what the cable costs that will connect you to the HDMI port on your TV from the computer (a cable that is about ten feet long). Also, the FTA feed was far superior to the FCS picture that we received last year. There are far more FTA customers and UND donors that received this feed that will now have to rely on the internet feed. Right now the internet feed is not good so I do hope it improves quickly. It is not my computer because I get many other live feeds, even in HD, without a problem. I cannot even watch a replay of the UND coaches show without it blocking and delaying. Also, just FYI, a HD FTA system would cost about 3.5-4 times what that cable costs to connect your computer to the HDMI port on a TV. The reality is that there are not many FTA HD feeds yet, so getting that type of a system would not get you much right now. It is true that I hope UND will realize how much not being on television will hurt recruiting outside of the MidCo area. I am glad they are looking at options,

I've scanned the arc the past 2 Saturdays and found maybe 20 games each day on ku band in hd....so there's plenty of hd Fta wild feeds out there for sports. Far from being dead like the dinosaur like jayson's source. I'm sure midco would like to believe Fta is as dead as the dinosaur though. Or at least have sold the fact it is dead to media people at und.

[Redneksioux]

Wondering what the volume of viewers will be for the webcasted hockey games...hoping they factor in a big number so they can provide for all interested parties.

Well where I live I cannot get high speed Internet so it's not an option for me. And my grandparents in hazen nd won't be changing their cable package or figuring out how to watch online. They'd like to keep watching und but they will be ok without.

[KSSioux]

I've scanned the arc the past 2 Saturdays and found maybe 20 games each day on ku band in hd....so there's plenty of hd Fta wild feeds out there for sports. Far from being dead like the dinosaur like jayson's source. I'm sure midco would like to believe Fta is as dead as the dinosaur though.

Thanks for that input. That teaches me to go on what I have heard regarding the feeds. Glad to hear that is the case, so it justifies an upgrade to my system since my receiver and motorized dish system are a little dated.

[fightingsioux4life]

Well where I live I cannot get high speed Internet so it's not an option for me. And my grandparents in hazen nd won't be changing their cable package or figuring out how to watch online. They'd like to keep watching und but they will be ok without.

This is what I am concerned about. What if a large number of people do this? We need to figure out how to increase exposure and generate enough revenues to pay our Division I bar tab.

[Jayson Hajdu]

I've scanned the arc the past 2 Saturdays and found maybe 20 games each day on ku band in hd....so there's plenty of hd Fta wild feeds out there for sports. Far from being dead like the dinosaur like jayson's source. I'm sure midco would like to believe Fta is as dead as the dinosaur though. Or at least have sold the fact it is dead to media people at und.

I'm all for engaging in discussion on here if we can leave the name-calling (different post) and conspiracy theories out of it. The person I talked to was not affiliated with Midco, nor were they trying to "sell" UND's "media people" on anything. I merely asked in casual conversation, out of my own curiosity, about FTA and its prevalence in this day and age.

Believe me, the last thing I want to do is rehash the exact same discussion every month about the television situation. I would guess most of you feel the same way. No, it is not ideal in its current incarnation, but how many collegiate television situations are? It is an extremely fluid landscape but we are committed to making the best of it. Not just now, but going forward.

There are some on here (and elsewhere) who continue to presume that we as an athletics department -- the paid professionals whose job it is to operate in the best interests of our University and our student-athletes -- don't value maximum exposure. That we apparently are content to have fewer games on national television. That we aren't concerned with losing hockey viewers who previously watched us on FCS. This is utterly preposterous.

Over the past six years under Brian Faison:

• A relationship has been established with FOX College Sports (available in more than 50 million homes) that has provided live national broadcasts of not just UND men's hockey, but also UND women's hockey, football, men's basketball, women's basketball and volleyball.
  
• A partnership has been formed with Midco Sports Network that not only provides us with a regional broadcast stronghold, but ever-important financial stability. Further, as we begin just year two of that 5-year partnership, Midco has already addressed some of the biggest macro (high definition) and micro (penalty clock) issues that many fans have had with our broadcasts over the years.
  
• Midco has also committed to produce and broadcast North Dakota Hockey with Dave Hakstol, the first men's hockey-specific show we've had in at least 20 years, if ever (my time here dates only to the mid-90s so I don't know if there was a Gino Gasparini show). This show, along with UND Sports Extra and UND Insider Weekly, provide us with no fewer than three weekly television shows.
  
• Significant resources (financial and manpower) have been committed to widening and improving our online coverage. This ranges from live events (webcasts that include all men's hockey, women's hockey, football, men's basketball, women's basketball and volleyball home games, as well as select soccer, baseball and softball games) to original programming (Through These Doors, Opening Drive, etc.). This has also included the continued development of mobile apps, now and going forward.
  
• The state and regional radio network has been significantly expanded.
  
• If the exposure discussion goes beyond the traditional realm, our student-athletes have been featured prominently by Sports Illustrated, TSN, CBC, New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, ESPN the Magazine, Los Angeles Times and more. Truthfully, many of these opportunities simply fall into our lap. But quite often, we must aggressively pitch and pursue them. That is our job.
  

Yes, fewer men's hockey home games will be available on national TV this year. Unfortunately, that was the cost of business associated with forming a first-rate men's hockey conference. Do we as a department find the loss of those games ideal? Of course not, but that doesn't mean that we will stop trying to eventually reclaim that full national footprint. We are hopeful it will prove to be a shining example of one step backward to take two steps forward. As with anything, these things take time.

This athletics department is certainly never beyond reproach, and it is the fans who serve as our checks and balances. That is a good thing.

But I would hope that the bullet points above serve as evidence that this department is anything but ignorant when it comes to matters of exposure.

[sprig]

This would not happen over and over again if a couple posters (not you Jayson) insist on arguing that we FTA'ers don't know what we are talking about.

[Redneksioux]

And I apologize but I wasn't meaning to do any name calling. I just presumed that since the statement of "Fta being as dead as the dinosaur" was said here by you, that thia theory may have been considered when the decision to no longer offer Fta this season was made.

[Irish]

I'm all for engaging in discussion on here if we can leave the name-calling (different post) and conspiracy theories out of it. The person I talked to was not affiliated with Midco, nor were they trying to "sell" UND's "media people" on anything. I merely asked in casual conversation, out of my own curiosity, about FTA and its prevalence in this day and age.

Believe me, the last thing I want to do is rehash the exact same discussion every month about the television situation. I would guess most of you feel the same way. No, it is not ideal in its current incarnation, but how many collegiate television situations are? It is an extremely fluid landscape but we are committed to making the best of it. Not just now, but going forward.

There are some on here (and elsewhere) who continue to presume that we as an athletics department -- the paid professionals whose job it is to operate in the best interests of our University and our student-athletes -- don't value maximum exposure. That we apparently are content to have fewer games on national television. That we aren't concerned with losing hockey viewers who previously watched us on FCS. This is utterly preposterous.

Over the past six years under Brian Faison:

• A relationship has been established with FOX College Sports (available in more than 50 million homes) that has provided live national broadcasts of not just UND men's hockey, but also UND women's hockey, football, men's basketball, women's basketball and volleyball.
  
• A partnership has been formed with Midco Sports Network that not only provides us with a regional broadcast stronghold, but ever-important financial stability. Further, as we begin just year two of that 5-year partnership, Midco has already addressed some of the biggest macro (high definition) and micro (penalty clock) issues that many fans have had with our broadcasts over the years.
  
• Midco has also committed to produce and broadcast North Dakota Hockey with Dave Hakstol, the first men's hockey-specific show we've had in at least 20 years, if ever (my time here dates only to the mid-90s so I don't know if there was a Gino Gasparini show). This show, along with UND Sports Extra and UND Insider Weekly, provide us with no fewer than three weekly television shows.
  
• Significant resources (financial and manpower) have been committed to widening and improving our online coverage. This ranges from live events (webcasts that include all men's hockey, women's hockey, football, men's basketball, women's basketball and volleyball home games, as well as select soccer, baseball and softball games) to original programming (Through These Doors, Opening Drive, etc.). This has also included the continued development of mobile apps, now and going forward.
  
• The state and regional radio network has been significantly expanded.
  
• If the exposure discussion goes beyond the traditional realm, our student-athletes have been featured prominently by Sports Illustrated, TSN, CBC, New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, ESPN the Magazine, Los Angeles Times and more. Truthfully, many of these opportunities simply fall into our lap. But quite often, we must aggressively pitch and pursue them. That is our job.
  

Yes, fewer men's hockey home games will be available on national TV this year. Unfortunately, that was the cost of business associated with forming a first-rate men's hockey conference. Do we as a department find the loss of those games ideal? Of course not, but that doesn't mean that we will stop trying to eventually reclaim that full national footprint. We are hopeful it will prove to be a shining example of one step backward to take two steps forward. As with anything, these things take time.

This athletics department is certainly never beyond reproach, and it is the fans who serve as our checks and balances. That is a good thing.

But I would hope that the bullet points above serve as evidence that this department is anything but ignorant when it comes to matters of exposure.

Jason - thank you for your patience -

Here's the problem as I see it - I understand that UND got a lesser Hockey TV package because of a deal the new league made. I also get that the Athletic Department is trying to find a solution. What irritates me is this: UND is undoubtably the flagship program in the new conference. Denver is a good rival and good hockey team, but they can't even fill their own arena. The likes of St. Cloud State are lucky to be included. Having said that, it seems that every conference decision bites us - chief among them the new tv deal. I was hoping for a better reffing situation, but the director of officials is the only ref that has publically expressed a hatred for the Sioux and we have not one but two Sheppards. Add in the fact that perhaps our biggest league rival is trying to limit the amount of Sioux fans that can attend the away games and I am not as big a fan of the league as I once was. I get that people are trying to increase our tv exposure, but I am wondering if we have any say in the new league at all. Doesn't seem like we drove a hard bargin and are now trying to fix it. We seem to be paying a very high cost of business for forming a new league compared to some.

[Jayson Hajdu]

This would not happen over and over again if a couple posters (not you Jayson) insist on arguing that we FTA'ers don't know what we are talking about.

That's fair, but there's also no denying there exists a now-regular hand-wringing in general about the loss of men's hockey games on FCS (and FTA). Believe me, I totally understand the frustration all of you feel with regard to this. Where I do take issue with the discussion is when it turns into, "Men's hockey games are no longer available on FCS (or FTA), therefore UND does not understand the impact of exposure."

I guess that was a much more succinct way of summarizing what I was trying to say in my previous post

[Jayson Hajdu]

I get that people are trying to increase our tv exposure, but I am wondering if we have any say in the new league at all.

We have the same say as each of the other seven member institutions: one vote.

[UND Fan]

Jayson - I am one of the many disappointed UND fans (living in FL) who will miss seeing the majority of our hockey games. However, I fully believe that you folks know what you are doing and that this was a "necessary evil".

Thanks for your patience with all the outspoken fans and keep up the good work! Your department has improved dramatically over the last few years - much appreciated by those of us who follow UND sports very closely.

[Jayson Hajdu]

Jayson - I am one of the many disappointed UND fans (living in FL) who will miss seeing the majority of our hockey games. However, I fully believe that you folks know what you are doing and that this was a "necessary evil".

Very sorry to hear you're among the affected FCS viewers. I strongly encourage you to try watching via webcast. If you prefer the flat screen TV route, the webcast can be run through your television via HDMI cable, or a number other ways other posters have suggested here.

We appreciate your understanding and devotion; in return, we'll keep working to get those lost games back on TV for you.

[Dden1]

UND should have never been a party to this league TV deal and should have stayed in the WCHA if this is the way this new league wanted to do things. The people who run UND these days don't seem to have a clue about what a loyal alumni base they had and were growing because of UND hockey.

[WeAreNorthDakota]

UND should have never been a party to this league TV deal and should have stayed in the WCHA if this is the way this new league wanted to do things. The people who run UND these days don't seem to have a clue about what a loyal alumni base they had and were growing because of UND hockey.

So what happens when FCS stops picking up our games because they're all against Bemidji, the Alaskas, and Michigan Tech? If you truly believe that about those running UND then you are incredibly out of touch with how passionate those people are about UND athletics and UND in general.

[82SiouxGuy]

UND should have never been a party to this league TV deal and should have stayed in the WCHA if this is the way this new league wanted to do things. The people who run UND these days don't seem to have a clue about what a loyal alumni base they had and were growing because of UND hockey.

There were very good reasons for leaving the WCHA after Minnesota and Wisconsin announced they were leaving. Those reasons still apply. The television deal was made well after the new league was formed. UND had no choice about being party to the league TV contract as long as they wanted to remain part of the league.

[southpaw]

One additional fact everyone should know is that a GOOD FTA system would cost you only 2.5 times what the cable costs that will connect you to the HDMI port on your TV from the computer (a cable that is about ten feet long).

Also, just FYI, a HD FTA system would cost about 3.5-4 times what that cable costs to connect your computer to the HDMI port on a TV.

Please tell me where I can get an FTA system for $20 and an HD FTA system for $30 because if you're paying more than $8 for a ten foot HDMI cable you're getting ripped off.

[ChesterFritz90]

Please tell me where I can get an FTA system for $20 and an HD FTA system for $30 because if you're paying more than $8 for a ten foot HDMI cable you're getting ripped off.

Truth. Amazon is a wealth of $8.00 HDMI cables.

[sprig]

Please tell me where I can get an FTA system for $20 and an HD FTA system for $30 because if you're paying more than $8 for a ten foot HDMI cable you're getting ripped off.

Maybe a used system from a Sioux fan.