Fox College Sports

[rochsioux]

Good points by all.

If I could tell our fans one thing, I would stress patience. These changes are still a year-and-a-half away. We are developing a plan for when that time arrives, and that year-and-a-half gives us time to explore the plan. Although it's far too early in that process to make any promises today, I can at least assure you that we will always strive to offer the best possible viewing options across multiple platforms, not just television. A lot can, and likely will, change in the next year-and-a-half (and beyond).

Is yesterday's news positive for out-of-region fans? If I told you it was, I'd be lying. But we (administration) are determined to make the best of it, and thankfully in the year 2012 we are no longer restricted to just television or radio.

We do not take our fans' devotion for granted. We're also well aware that our audience extends far beyond the local and regional viewing areas. With that in mind, please know that making our product available to as many people as possible will always be our goal. But these things take time, so please don't give up on us yet.

Sorry, but this is absurd.

UND loses 20-22 home games each year on national TV and will be replaced by 4-5 games on CBSSN.

How does this possibly make any sense for UND ? What was the point in changing conferences, to limit exposure ?

Can't wait to see St.Cloud play Western Michigan instead of UND.

The whole conference will have fewer games on TV than UND had. This is brilliant marketing.

Internet streaming is the broadcast of last resort. While it has improved over the years it is still not even close to standard definition TV.

My choices for watching Sioux hockey (and it will always be Sioux regardless of the idiots who forced the change):

1. Live. Since I live 400 miles away it is difficult to go to all the games. As much as I try I cannot make it back for all games.

2. High-def TV

3 Std-def TV

4. Streaming

Instead of moving from std-def to high-def, it looks like we are moving backwards to streaming. Yuk.

What is UND getting out of this ?

Money ? Doesn't look like it, in fact it looks like we have to pay to have CBSSN produce the telecasts.

Exposure ? Nope. We are reducing exposure and will be helping other schools in the conference gain exposure. How is this helpful to UND ?

UND is “doing what’s good for the conference.” Bah. I don't care about that. In the long run this will not help UND win National tiltles. That's what I care about.

Maybe it will help attract other "name" schools in the future to join the NCHC if/when they start hockey ?

Nope, don't see how that will help...see Notre Dame if you want any proof. No "name" school is going to want to join a hockey conference where they can't control their TV rights, just not gonna happen. He!!, even the big10 network allows MN to broadcast games on FSN if they don't want them.

Someone please show me where this is a good thing for UND and how it will be helpful in the long run, I just don't see it.

Initially I was fairly positive about this new conference. Then they went and added St. Cloud which was a big mistake, now we are losing most of the national broadcasts of home hockey games. This is absolute crap ! There must be other changes that are coming that will be positive...there has to be...there has to be....I know, just a matter of time until the NCHC announces the new Supervisor of Officials will be Greg Shepherd.

[Ranger]

Anything less than what fans currently enjoy will be a disappointment and major steps backward....affecting everything from recruitment to fan base.

[Cratter]

This is getting frustrating. How many different channels am I going to have to have to watch UND sports on TV, even at home?

Root, Midco, CBS Sports?

[Cratter]

Lets face it, If you live out of the "region" you will have to watch UND hockey home games on the web that are not on CBS Sports. UND can not broadcast games nationally not on CBS.

The "wait and see" will be about webcasts.

But can we really blame the UND administration? Did they simply get outvoted?

[ringneck28]

I see this being a little like the texas decision. They go to an all longhorn network and A&M leaves along with Nebraska, Colorado, and who knows who else left. Do not think for one moment that the HQ's in Colorado saw this and didn't want it in the hockey conference. But the problem is, those schools do not have a following like UND does. We will not get FSN to pick this up, We will not get Fox because of the exclusivity. Your dealing with the big boys of network conglomerates now and UND has shown that when it comes to making decisions on the big level, they don't have the moxy to play the game. Example, FIGHTING SIOUX gone.

[The Sicatoka]

I'm reserving judgement until all the dust settles.

[gfhockey]

Leaving the WCHA: 0 staying in the WCHA before the NCHC: 4

1. Not getting notre dame

2. Not getting a big name hire

3. losing our tv contract

4. only at the max 5 games per year on national tv

This list could go on and on but im tired and need bed

[GeauxSioux]

I'm reserving judgement until all the dust settles.

They have 18 months. Plenty of time to get things in order and plan for the future. Who knows where technology will be by that time? What kind of platforms and feeds will exist?

[The Sicatoka]

The Big Sky has "Big Sky Television": http://www.bigskyconf.com/sports/2009/8/14/BigSKYTV81509.aspx

Who says the NCHC can't set something similar up?

A lot of dust can settle in 18 months.

[The Sicatoka]

... want to be able to see the picture on a TV, want the picture to be bigger than the web cast, want to be able to read the numbers on the players sweaters, and actually want to be able to see the puck on the screen(yep, once in awhile we have to watch a game where we can't see the puck). ...

I have laptops with HDMI or DisplayPort connections. I run that to the HDMI input on one of the big monitors/televisions in my house to watch ESPN3 all the time.

If you're running Windows 7 it's literally plug in the cable and change the input on the monitor.

[82SiouxGuy]

I have laptops with HDMI or DisplayPort connections. I run that to the HDMI input on one of the big monitors/televisions in my house to watch ESPN3 all the time.

If you're running Windows 7 it's literally plug in the cable and change the input on the monitor.

There are boxes that you can purchase to stream straight to a television. I believe that one brand name is Roku. I haven't tried one yet, but they sound very interesting. They stream Netflix, Hulu and many other services, up to HD quality if you have fast enough internet service. They recommend 5 MB download speed for sports. Prices for the boxes start at about $50 and go up to about $100 as a 1 time charge. Some of the services like Netflix have a charge, some don't. Why couldn't they develop a service like that for UND sports? Then anyone with a quality internet service could watch without having to pay for an extra cable service (and maybe have HD quality available). I too am going to wait and see what develops before I get too upset about this TV situation.

[hrkac]

I've thought about this extensively for the last 24 hours and I cannot get over the FACT that UND somehow let the current availablility of Sioux hockey to be threatened.... If there are other possiblities of viewing options in the next 1.5 years that transpire, great. BUT to negotiate a deal that gives less availability to Sioux fans all over the country for the better of a league UND supposeldy organized? Assinine. UND had something that only one other program in the nation had as well, UMTC. that is national viewership on a 2nd tier cable network. BC, BU, Mich............they didn't. Now we are sucking it up for the St.Clouds of the world for the betterment of College Hockey??? PUke.

[rochsioux]

Who is actually responsible for this restriction on UND's national broadcasts ? Do we know for sure ?

Was this a requirement made by CBSSN or by the NCHC ?

If this was required by CBSSN, who is the complete idiot that was involved in these negotiations from the NCHC side ?

Why in he!! would the NCHC agree to a lousy 18 game conference TV schedule and give away the right to nationally telecast the other 94 games (assuming a 28 game conf sched) ? Whoever negotiated this should be fired immediately as they are incompetent. Even the mighty big10 does not preclude the members the right to nationally telecast games that the big10 network does not want.

I have no hope now for the leadership of the NCHC and it hasn't even started yet. We left one conference because the leadership was pathetic and we start a new conference and we are no better off, in fact for UND we are much, much worse off.

Please, someone enlighten me on what I am missing here ? The "wait and see" approach does not work for me, I can only envision webcasts and their crappy quality when compared to even a std def TV broadcast.

Let's see, we have killed the Fighting Sioux nickname and we have restricted the TV access to Sioux games, what's next ? How else can we screw with the alumni and fans of the University of North Dakota ?

Mr. Faison please come on this website and tell us why we should have any faith in what you are doing.

[gfhockey]

Faison thinks he is too good for us i bet so why would he come on here?

[Siouxperfan7]

Everybody calm down!! Seriously!! There is a lot of time before the FCS contract expires. A lot can happen in a week let alone 18 months. Step away from the ledge, take a deep breath. It's gonna be OK.

[802Sioux]

A lot can happen, but contracts don't just change even in 18 months. They might have better streaming options, but that is where the options lie. Or I guess CBS could decide to pick up more of our games.

[The Sicatoka]

There are boxes that you can purchase to stream straight to a television. I believe that one brand name is Roku.

I know a guy with one of these. He sings its praises.

http://www.roku.com/

[MplsBison]

Lets face it, If you live out of the "region" you will have to watch UND hockey home games on the web that are not on CBS Sports. UND can not broadcast games nationally not on CBS.

The "wait and see" will be about webcasts.

But can we really blame the UND administration? Did they simply get outvoted?

Could UND put their own channel on DirecTV or Dish Network and show hockey games on that (if not on CBS)?

Does anyone know the cost of having the UND channel on dish distribution?

[Snake]

Does anybody know the FCS side of this? Everyone is assuming it as a given, but maybe FCS isn't interested in carrying our games after the current contract expires.

What then?

[bincitysioux]

After digesting for 24 hours, I still can't understand how UND would voluntarily agree to this. It goes far beyond the hockey games. The hockey games are presumably what FCS wanted to telecast, and as a result football and basketball benefited tremendously. I was personally told by a Big Sky official that the Root Sports deal would not affect UND's deal with Fox. So both Root and the Big 10 Network don't have a problem with games they don't pick up being farmed out to other distributors. So why agree to this? Even for the "good" of the conference?

The only thing I can think of is that Fox College Sports had already indicated to UND that they would likely not renew the contract when it expires after the 2012-13 season. Maybe Jayson Hajdu could clarify that? Otherwise, I am having alot of trouble rationalizing this.

In reality, if UND was the only school in the league that had a TV deal and had just worked to get all the away games on FSSN in addition to the home games, every other conference team would have been on national TV on FCS 4 times per year, the same amount they will be now with the CBS deal.

The exclusivity of this deal is really the back-breaker. That all but assures that the other options that are being explored for the next 18 months are almost certainly web based, which as many have already said, is a major step backwards. I have an Acer Revo computer in the man-cave, and I use it alot, but it is not even half as good as flipping on the TV and finding the channel in 6 seconds and watching in even standard definition. Internet streaming is great for hard-core fans like us that will go out of our way to see certain sporting events anyway we can. Not so great for the average joe. And when it comes to hockey in particular, I'd just as soon listen on the radio than try to follow the game on a webcast.

Unless UND has plans to get its own channel on Dish or DirecTV like BYU or Northern Arizona, or can work something out with Fox Sports North, which is considered a "regional" network, this whole scenario puts us back to the early part of the decade when we all thought that Dataflix was just awesome.............

Personally, and this assumes that the UND/WDAZ/MidCo partnership will continue for non CBS games, I really won't be affected. Just have to make sure the FTA dish is properly pointed when the season starts. And I go to most hockey and football games anyways. It just sucks to me that people that live in other parts of the country will have to make watching Sioux sports an endeavor rather than a convenience...............

[Goon]

Good points by all.

If I could tell our fans one thing, I would stress patience. These changes are still a year-and-a-half away. We are developing a plan for when that time arrives, and that year-and-a-half gives us time to explore the plan. Although it's far too early in that process to make any promises today, I can at least assure you that we will always strive to offer the best possible viewing options across multiple platforms, not just television. A lot can, and likely will, change in the next year-and-a-half (and beyond).

Is yesterday's news positive for out-of-region fans? If I told you it was, I'd be lying. But we (administration) are determined to make the best of it, and thankfully in the year 2012 we are no longer restricted to just television or radio.

We do not take our fans' devotion for granted. We're also well aware that our audience extends far beyond the local and regional viewing areas. With that in mind, please know that making our product available to as many people as possible will always be our goal. But these things take time, so please don't give up on us yet.

Yeah good point we have 1 1/2 years to work this out... Thanks for the update.

[Goon]

I know a guy with one of these. He sings its praises.

http://www.roku.com/

I saw those on the internet and I think that will be the wave of the future and we might be able to watch the webcasts on those.

[Nodaker]

Right now I pay $13 a month to get the sports package on Direct TV so I can watch the games on FCS. As I understand it UND gets none of that $13 plus they incur a cost to broadcast the games. I guess I don't have a problem paying only $6 a month to get the webcast and then UND getting all of the $6 as long as they invest the money they save on satellite transmissions to upgrade the web equipment and cameras to hi def. Like Goon said, this is the wave of the future.

[ScottM]

I know a guy with one of these. He sings its praises. http://www.roku.com/

I looked at them before I got a Blu-Ray with streaming capability, and I really liked them, but wanted a more versatile product.

If UND wants to improve its "product", or what it still controls of its product, it should consider investing in making its webcast product more of a dedicated service like Hulu, Netflix, etc. Streaming content is the "holy grail" that Amazon, Apple, Google, NewsCorp, etc. are all vying for, and it scares the hell out of the networks.

[82SiouxGuy]

Right now I pay $13 a month to get the sports package on Direct TV so I can watch the games on FCS. As I understand it UND gets none of that $13 plus they incur a cost to broadcast the games. I guess I don't have a problem paying only $6 a month to get the webcast and then UND getting all of the $6 as long as they invest the money they save on satellite transmissions to upgrade the web equipment and cameras to hi def. Like Goon said, this is the wave of the future.

Streaming has changed tremendously over the past couple of years. Most of the sports webcasts that are available right now are still using old technology. You can stream movies in HD right now to a computer, and hook that computer to a TV with a single cable. Or you can stream through a gaming system. And other options are out there now or will be soon. I agree with you, I would rather pay UND for using the stream rather than pay a cable company. And maybe they can keep expanding the offerings. As long as they have the system, maybe they could stream all home football, volleyball, men's and women's basketball, and men's and women's hockey plus some away games in each.