Football Broadcasting/Distribution

[mdogt12]

No more Andy Gresh? I know a lot of people can't stand him but I thought he did a pretty job. Him and Eric Frede are good together.

Do not think they announced TV announcers just radio team.

[Sheck]

Aug 26 Red Sox 4:05
Sep 9 Red Sox 7:10
Sep 30 Red Sox TBD
Oct 21 Bruins 7PM
Oct 28 Bruins 7PM
Nov 11 Bruins 7PM
So may be some NESN Plus with 1 hour Red Sox pregame or games taking priority.
Plus NESN GO app if your provider is listed.

I expect all of the games will be NESN Plus with the possible exception of Sept 30 if FOX picks up the Red Sox game. UMass football isn't getting priority over Red Sox or Bruins pregame. That said, definitely happy with the TV deal. All home games televised with someone else picking up the tab for production costs is a good thing.

[Mizor]

I wonder if this deal will generate any revenue or if we are lucky just to have them paying for the production?

[Berkman]

Probably not getting any revenue just getting the exposure.

[njumass08]

Well hopefully we charge for the stream on our website. No reason to give it away team fans for free.

[minutefanjsf]

Well hopefully we charge for the stream on our website. No reason to give it away team fans for free.

Definitely charge for home games. It would be too complicated, but having a tiered fee schedule to reduce the fee the further from Amherst and Massachusetts would be a nice thing for alums scattered across the country.

[Berkman]

I don't think they will charge for the stream. They want as many people as possible to watch the games to generate interest with potential fans.who might have been to games to come again.

[Steve81]

Well hopefully we charge for the stream on our website. No reason to give it away team fans for free.

Definitely charge for home games. It would be too complicated, but having a tiered fee schedule to reduce the fee the further from Amherst and Massachusetts would be a nice thing for alums scattered across the country.

Having a season rate and an individual game rate would work. Of course believe season ticket holders should have a free pass or a special discount as the season pass could include other sports.

[minutefanjsf]

I don't think they will charge for the stream. They want as many people as possible to watch the games to generate interest with potential fans.who might have been to games to come again.

They also want people to come to the games. Free stream in Massachusetts or close by to Amherst is counter to attracting in person viewing.

[Berkman]

Maybe, but some of the locals just might need to see results before they come out to a game.

[UMass02]

I see both sides of the paid/free argument, but the feed should be behind some kind of paywall such as UMass SomeAccess (er, AllAccess). They desperately need revenue, even what little they can milk from the streaming.

I like the idea of free access for STHs - it adds value to the season ticket and it's probably relatively inexpensive to do.

As an aside, the digital rights issue with UMass must be frustrating from a distant fan's POV. To follow UMass on the internet, you need to subscribe to the A10 network to get most UM sports, since the A14 has usurped UMass' digital rights. The remaining sports (football, hockey, and men's lacrosse notably) are shown on SomeAccess. Paying for two streaming services must be a bit weird for long distance fans.

[MajBugman]

I don't think they will charge for the stream. They want as many people as possible to watch the games to generate interest with potential fans.who might have been to games to come again.

They also want people to come to the games. Free stream in Massachusetts or close by to Amherst is counter to attracting in person viewing.

Agree with Berkman. The only people that will pay to stream the game are already fans. People that will pay to stream the game, if local, are already inclined to go to a game. They need to saturate market. Show the games for free, give out free tix to schools.

[cox'n]

They need to saturate market. Show the games for free, give out free tix to schools.

One has to be very careful about giving away too much free stuff as it lowers the perceived value of the product. I like the idea of adding free or discounted stuff to the season ticket package as it makes the season ticket seem like a more worthwhile purchase. It would be a nice incentive to give every season ticket holder an individual "coupon code" in order to get free or reduced streaming when and if the time comes to pay for UMass' own game streams.

[eldonabe]

Just win some games and attendance will follow. If NOTHING else - Umass fans have proven they will come to watch a winner.

#bandwagonjumpers-r-us !!!!!

[Swampy]

^ I agree but success doesn't automatically result in spinning turnstiles for UMass. The last time they went to a bowl game they played in front of a 2016 Mullins size crowd in AC. Of course most of the bandwagonjumpers-r-us-ers weren't even born when that game was played so things might be different with sports being so popular today. Boardwalk or Bust!!!