When Penn State plays Buffalo tomorrow, fans without tickets to the game or access to the Big Ten Network will once again be left scrambling to find a way to watch.
Talks between the network and Comcast, which supplies cable to most of the Centre Region, have "broken down," network spokesman Mike Vest said yesterday. Penn State's first game of the season was also broadcast on the Big Ten Network and at least one of its conference games will also air on the network.
The Big Ten Network is reaching 28.5 million homes now, Vest said. They have agreements in place with DIRECTV, AT&T U-VERSE and DISH Network, as well as about 75 agreements with smaller cable providers, including D&E Communications, which serves customers in State College and Lewisburg.
But the network's inability to ink a deal with Comcast may hurt its vitality down the road, said Matthew McAllister, a Penn State communications associate professor who teaches classes in mass media and society and cultural aspects of the mass media.
"They just have to get picked up by these major cable operators," McAllister said. "Until that happens, I think its long-term viability isn't clear."
He added that it was "very predictable" to see the Big Ten Network and Comcast waging a war of words over the controversy.
Comcast has wanted to make the Big Ten Network available to its customers as a part of its Sports Entertainment Pack, said Jeff Alexander, a Comcast spokesman.
That way, Alexander said, customers could choose to subscribe to the package if they were interested and not force Comcast to levy an additional fee.
But the Big Ten Network is against that idea, because the network plans to broadcast more live games than other networks that are typically offered on the Sports Entertainment Pack, Vest said.
"Both of the sides are essentially blaming each other," McAllister said.
McAllister said the network seems fairly "micro-targeted;" its audience consists mainly of Big Ten sports fans, whereas other sports networks can claim to have a broader-based audience. He also said the network's ratings may largely hinge on how well the Big Ten's football teams perform this fall. Michigan's two losses and Wisconsin's close call against University of Nevada - Las Vegas last weekend have diminished the image of the conference, McAllister added.
"I'm sure they're wishing the debut was last season," he said.
Still, Vest said the feedback he's received since the network's launch has been "tremendous." He doesn't expect the popularity of the network to slow down, saying that basketball will keep people tuning in.
"Once we get through the football season, the attention is going to turn to basketball," Vest said. "We're gonna have big audiences."
