Comcast, the Centre Region's biggest cable supplier, is now wielding a new weapon in its battle with the Big Ten Network -- television and radio commercials that paint the network as "wrong" and "not getting its facts straight."
When Penn State plays Illinois at noon tomorrow, more than 700,000 Comcast subscribers in central Pennsylvania will have to find a different place to watch the game, which is being broadcast exclusively on the Big Ten Network.
One month since the network's launch, the Big Ten and Comcast still haven't struck a deal.
Those same Comcast subscribers have been seeing commercials for the past few weeks that take shots at the Big Ten Network over the two sides' inability to reach an agreement.
"... the BTN wants to force every cable customer to pay for their channel, even if they don't want it," the commercials state. "We think that's wrong."
D & E Communications, another local cable provider, picked up the network on its expanded cable package on Aug 22. The Big Ten Network launched Aug. 30 and aired the Penn State games against Florida International on Sept. 1 and the University at Buffalo on Sept. 15.
The grappling between the two sides resembles a political campaign that battles for the "hearts and minds of sports fans," said G. Terry Madonna, a professor of public affairs at Franklin & Marshall College.
Both sides are trying to defend their positions, Madonna said, and no one knows how the conflict will end up.
"This thing has gotten wide publicity," Madonna said. "We'll have to see if each side sort of ratchets up the stakes."
The commercials are intended to dispel Comcast customers' confusion about which football games they'll be able to see, Comcast spokesman Jeff Alexander said.
He added that Comcast customers can see almost 50 Big Ten football games on channels such as ABC and ESPN.
Comcast has wanted to make the Big Ten Network available to its customers as a part of its Sports Entertainment Pack.
This way, customers could choose to subscribe to the package if they were interested and not force Comcast to levy an additional fee.
The Big Ten Network has maintained it is against that idea, saying they plan to broadcast more live games than other networks typically offered on the Sports Entertainment Pack.
"We're miles apart," said Elizabeth Conlisk, the Big Ten Network's vice president of communications, "and really don't see that there will be a resolution any time soon."
Text transcripts of Comcast TV ads
"It's really sad but the Big Ten Network is not getting its facts straight. Comcast and its partners, ESPN, ABC, CBS and NBC will be airing hundreds of hours of Big Ten sports this academic year, at no additional charge to our customers. And for those who want even more Big Ten programming Comcast wants to provide that on a special sports tier, without increasing prices for everyone. Those are the facts, and that is why Comcast is proud to bring you Big Ten sports."
"It hasn't been a great start for the Big Ten Network. They've been criticized by newspapers across the country. Why? Because the BTN wants to force every cable customer to pay for their channel, even if they don't want it. We think that's wrong. That's why Comcast is showing 150 college football games this year, with almost 50 great Big Ten match-ups. Call 1-800-Comcast -- for the best of Big Ten sports, at no extra cost."
