Update (November 9th): NHL on Google Video
Dear Gary Bettman,
let me start by congratulating you on a successful return-season after the lockout. The game was quick, fun to watch, saw the promised increase in goals – and from what I read, was financially sound as well. It seems you did everything right.
Attendance in the arenas did not drop and the TV ratings were ok. You are also exploring some mechanisms to bring the game online on which I would like to focus. While there are highlight reels on ESPN.com and some footage on NHL.com, I think you should expand this concept extensively. Why, you ask? Because I live in Europe.
After reading the news about NHL play-off packages via the iTunes-Music-Store, I went to the iTMS only to find out that the offer is limited to US-customers. And considering that a very high percentage of the players comes from Europe, with fans in their home countries following their careers, and the All-Star-Games between 1998 and 2003 played out in the format North-American vs. International stars, I think you are missing out on a huge potential audience on this side of the Atlantic Ocean.
The brand NHL is on the rise and making video available would only increase the awareness. Factor in youngsters Alexander Ovechkin Evegeni Malkin, among others, the European market is yours for the taking. New fans who didn’t get a chance to see Barry Melrose’s mullet in the 1993 finals. Fans who do not have Gretzky’s last game on video, who have never seen Bobby Orr’s cup-clinching goal. The beauty being, of course, that this applies to many young North-American hockey fans as well, who would also like to see these historic moments. Take the NHL-experience to the next level and make more, why not all, footage available online.
Why is this letter also addressed to Steve Jobs? Firstly, to attract more attention, but secondly, so that Jobs can talk Bettman into it, if he isn’t convinced by the musings of a single fan alone. Indeed, I would pay for a season package, heck I am subscribed to a German pay-per-view channel purely to see their crappy covering of the NHL. And indeed, I would download the 1993 Kings vs. Habs series.
Are you a hockey fan? What do you think? Jeremy, Luke, Terry, Brian, what other arguments did I forget?
Technorati Tags: nhl, video, archive, garybettman, stevejobs
8 Comments
David Jones
It’s all about TV rights and TV money. The other question is who actually owns the telecasts. I’m not an expert, but my past experience working with Molson, showed me how complicated TV rights are. Molson owns a pile of telecasts as they actually produced and owned the rights to the games for many years in Canada. Each team has the rights to its local schedules, so it gets even more complicated.
And then you throw in rights in other countries. While the US rights-holder may be happy to make games available on iTunes, there’s no guarantee that the German rights-holder wants to do the same. It’s the same with shows like Lost. They are available in the U.S., but not Canada.
But, there is a deal in place with Molson and the NHL to make archival games available. Check out the nhl archive http://www.nhlhockeyarchive.com/
This stuff exists….now if they would digitize and sell on iTunes, I’d have to agree they could make a buck or two.
Sebastian
Thanks, I didn’t know the archive site. However, you can’t just download it, must request it. I’ll test it and will ask for a game, let you know how it went…
Blog Run
Hockey Rules, Surveys are a Joke, Networking and Layoffs
Planet Sab: Letter to NHL-Commissioner Gary Bettman (and to Steve Jobs)
While the NHL and its PR machine has done a good job in North America, it has been a little NA-centric which makes no sense since most of the players hail from Europe and …
Bryan Person, Bryper.com
Sebastian:
I’m just here to echo David’s sentiments: it’s all about who owns the TV and distributions rights in a particular market, region, or country.
Sorry you’re getting shut out in Germany — you’re obviously a bigger hockey and NHL fan than I am 🙂 It’s a distant fourth — after baseball, American football, and baseball — on my radar.
–Bryan Person
Blog: Bryper.com
Podcast: NewCommRoad.com
Tom Griffiths
I have put up with this mamby pamby game since the end of the strike! This game is ruined! I watched it for the fights in the corner and the bench clearing brawls!( and a few goals ) Table tennis is now more fun to watch!!!
Sincerly, Tom
rob lehtimaki
here’s a great idea for the nhl !!
let’s go back to 12 or 18 teams when the players didn’t wear helmets, crap wasn’t written around the boards, players had some respect for each other, who cared how much they got paid, a union??, it was supposed to be fun.
let’s just give these players a million dollars because they ‘love the game’ and give them all a trophy so we can all watch this watered down crap?
i’m a long time canuck fan, whl, hockey was hockey, you had to make it to the nhl instead of just showing up.
hockey was a great game, i’d rather watch golf.
Sebastian
Thanks for the feedback. I understand the pain you longtime fans are feeling. I don’t feel the same, have been into it only since 1996. Watered down as you may look at it, I still think it’s the greatest sport to compete in. And thanks to Google Video there is more to watch than I have time…
Chris Furman
Keep up the great news that the world continues to look forward to reading!