End of an Era (1 Viewer)

[vegasnitro]

My guess is that the various outlets and Fox are going to have a "staring" contest to see who blinks first.

If the outlets DO blink first and pay Fox what they want, you can bet that another channel or two (Like Velocity) will go bye bye.

At risk of a thread derail, this issue of Fox trying to jack up the rates for Fox Sports 1 even though SPEED is under contract to most outlets is a big deal. Fox sees added value for a ESPN competitor, but the outlets are not seeing the same value, and it could set a dangerous precedent if they cave and agree to the higher rate. There are really only 6 or 7 companies that own most of the channels you see on your channel lineup, and what is to stop them from rebranding and jacking up the rates? If Fox wins, what is to stop CBS from rebranding A&E to CBS Entertainment and charging more?

Ultimately, you can be assured that whatever movement there is in rates will be immediately passed on to us as subscribers, whether we happen to watch that channel or not. When I left the cable company in Vegas in 2008, ESPN was $3 per month per subscriber and is now $4.50 per month per subscriber. It is by far the most expensive cable channel, which in part explains how it is Disney's most profitable entity, and why your bill goes up a little every year.