Fox Sports launches direct challenge to ESPN dominance

[WoodysGirl]

CNN had one in the 80s with the late Nick Charles and Fred Hickman. Then there was a couple in the 90's. Fox had one with Olbermann and Kevin Frazier and there was CNNSI. Neither panned out and I don't think this one will either. First you are probably going to have to find what channel this new one with FOX will be on. Second ESPN has such a built in brand whether we like it or not it's going to be hard to pull their audience to something else that is essentially talking about the same thing.

I don't think you will have to look far. From what I'm seeing, DirecTV is grouping all of the sports channels together.

You have all the ESPNs, then NFLN, then the Tennis Channel, MLB Channel, NBA Channel, and NBC Sports Network all in one part of the channel list.

 

[CrownCowboy]

I also am glad Fox is doing this.

I stopped watching ESPN awhile ago when the whole Jeremy Lin phenomon came about. I couldn't even get the score and highlights of my favorite baseball team. It was like I was watching a soap opra. It would be nice to get the scores of the day with some highlights instead of ESPN beating the same stories into the ground over and over and over again. I can't handle that mess. It would also be nice for ESPN to acknowledge that there is an actual MLB season starting in a few weeks, instead of trying to make us believe that the Yankees and Red Sox are the only two teams playing this year.

Anyway, that's my ESPN rant. Hopefully Fox's new sport's channel will be objective and simple. Just give me the scores with some highlights without all the drama and made up story's and I'll watch.

 

[speedkilz88]

Their one chance is if they decide to go the high road and instead of going shock journalism like BSPN they go to how ESPN was when it started out. Hardcore sports with intelligent dialogue and discussion. If they just copy BSPN like the nflnetwork did it's done for.

 

[Vegas_Cowboy]

I also am glad Fox is doing this.

I stopped watching ESPN awhile ago when the whole Jeremy Lin phenomon came about. I couldn't even get the score and highlights of my favorite baseball team. It was like I was watching a soap opra. It would be nice to get the scores of the day with some highlights instead of ESPN beating the same stories into the ground over and over and over again. I can't handle that mess. It would also be nice for ESPN to acknowledge that there is an actual MLB season starting in a few weeks, instead of trying to make us believe that the Yankees and Red Sox are the only two teams playing this year.

Anyway, that's my ESPN rant. Hopefully Fox's new sport's channel will be objective and simple. Just give me the scores with some highlights without all the drama and made up story's and I'll watch.

The first thing that popped into my head after opening this thread was that hopefully Fox will go this route. I miss the days when I was a kid and could turn on ESPN and just get scores, highlights and maybe a quick rundown of the games. Seems like all ESPN does now is try and create a story as opposed to just reporting on one. The T.O. years in Dallas were almost comical. Every time I turned on ESPN I was expecting to see something like,

"T.O. farts in huddle at practice. Romo not amused. Turmoil in Big D!!"

 

[mldardy]

I don't think you will have to look far. From what I'm seeing, DirecTV is grouping all of the sports channels together.

You have all the ESPNs, then NFLN, then the Tennis Channel, MLB Channel, NBA Channel, and NBC Sports Network all in one part of the channel list.

OK cool. I thought I would have to search around for this but that makes it easier.

 

[Disturbed]

Competition is a good thing...consumers benefit.

I hope Fox is successful in the venture. Too bad an event is not covered by both channels at the same time. The audience could then choose which channel does the better job.

 

[the_h0wey]

This is great! BSPN needs some competition.

I hope Fox does well. If they do as well as they have done with FoxNews we will all benefit.

BSPN. I like that. :laugh2:

 

[Plankton]

Unless they can acquire the major sports rights down the line when they are available, this venture will fail big time.

ESPN has baseball, the NBA, MLB, tennis and most of the major college football and basketball leagues locked up. They also can carry NFL games and some golf tournaments.

NBC Sports has the NHL locked up. Golf Network has the regular PGA tour events locked during the weekdays.

FS1 will be pulling from the table scraps. Without the big events, they have nothing to launch on, presentation be damned.

 

[jimmy40]

Is Regis gonna do the sports?

If so, talk about starting off on the wrong foot.

he can talk about watching Babe Ruth play.

 

[Yakuza Rich]

Fox Sports 1 cable channel will have a news show, live sports events and Regis Philbin

Break out the champagne! Finally, somebody who sees the stranglehold ESPN has over the sports media!

NEW YORK -- Fox, in Tuesday announcing a Fox Sports 1 sports cable channel launching Aug 17, is mounting what executives say will be a direct challenge to ESPN.

About time! Break out the champagne!

"Our hope is that we can be equally professional" with ESPN, says David Hill,

Uh.....err...

I would hope you would shoot for higher goals than that.

*sigh*

(starts putting the champagne away).






YR

 

[Yakuza Rich]

Unless they can acquire the major sports rights down the line when they are available, this venture will fail big time.

ESPN has baseball, the NBA, MLB, tennis and most of the major college football and basketball leagues locked up. They also can carry NFL games and some golf tournaments.

NBC Sports has the NHL locked up. Golf Network has the regular PGA tour events locked during the weekdays.

FS1 will be pulling from the table scraps. Without the big events, they have nothing to launch on, presentation be damned.

You're basically right in the main concept of what has to happen.

But, sports leagues will always seek out the largest bidder. FOX was supposed to have no chance in college football with ABC/ESPN and CBS having college football wrapped up. But, when FOX got the opportunity to broadcast college football nationally they were able to wrap up a deal. I believe that the other sports will follow and at least give FOX the opportunity to acquire the programming rights. FOX already has baseball and football anyway.

I'm more concerned that FOX will think they have to follow ESPN's exact model and more or less become an ESPN clone. What it needs to do is differentiate itself from ESPN and make viewers believe that the quality of programming is superior to ESPN. If they try to copy ESPN, then they run into the problem of only getting viewers for games on TV instead of missing out on the huge media market which ESPN has a monopoly on.







YR

 

[WoodysGirl]

Unless they can acquire the major sports rights down the line when they are available, this venture will fail big time.

ESPN has baseball, the NBA, MLB, tennis and most of the major college football and basketball leagues locked up. They also can carry NFL games and some golf tournaments.

NBC Sports has the NHL locked up. Golf Network has the regular PGA tour events locked during the weekdays.

FS1 will be pulling from the table scraps. Without the big events, they have nothing to launch on, presentation be damned.

Per the article, these are their plans..

• Starting in 2014, FS1 will carry regular-season MLB games for 26 weeks – but the Fox broadcast network will go from its 26-week schedule to just 12 regular-season game broadcast windows. Fox also says an unspecified number of its MLB postseason games, in divisional and LCS play, will migrate from Fox to FS1, as will an unspecified number of NASCAR Sprint Cup races and UFC mixed-martial arts events.
• Fox is closing in on a deal for the TV basketball rights for the Catholic colleges, including Georgetown and Marquette, that are leaving the Big East but likely will keep the conference name.
• FS1 will offer light comedy. Its new shows will include Rush Hour, weekdays at 5 p.m. ET and hosted by Regis Philbin.
• Other shows will include Fox Football Daily, weekdays at 6 p.m. ET. It will include appearances by Fox's various football analysts and announcers, including Terry Bradshaw, Jay Glazer, Howie Long, Erin Andrews and Mike Pereira.
• FS1 will also air an NFL pregame show that begins before Fox's and CBS' broadcast network shows – thus taking on the ESPN and NFL Network pregame shows.
• FS1 will also take on ESPN, as well as HBO Sports, in sports documentaries. Its Being series begins in the fall with a film on Mike Tyson.
• FS1 will be used to replace Fox's Speed channel. Fox is considering converting its Fuel TV channel, in at least 30 million TV households, to a Fox Sports 2 cable spinoff channel.

 

[Reality]

Keep politics out of the comments please! This is about Fox Sports and ESPN!

/reality

 

[trickblue]

Unless they can acquire the major sports rights down the line when they are available, this venture will fail big time.

ESPN has baseball, the NBA, MLB, tennis and most of the major college football and basketball leagues locked up. They also can carry NFL games and some golf tournaments.

NBC Sports has the NHL locked up. Golf Network has the regular PGA tour events locked during the weekdays.

FS1 will be pulling from the table scraps. Without the big events, they have nothing to launch on, presentation be damned.

They've shown in the past that they'll throw money at something if they really want it...

They took the NFC games from longtime broadcaster CBS...

 

[AmericasTeam81]

I am very please with news of POSSIBLE competition to ESPN. I firmly believe in competition and the results of it. The results of competition will make the product better and provide alternative views and increase the exchange of ideas.

 

[SDCowboy]

I'll watch for the Regis.

 

[calico]

Unless they can acquire the major sports rights down the line when they are available, this venture will fail big time.

ESPN has baseball, the NBA, MLB, tennis and most of the major college football and basketball leagues locked up. They also can carry NFL games and some golf tournaments.

NBC Sports has the NHL locked up. Golf Network has the regular PGA tour events locked during the weekdays.

FS1 will be pulling from the table scraps. Without the big events, they have nothing to launch on, presentation be damned.

Fox has over 20 regional networks with MLB, nba, NHL, as well as college sports and the UFC to just name a few. These regional networks will be fueling FS1 with a lot of live events. Fox has the properties to make this work and it should be great to have another location to centralize all these sports. Can't wait.

 

[SportsGuru80]

was it Sportschannel that existed in the 80s when ESPN was new?

CNNSI channel...

 

[CATCH17]

Im pissed at Fox for getting all of their soccer taken away from them.

If they lose the Barclays too then that would be awful.

 

[BoyzBoy]

Rupert Murdoch invested $40+ million dollars in the streaming Roku box last year. The money allowed him to place a member of his team on the Roku board. Looks like FS1 will generate cash from streaming\cable cutter customers eliminating the cable\satellite middleman.