The biggest challenge is Comcast owns the fast internet lines for most of the state.
The data caps kill streaming.
I lucked out and got into Tmobile home internet. It's much faster than advertised..and works well
. Allows me to use all the streamers. And I look at the data use, and we would pay extra if I still had Comcast.
It's solid. There is a bit of a delay though, kind of irritating if you watch the game score on your phone. Live sports is the one downside with the delay
I have an antenna too....and will use that for the Beavs and NFL
The data cap doesn’t affect all my family streaming. But it all depends on usage of course. I think for most with two or three in the household, the cap won’t be a factor.
There is very little regulated about cable tv. In most places there is not a bar to a second cable company coming in, they just have to lay wires, etc. Its not practical unless you have an almost monopoly
If this was a good deal phone guys would replace all the old lines with fiber optic. They've done most of the aerial lines, but have no appetite for underground, so if you are underground, its probably never going to happen.
I used Hulu until they jacked my monthly price over $100 after my promotional deal expired. As a Disney stockholder I wish they would be more welcoming
I believe YouTube is offering $20 off that price for the first four months.
Appears most of the folks commenting here have good Internet access/speed. That is not true across many parts of Oregon, so perhaps wise to evaluate that aspect first.
Sheesh man, 4 months....good deal...when I signed up several months ago it was one month. I was able to get, I think, $15 back on a credit card offer too.
So for $52 for 4 months, that covers you thru most of college football season until the bowl games
And saw Directv has a deal with ESPN coming up this weekend, so unless there is a last minute deal, don't chose Directv, unless you want chaos
As long as Phil leads college football in building facilities for Oregon, buying players and subsidizing duck football, it's all good. Once that ends and the money runs out, then things change big. It's not like it ever becomes self sufficient, he's constantly being forced to write checks or it slides back.
National brand does not sustain itself. Entropy is constantly trying to tear it apart. It is sustained through constant infusions of cash from large donors. I love near a "perineal powerhouse" in the SEC (at least they are according to the fans). The have been undefeated recently though, which Oregon can't claim. . .
In any case, said school has regular massive influxes of cash from a variety of mega donors. The same can be said of Texas and Texas A&M. Money moves the needle, and Uncle Phil has moved it throughout much of my life (I graduated HS in Eugene in 1995). Nothing wrong with that, but Oregon had better figure out who the next sugar daddy is because once Phil Knight passed on, even if he leaves it all to Oregon, it will run out eventually. . .
I'm sure UW and UO are crying in their contract beers over those games appearing on NBC, Fox, CBS as opposed to The CW. Unfortunately, my carrier doesn't have CBSNet so I will miss the OSU televised games played at Mt. West venues.
Is OSU crying in their beers appearing on FOX and the CW? No, we're excited about the opportunity. Why are you so upset about Oregon State going independent with a CW tv deal?
Don't have Comcast. The only games I'll miss are the CBSNet games for OSU/WSU. Fortunately Fox liked Oregon enough to offer OSU a Fox slot this season.
As a senior adult on a fixed income there are certain expenses that I don’t take on, even to watch a Duck game. I’ve been going to, watching, or listening to Duck football since Autzen had a dirt field and hosted OJ Simpson. I can’t afford cable. I do Prime and a couple of other streaming channels and then most of my football comes over the air via antenna. Just like back in the 50’s. During the bowl season I do pay Sling for a month for ESPN but that’s it. So, I just have to watch the Beavers on The CW and mostly forget about the Ducks at times. Times change.
I feel your pain, Mr. Miller. In all sincerity, if you would accept my offer, I will pay for a monthly subscription to Sling TV so you can watch the Ducks each week! Again, this is a legitimate offer. Please let me know if you accept. Thank you.
Thank you for publicizing this. I called Xfinity and complained. The call-taker gave me a free month of BTN and said there have been numerous complaints and the matter has been “escalated” internally. If not resolved by Friday night, I’m cancelling cable and going YouTube.
It took a long time for that "eventually" to come for many cable and satellite customers with Pac12 Network. And for some, like those in our area, it never came. There's a B1G (pardon the sort-of pun) difference between Comcast putting this Network on a special tier where it only pays rights fees for customers interested in it, and having the cable company pay $1.25 for every subscriber -- many of whom couldn't care less about it. This is the kind of dispute that could last a long time.
And the American public will be duped yet again...quitting one to go to the other, paying higher prices after the introductory offer (unless you know how to negotiate with them (you're either paying the price I want or we are dropping you, works every time, with another roll over of the introductory offer). It just keeps escalating. Everything is an attack on the west coast. The rest of the country (in control by the Tory-Brit Southern alliance) is not dealing with these issues.
This couldn't have happened to 4 better schools. :) Karma has a way of reaching out and slapping you upside the head. Excuse me while I post this and get back to reading the whiny posts below. Wait. Let me get some popcorn first.
Crapcast, Mr. Canzano, Crapcast. Crapcast is a horrible company IMO. Back when I was broke and had Crapcast, they were so slimy. I would never use auto-bill pay because my bill was always different, and back then I was living paycheck to paycheck.
One of their slimy practices (I’m sure they still do it today) is to add things like internet speed upgrades or add tv channels and then bill me for them. When I would call to have those add-ons taken off, Crapcast would say exactly this: “Oh, I cannot give you a refund but I can give you some free movie passes”. I was out that money they overcharged me.
You see, John, Crapcast HATES their customers. My wife and I left Crapcast (cut the cable) about five years ago, and life has been a lot less stressful. Unfortunately, YouTubeTV, Hulu, and other tv streamers are not that much cheaper. Crapcast knows this and loves screwing over their customers. Remember, Crapcast thought the Pac12 Network would be a great idea.
Thanks for your articles. Have a great day! Go Big10!
I have the expanded sports package with Comcast. Yesterday, after hearing about the blackout I called Comcast, the wait was extreme so I elected to converse with a rep via text. Here is how it went:
"I have just heard that Xfinity is blocking the Big Ten Network from our service this weekend. Is that true?"
"Upon checking you have subscribed the Big 10 Network" "Can you confirm you are getting the channel?"
"I am subscribed and getting the channel. Is the channel going to be blocked this weekend?"
"I would request you to please ignore that type of messages as Xfinity is not going to block any services on the Big 10 on weekends."
"But that is not what radio, tv, and newspapers are reporting."
"Can you confirm where you are receiving these messages."
Sent screenshot of media report and received reply that. "I am sorry we can't share the screenshots on the chat". "Please be assured that Xfinity is not blocking any channels on the weekends and you can watch all show without any issues." "You will get all the show as usual without any issues and Xfinity is not blocking any channels."
Then I was transferred to another rep. "Hi my name is Aditya, let me have a moment to review your chat and pick up right where you left off." " I see you have issue with cable services, and I am from new sales team and understand your concern. I will reconnect you with dedicated team who will help in best possible ways. I request you stay connected. "
"Hi my name is Shree. I see you have been chatting with another team member. Let me review that information so I can pick up right where you left off. " "I'm happy to continue to assist you."
I'll believe the Artificial Intelligence is all that it's cracked up to be when bots like the one this poor guy had to endure can provide intelligent responses to statements and questions that aren't part of its programmed script.
Could be that using the word “blocked” caused them to respond in the way they did. To them, likely friendly folks located outside the USA, and English not likely their first language, they may believe and report the literal fact that no channel will be “blocked” even though a specific show may be “blacked out” in certain geographic areas.
it's a dog and pony show people...the three entities are connected at the hip (Comcast provides the high speed internet, Fox wants higher network rights fee's. At the end of the day, the board of directors and controlling oligarchs behind these entities are ONE AND THE SAME. They think the American people are so stupid they can pull this crap over and over. Here's a thought, pay attention to more high school and NFL games and send the right message instead of being duped by the same old ruse over and over.
Wait! Comcast is “sensitive” to not making people pay for channels they don’t watch? That’s their entire Fk’ing business model. Why have they been making me pay for Lifetime and The Trinity Broadcasting Network all these years?
Maybe Phil Knight can bale them out and start his own network? Or, better yet, the Duck and Husky fans ought to throw in their towel and cheer on the Beavs on the CW channel. Go Beavs! Go Cougs!!
Oh, I bet you could find out for us!!! I’m guessing he has a media room with at least a dozen big screens and as many ways of receiving content: Comcast, TMobile, Ziply……….
Not all one’s moves are as brilliant as others. A number of years ago, when “the telephone company” was running over $100/month, I made a sweet deal with Comcast: a bundle of cable, internet, and telephone for not a lot more than that. With no additions that has increased to $340! So what is the problem? My ninety year old wife is dependent on the landline (we have had that number for 54 years) and gets several calls a day. She also watches a lot of TV while working jigsaw puzzles. I use the internet for reading Conzano (although I am on
“Elizabeth “ my iPhone at this moment) , The NY Times, research, and Amazon. The internet speed is really good.
So Comcast is her lifeline so I feel stuck with limited options. If it were me I would have Comcast pick up the whole deal and start over, I would like to try six months without any TV and catch up on my reading. Just sayin’, Charlie
Thanks for digging into this John. If I were a Comcast user (ie victim) here, I would cancel and jump to another source that does not play games a week before kickoff.
Just "cut the cord" folks. I am not that cutting edge and I did it years ago (did a stint with DirecTV in the late 90s, but had to get my local TV by aerial back then). Until then I had Comcast. My experience has been much better since as a "streamer".
LOL!! I got my then 90 YO dad to cut the cord since he watched very little TV anyway, but liked movies. He got the DVD Netflix movies sent to him in the mail, ala 1999. I convinced him to just pay the $15/mth for a Netflix subscription and get his movies the modern way. He could never figure out how to access the shows by putting his "older" screen into HDMI mode for internet access via Roku.
I live in South Carolina. Last night I turned on my TV, flipped to the guide, found The CW within 5 seconds, and hit "record" for OSU vs. Idaho State (I always record even though I watch live). So easy. So fast. Although I really do feel for Duck and Husky fans, this is all too hilarious.
If this doesn’t happen by Friday, I’m dropping Comcast like a hot rock. Hello, YouTube TV.
I suspect you are not alone.
The biggest challenge is Comcast owns the fast internet lines for most of the state.
The data caps kill streaming.
I lucked out and got into Tmobile home internet. It's much faster than advertised..and works well
. Allows me to use all the streamers. And I look at the data use, and we would pay extra if I still had Comcast.
It's solid. There is a bit of a delay though, kind of irritating if you watch the game score on your phone. Live sports is the one downside with the delay
I have an antenna too....and will use that for the Beavs and NFL
The data cap doesn’t affect all my family streaming. But it all depends on usage of course. I think for most with two or three in the household, the cap won’t be a factor.
You don't know my family. We were always just around 1TB before TV.
It's the kids, music streaming,,etc
Then add on 3 streaming tvs and we are over
I left Comcast and happy
Yes, I understand it’s a factor for some. Just sayin for many it won’t be.
By the time I priced internet with the data cap fee it basically was the price of tv.
There are fiber optics alternatives, or you can keep the internet and ditch the programming.
There are if your home is hooked to fiber optics. A huge chunk of older homes have either cable internet or old DSL
Just part of the "regulated" monopolies following the money at the expense of the consumer.
There is very little regulated about cable tv. In most places there is not a bar to a second cable company coming in, they just have to lay wires, etc. Its not practical unless you have an almost monopoly
If this was a good deal phone guys would replace all the old lines with fiber optic. They've done most of the aerial lines, but have no appetite for underground, so if you are underground, its probably never going to happen.
And who are those regulated monopolies...If people knew this and what the true objectives really are, they would be much more angry. Do your research.
We had Fubo until the P12 Networks ended. Then we switched to Hulu. I dunno what YouTube live costs, but HULU is reasonable.
We use Hulu.
I used Hulu until they jacked my monthly price over $100 after my promotional deal expired. As a Disney stockholder I wish they would be more welcoming
Disney, along with Hearst (the two principal owners of ESPN) are at the heart of this British Tory Monopoly, subverting our country.
Youtube TV is $72.99 / month for basic, which includes SECN and BTN (B1G). Here is the channel list: https://tv.youtube.com/welcome/
I believe YouTube is offering $20 off that price for the first four months.
Appears most of the folks commenting here have good Internet access/speed. That is not true across many parts of Oregon, so perhaps wise to evaluate that aspect first.
Sheesh man, 4 months....good deal...when I signed up several months ago it was one month. I was able to get, I think, $15 back on a credit card offer too.
So for $52 for 4 months, that covers you thru most of college football season until the bowl games
And saw Directv has a deal with ESPN coming up this weekend, so unless there is a last minute deal, don't chose Directv, unless you want chaos
Very happy with Hulu in our home.
You might look at Sling- I’ve had it for years because it had the Pac12 Network.
I just checked and the UO game is available.
Does not have OTA channels. You will also need an antenna for those.
Good point.
I wish everyone would drop Crapcast.
Before you switch to YouTube TV make sure they carry a CW station. Ours did not so we chose Hulu.
Fubo is better.
We did it a few years ago. No regrets, but you end up spending almost as much for the streaming services.
A Summary of Events:
Oregon Ducks August 2023: "We don't like the Pac12 TV deal, we're leaving for the Big 10"
Comcast 2024: "Your games will be blacked out"
Oregon Ducks August 2024: "What?"
lolz
That's about right. Also, the Apple streaming irony in there... streaming option may be what works for some.
It’s all good in the long run for the Ducks. But glad you got some short term joy. It won’t last.
There is no joy in any of this, but its the critical elements that ended 108 years of West Coast tradition.
As long as Phil leads college football in building facilities for Oregon, buying players and subsidizing duck football, it's all good. Once that ends and the money runs out, then things change big. It's not like it ever becomes self sufficient, he's constantly being forced to write checks or it slides back.
I don’t know. Once you have a national brand and long established strong program, there is a good chance it will stay that way. We shall see.
National brand does not sustain itself. Entropy is constantly trying to tear it apart. It is sustained through constant infusions of cash from large donors. I love near a "perineal powerhouse" in the SEC (at least they are according to the fans). The have been undefeated recently though, which Oregon can't claim. . .
In any case, said school has regular massive influxes of cash from a variety of mega donors. The same can be said of Texas and Texas A&M. Money moves the needle, and Uncle Phil has moved it throughout much of my life (I graduated HS in Eugene in 1995). Nothing wrong with that, but Oregon had better figure out who the next sugar daddy is because once Phil Knight passed on, even if he leaves it all to Oregon, it will run out eventually. . .
I'm sure UW and UO are crying in their contract beers over those games appearing on NBC, Fox, CBS as opposed to The CW. Unfortunately, my carrier doesn't have CBSNet so I will miss the OSU televised games played at Mt. West venues.
Is OSU crying in their beers appearing on FOX and the CW? No, we're excited about the opportunity. Why are you so upset about Oregon State going independent with a CW tv deal?
Don't have Comcast. The only games I'll miss are the CBSNet games for OSU/WSU. Fortunately Fox liked Oregon enough to offer OSU a Fox slot this season.
I've watched OSU baseball on the Mountain West app before for no charge, might work for football.
As a senior adult on a fixed income there are certain expenses that I don’t take on, even to watch a Duck game. I’ve been going to, watching, or listening to Duck football since Autzen had a dirt field and hosted OJ Simpson. I can’t afford cable. I do Prime and a couple of other streaming channels and then most of my football comes over the air via antenna. Just like back in the 50’s. During the bowl season I do pay Sling for a month for ESPN but that’s it. So, I just have to watch the Beavers on The CW and mostly forget about the Ducks at times. Times change.
I feel your pain, Mr. Miller. In all sincerity, if you would accept my offer, I will pay for a monthly subscription to Sling TV so you can watch the Ducks each week! Again, this is a legitimate offer. Please let me know if you accept. Thank you.
Do you still go to Duck games from time to time?
Thank you for publicizing this. I called Xfinity and complained. The call-taker gave me a free month of BTN and said there have been numerous complaints and the matter has been “escalated” internally. If not resolved by Friday night, I’m cancelling cable and going YouTube.
That noise will be heard, eventually.
It took a long time for that "eventually" to come for many cable and satellite customers with Pac12 Network. And for some, like those in our area, it never came. There's a B1G (pardon the sort-of pun) difference between Comcast putting this Network on a special tier where it only pays rights fees for customers interested in it, and having the cable company pay $1.25 for every subscriber -- many of whom couldn't care less about it. This is the kind of dispute that could last a long time.
And the American public will be duped yet again...quitting one to go to the other, paying higher prices after the introductory offer (unless you know how to negotiate with them (you're either paying the price I want or we are dropping you, works every time, with another roll over of the introductory offer). It just keeps escalating. Everything is an attack on the west coast. The rest of the country (in control by the Tory-Brit Southern alliance) is not dealing with these issues.
This couldn't have happened to 4 better schools. :) Karma has a way of reaching out and slapping you upside the head. Excuse me while I post this and get back to reading the whiny posts below. Wait. Let me get some popcorn first.
Crapcast, Mr. Canzano, Crapcast. Crapcast is a horrible company IMO. Back when I was broke and had Crapcast, they were so slimy. I would never use auto-bill pay because my bill was always different, and back then I was living paycheck to paycheck.
One of their slimy practices (I’m sure they still do it today) is to add things like internet speed upgrades or add tv channels and then bill me for them. When I would call to have those add-ons taken off, Crapcast would say exactly this: “Oh, I cannot give you a refund but I can give you some free movie passes”. I was out that money they overcharged me.
You see, John, Crapcast HATES their customers. My wife and I left Crapcast (cut the cable) about five years ago, and life has been a lot less stressful. Unfortunately, YouTubeTV, Hulu, and other tv streamers are not that much cheaper. Crapcast knows this and loves screwing over their customers. Remember, Crapcast thought the Pac12 Network would be a great idea.
Thanks for your articles. Have a great day! Go Big10!
I take it you do NOT like Comcast. :)
You keep misspelling Crapcast. You must own a part of the company, lmao.
My experience yesterday with Comcast:
I have the expanded sports package with Comcast. Yesterday, after hearing about the blackout I called Comcast, the wait was extreme so I elected to converse with a rep via text. Here is how it went:
"I have just heard that Xfinity is blocking the Big Ten Network from our service this weekend. Is that true?"
"Upon checking you have subscribed the Big 10 Network" "Can you confirm you are getting the channel?"
"I am subscribed and getting the channel. Is the channel going to be blocked this weekend?"
"I would request you to please ignore that type of messages as Xfinity is not going to block any services on the Big 10 on weekends."
"But that is not what radio, tv, and newspapers are reporting."
"Can you confirm where you are receiving these messages."
Sent screenshot of media report and received reply that. "I am sorry we can't share the screenshots on the chat". "Please be assured that Xfinity is not blocking any channels on the weekends and you can watch all show without any issues." "You will get all the show as usual without any issues and Xfinity is not blocking any channels."
Then I was transferred to another rep. "Hi my name is Aditya, let me have a moment to review your chat and pick up right where you left off." " I see you have issue with cable services, and I am from new sales team and understand your concern. I will reconnect you with dedicated team who will help in best possible ways. I request you stay connected. "
"Hi my name is Shree. I see you have been chatting with another team member. Let me review that information so I can pick up right where you left off. " "I'm happy to continue to assist you."
Next message: Session expired. If you need more help contact: https://t.cmp.xfinity.com/IVR
Sounds like chat bots to me. AI. Welcome to hell.
I'll believe the Artificial Intelligence is all that it's cracked up to be when bots like the one this poor guy had to endure can provide intelligent responses to statements and questions that aren't part of its programmed script.
Could be that using the word “blocked” caused them to respond in the way they did. To them, likely friendly folks located outside the USA, and English not likely their first language, they may believe and report the literal fact that no channel will be “blocked” even though a specific show may be “blacked out” in certain geographic areas.
it's a dog and pony show people...the three entities are connected at the hip (Comcast provides the high speed internet, Fox wants higher network rights fee's. At the end of the day, the board of directors and controlling oligarchs behind these entities are ONE AND THE SAME. They think the American people are so stupid they can pull this crap over and over. Here's a thought, pay attention to more high school and NFL games and send the right message instead of being duped by the same old ruse over and over.
Crapcast’s goal when a customer calls/texts is for the customer to hang up. Crapcast hates their customers.
As a Beaver fan my comment is Karma is a straight razor totin woman!
There is a certain bit of poetry at work, no matter which side you support.
“Fox stacked those football games on the Big Ten Network in Week 1 on purpose.”
Oh yeah, I'm sure it had nothing to do with the opponents being Idaho and Weber State. Those would have been marquee for Fox, NBC, CBS...
Wait! Comcast is “sensitive” to not making people pay for channels they don’t watch? That’s their entire Fk’ing business model. Why have they been making me pay for Lifetime and The Trinity Broadcasting Network all these years?
Maybe Phil Knight can bale them out and start his own network? Or, better yet, the Duck and Husky fans ought to throw in their towel and cheer on the Beavs on the CW channel. Go Beavs! Go Cougs!!
I would be curious if Phil has Comcast.
Oh, I bet you could find out for us!!! I’m guessing he has a media room with at least a dozen big screens and as many ways of receiving content: Comcast, TMobile, Ziply……….
Not all one’s moves are as brilliant as others. A number of years ago, when “the telephone company” was running over $100/month, I made a sweet deal with Comcast: a bundle of cable, internet, and telephone for not a lot more than that. With no additions that has increased to $340! So what is the problem? My ninety year old wife is dependent on the landline (we have had that number for 54 years) and gets several calls a day. She also watches a lot of TV while working jigsaw puzzles. I use the internet for reading Conzano (although I am on
“Elizabeth “ my iPhone at this moment) , The NY Times, research, and Amazon. The internet speed is really good.
So Comcast is her lifeline so I feel stuck with limited options. If it were me I would have Comcast pick up the whole deal and start over, I would like to try six months without any TV and catch up on my reading. Just sayin’, Charlie
Thanks for digging into this John. If I were a Comcast user (ie victim) here, I would cancel and jump to another source that does not play games a week before kickoff.
Thanks D.
Just "cut the cord" folks. I am not that cutting edge and I did it years ago (did a stint with DirecTV in the late 90s, but had to get my local TV by aerial back then). Until then I had Comcast. My experience has been much better since as a "streamer".
I have cut the cord, but my parents are slower on that front. I tried to get them on Hulu, and they didn't like it. They went back to DirecTV.
LOL!! I got my then 90 YO dad to cut the cord since he watched very little TV anyway, but liked movies. He got the DVD Netflix movies sent to him in the mail, ala 1999. I convinced him to just pay the $15/mth for a Netflix subscription and get his movies the modern way. He could never figure out how to access the shows by putting his "older" screen into HDMI mode for internet access via Roku.
I live in South Carolina. Last night I turned on my TV, flipped to the guide, found The CW within 5 seconds, and hit "record" for OSU vs. Idaho State (I always record even though I watch live). So easy. So fast. Although I really do feel for Duck and Husky fans, this is all too hilarious.
Your schools got what they wanted. To be entwined with the mess that is the Big 10 conference that could care less about the west coast