Robbiee19
02-23-2006, 12:01 PM
From The Cleveland Plain Dealer this morning. I knew this was going to be a problem for us fans in Columbus.
Several Ohio cable companies and two major satellite companies have yet to agree with the Indians to carry the team's new regional television network.
The lack of deals between the companies and the Indians' new Fastball Sports venture means that as of now, only the 900,000 subscribers of Time Warner Cable in Ohio will get to see most of the Indians games on TV when the season begins April 2.
That's the only cable company that has agreed to pay Fastball Sports a fee to show the 130 games the team plans to air on their network. An additional 20 regular-season games will be shown on WKYC Channel 3, returning the Indians to free TV for the first time since 2001. Satellite operators DirecTV and Dish Network also have failed to sign on.
Jim Liberatore, president of Fastball Sports, said it's too early to consider the effort a strikeout. He said the network sent information to cable and satellite companies just two weeks ago and he expects more deals to be signed soon.
"We are really negotiating nicely with everybody else," Liberatore said.
Several Ohio cable companies and two major satellite companies have yet to agree with the Indians to carry the team's new regional television network.
The lack of deals between the companies and the Indians' new Fastball Sports venture means that as of now, only the 900,000 subscribers of Time Warner Cable in Ohio will get to see most of the Indians games on TV when the season begins April 2.
That's the only cable company that has agreed to pay Fastball Sports a fee to show the 130 games the team plans to air on their network. An additional 20 regular-season games will be shown on WKYC Channel 3, returning the Indians to free TV for the first time since 2001. Satellite operators DirecTV and Dish Network also have failed to sign on.
Jim Liberatore, president of Fastball Sports, said it's too early to consider the effort a strikeout. He said the network sent information to cable and satellite companies just two weeks ago and he expects more deals to be signed soon.
"We are really negotiating nicely with everybody else," Liberatore said.