You have to hand it to the owners of the National Football League — they recognize a public relations blunder when they see one coming.
As noted in earlier posts here and here, the NFL owners’ attempt to drive a hard bargain with cable companies that service most of the nation’s television viewers has backfired badly in regard to the owners’ NFL Network venture. The viewing marketplace couldn’t care less about the NFL Network’s product and the NFL owners have come off looking like petty moneygrubbers by not making a deal that allows most football fans to watch the NFL Network’s games. In the meantime, the NFL owners’ refusal to cut a deal with the cable companies meant that two post-season bowl games to be televised by the NFL Network — Houston’s Texas Bowl between Rutgers and Kansas State and the Insight Bowl pitting Texas Tech against Minnesota — would not be seen by most viewers in the nation.
Well, the huge collective yawn of viewers, combined with the growing crescendo from long-suffering Rutgers fans who were not going to be able to watch their team play in the Texas Bowl, has prompted the NFL owners to offer an olive branch — one week of free access to the NFL Network in the New York area during the week of the two bowl games.
Now, the only problem with the offer is that Time Warner — one of the largest cable companies in the country and the one that services most of Houston — has not decided whether to accept the NFL owners’ offer. Regadless, most football fans in Houston won’t see the game because the NFL owners’ offer is limited to the New York area.
Are you getting the same impression that I have that the NFL owners have overplayed their hand a bit on this one? ;^)