I’d been skeptical when I read the reports about Time Warner Cable passing out rabbit ear antennas for their cable customers who lost WLUK, the local Fox affiliate that carries the NFC Packer games (some Packer games against AFC opponents are on CBS, like the Colts game in 2 weeks). I’ve seen enough media blitzes to know it was probably going to be 50 pairs of rabbit ears for their 150,000 customers affected; just enough for a photo op from the Post-Crescent and Press-Gazette. But I was way wrong.

Time Warner Cable gave out 20,000 antennas and AB switches leading up to last Saturday. So I called today to see if they had any left. Since I missed the game last week and it sounds like no progress had been made, I figured I’d either have to give in to some bars 2 drink minimum to watch the game, or I’d need rabbit ears myself. I was in luck - TWC had just received a new shipment a few hours ago, so I raced over to the Appleton location on Northland.

Freaking zoo. The picture below does not do the situation justice. Behind the orange traffic cones in the parking lot there were three people whose only job was to quickly stuff an antenna, AB switch and instruction packet into the hands of anyone who walked up. No customer verification. If you had questions there was a tech desk set up 20 feet away with two nerdy types with example television hookups on three different TVs perched atop a fold-out table, ready to answer your questions. They were giving a unit away about once every 4-5 seconds.

When I got my antenna and AB switch, I realized how serious this battle between Time Warner Cable and WLUK really was. This was the antenna I got. This was the AB switch. All told, $30 in hardware. But let’s just say for argument’s sake TWC was able to buy in bulk and get a 30% discount. That’s still over $20. And if they gave away 20,000 of these before Saturday, I’m sure they gave out another 5-10,000 today.

Doing some college level math (for a football player, anyway), 25,000 units at $20 per unit gives us $500,000. And that’s not including streeting their trucks to deliver these little presents or the labor to staff the tents and tech table. But half a mil is a round number, so let’s stick to that.

I think Time Warner Cable is taking the long view on this, crushing any uprisings early. If I had to hypothesize, they’re doing this because if they cave now, rates will go up a little, but that’s not the big picture. The big picture is, in 2011 when NFL broadcasting rights are up for renewal/rebid, another network in the Green Bay market might own the rights to televise Packer games. Now that network will have TWC by the short and curlies over the re-transmission of the broadcast signal. Fox will already be getting it’s extra cash, so it may not care, and now the new network will want it’s piece, too, and will have that single ace in the hole, that one programming gem that must be televised to the masses here.  And let’s not kid ourselves - without the Packer games, WLUK pulls their signal and you never hear from them again.   Nobody cares enough about House or The SImpsons to leave cable.  WLUK had the one bargaining chip that TWC had to have.  That’s why the big spend on Chinese antennas to keep their customers happy.

Because pretty soon WLUK’s advertisers are going to be beating down their door asking for discounts or refunds on their ad dollars due to reduced reach, reduced penetration.  Oh, there’s penetration going on here.  Just not the good kind.

And this same scenario may play out in every market where a major sports franchise plays. So squash ‘em now in the hopes that this fight won’t have to be fought in other markets in future years.

Holy chit. $500,000 is a lot of money.  And yeah, it was that important.  Important enough that Dish Network had set up shop about 50 feet down the road with a van and speakers and a big vinyl banner saying something about Time Warner Cable and demanding something.  Packer games, probably.

But I got my antenna and switch hooked up, and we’re ready to go for the game against Seattle.  The picture is a little grainy, and reminded me that the last time I watched over-the-air broadcasts of television was in the mid-80’s.  Back then the HBO lineup for Saturday was Rocky III, Rocky III, Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy, Rocky III and an encore presentation of Rocky III.

How ’bout you?  Got Antenna?

Technorati Tags: , , ,