Sportsnet Production Quality

[IgiTang]

Sportsnet is just garbage, plain and simple.

[puckluck2]

They are awful and it's not like they can't be better. By all accounts SN East and Pacific do a great job.

They need drastic changes.

[lanny9]

I don't know when the regional agreement is up, but when it is I expect TSN to bid on them, much like Winnipeg, Montreal etc. They don't want to lose too much imo.

That said, I don't hold too much hope that Sportsnet will do much with the talent for their regional games. It costs a lot of money to bring top quality guys in for a regional game, the ad revenue just doesn't make it feasible. I saw one TSN Winnipeg game and lets just say their talent want up to par either, don't know if they have improved it but holy hell was it bad!

[Senator Clay Davis]

I think anyone expecting major improvements when they takeover the national coverage is in for some disappointment. Sportsnet won the bidding rights for one reason, and one reason only: They offered the most money. 12 years from now, even if their production values are still garbage, if they offer more money than anyone else, they will win.

Sportsnet spent $5.2 billion just for the rights. They have them locked in now, nothing can change that. So why would they decide to spend a lot of money to improve their coverage? Say they spend $500 million upgrading their production values and such...will they really get $500 million in value back? Highly doubtful. They won't be making any massive expenditures after they did just to get the games. They want to maximize the profit on their $5.2 billion investment. Adding expenditures will not help them do that in any significant way.

Ratings are what's important, and while things like quality production matter, ultimately its the games that matter the most, by far. Sportsnet has the content. If you wanna watch NHL hockey, its them or nothing (or getting an illegal US dish). I don't see people stopping watching hockey because its on Sportsnet. Is that really stopping anyone now? It's annoying, and it really sucks, but 99% of people suck it up anyways, because they'd rather have crappy production and NHL hockey than nothing. I think any bump in production quality will come from having CBC on board, but I doubt local games will see any improvement at all.

[drewtastic]

Add the sporadic cuts to the feed to the grievances list...plus the fact that the grainy video makes it look like we're watching a game out of the Soviet Union.

Today's Herald ran a story by Bruce Arthur about the Blue Jays and Rogers' management thereof. Link to full story is here: http://www.calgaryherald.com/sports/...687/story.html

Interesting and relevant-to-our-discussion quote:

No, what this did was lay bare the mechanics of the Blue Jays, and how they operate. This is a team in a top-five market in North America owned by a corporation that generated $12.71-billion in revenue in 2013, and reported an adjusted operating profit of $4.993-billion. But while the Jays aren’t in A’s territory, they are run with strict financial responsibility, because that is how Rogers runs all its divisions.

[Sidney Crosby's Hat]

I think it's mostly the amount of money Rogers wants to spend on the Sportsnet West broadcasts. Their Canucks broadcasts on Sportsnet Pacific are quite good, as are their Leafs broadcasts on Sportsnet Ontario.

[activeStick]

I'm very fortunate to live outside of Alberta so I can get access to the alternate feed via Gamecentre which is always of better quality except when Calgary plays Colorado because the Avs guys are extreme homers and actually worse than Sportsnet West believe it or not.

[CliffFletcher]

Originally Posted by FlatLandFlamesFan

Yes and No , I do love being able to actually watch a lot of games
but it feels like the '80s sometimes. keep waiting to hear Whalens' voice...good times

The overall quality of those 2&7 broadcasts 25 years ago was better than Sportsnet today. Given the vastly greater sums of money involved, that's inexcusable.

[Igottago]

Great thread, there can never be enough piling on about this issue.

Sportsnet regional broadcasts are an embarrassment to professional sports. They take the best league in one of the most exciting sports in the world, and water it down where its like watching a camcorder video that some parents took of their kids at the local rink. They completely kill the excitement of the game, and that's not hyperbole at all. Audio, commentary, analysis...its all terrible.

However, if they ever want to start somewhere, its the god damn audio. I want to actually hear the crowd for once. And the terrible play by play should at least be in sync.

[Neeper]

First off, I want to say that I really appreciate the fact every Flames game is broadcasted live on TV. Remember the days when it wasn't? It wasn't that long ago.

That said, I just don't understand why the production quality is so crappy. The games seem "boring" or there is a lack of energy in the broadcast. They really need to turn up the crowd and ice sounds levels. The audio sync is so annoying it's unbelievable. If you are going to do something, at least try and make it the best you can. Why go half assed?

[trackercowe]

Originally Posted by StrykerSteve

There's not one single redeeming element to Sportsnet's production. I dislike it all.

It's why these days I watch the other team's feed whenever I can.

Pretty much this. There's not one single thing about their broadcast I like, even their in-studio analysts are third-rate. The entire thing just screams actually third-rate production. I am sure they'll spend a bit of money and make a new studio and all that, but that's just putting lipstick on a pig. All the commentators and analysts will remain the same, as will probably most of their other issues. My only hope is that some of the better CBC guys will relocate to Sportsnet, which is sad in itself since CBC is second-rate compared to TSN.

[nik-]

Originally Posted by Neeper

First off, I want to say that I really appreciate the fact every Flames game is broadcasted live on TV. Remember the days when it wasn't? It wasn't that long ago.

That said, I just don't understand why the production quality is so crappy. The games seem "boring" or there is a lack of energy in the broadcast. They really need to turn up the crowd and ice sounds levels. The audio sync is so annoying it's unbelievable. If you are going to do something, at least try and make it the best you can. Why go half assed?

$$$$

Why would they pay to improve it when they have it for 8 more years for the Flames. With the cost cutting that's going to come as a result of the 5 billion dollar national deal, it's not going to get any better anytime soon.

When it comes to re-up time, they'll toss out a bucket of cash at the Flames again and then recoup in low production costs.

[OzSome]

Why complain about it? At least I can watch the game on TV since I can't afford to go to the game or fly somewhere to watch the game. Who cares about Kerr or Charlie Simmer? To me they are all the same to me. If you are not happy with Sportsnet then why not buy the Centre Ice package. I remember back then the only way you can watch the game is if Channel 7 now Global (Ed Whalen pbp) is showing it. They normally show 20-30 games a season plus CBC.
So I would rather be able to watch every single games on TV than nothing at all.

[puckluck2]

Originally Posted by OzSome

Why complain about it? At least I can watch the game on TV since I can't afford to go to the game or fly somewhere to watch the game. Who cares about Kerr or Charlie Simmer? To me they are all the same to me. If you are not happy with Sportsnet then why not buy the Centre Ice package. I remember back then the only way you can watch the game is if Channel 7 now Global (Ed Whalen pbp) is showing it. They normally show 20-30 games a season plus CBC.
So I would rather be able to watch every single games on TV than nothing at all.

You can't watch Flames games on Center Ice if you are in Calgary.

[AC]

Didn't Roger Millions say they would look into the audio sync issues when it was first brought up years ago?

Can someone find that quote?

[MrMastodonFarm]

Originally Posted by OzSome

Why complain about it? At least I can watch the game on TV since I can't afford to go to the game or fly somewhere to watch the game. Who cares about Kerr or Charlie Simmer? To me they are all the same to me. If you are not happy with Sportsnet then why not buy the Centre Ice package. I remember back then the only way you can watch the game is if Channel 7 now Global (Ed Whalen pbp) is showing it. They normally show 20-30 games a season plus CBC.
So I would rather be able to watch every single games on TV than nothing at all.

It's 2014. You're comparing broadcasting the NHL in 2014 to what, 20 years ago?

Times have changed and it's expected that all games be broadcast now. It's not like we have Sportsnet to thank for that either and we should be grateful to them, that's just the changing world of Sports TV. More options, more available.

The product Sportsnet produces is pure crap. And the worst part of it is how easy some of the fixes would be. Sync the audio, increase the crowd noise. don't go bottom of the barrel for on-air talent. Rob Kerr had a couple seasons in the AJHL and a handful of Flames PPV games of experience before becoming a full-time 70 games a year guy for an NHL team. Charlie Simmer... had he ever had a color analyst gig before?

Those are simple fixes that would improve the product dramatically, even before the hard fixes began. They just don't care. They have their money and don't give two poops to improve it.

Rob Kerri is so out of his depth I feel embarrassed for him. He is bad at his job, bottom line. He's had several seasons to be even halfway good as his job and he hasn't gotten any better. He misses calls, makes up calls, gets things wrong consistently, gets excited about small mindless things, yammers on about nothing and his catch phrase is "Where is it!". How stupid is that?

Listen to Kerr try to make a full cohesive sentence or spell out a thought on air. He can't do it. It's cringing listening to him speak. His voice goes up and down randomly, he doesn't know what to get excited about or when to hold back.

Brushing aside how bad Sportsnet is by comparing broadcasting standards to how they were 20 years ago is lazy. It's 2014, have a 2014 broadcast. The HD on Sportsnet is the worst around. The colors are washed out, grainy, not up to snuff with CBC or TSN.

They can't even get the basic stuff right.

Hell, even their damn opening theme music is dull and boring.

[MrMastodonFarm]

Originally Posted by AC

Didn't Roger Millions say they would look into the audio sync issues when it was first brought up years ago?

Can someone find that quote?

http://forum.calgarypuck.com/newrepl...eply&p=3545911

Originally Posted by rmillions

This thread has been sent to SNET and they are aware of your concerns. We understand and respect your feelings.

That post was two years ago.

The thread was created December of 2011.

It's now April 2014.

[btimbit]

I wanted to let it go and stop complaining about it, but the last few games seem even worse than usual.

I won't complain about the people, because I do think they're doing the best with the tools they're given and what they have to work with. But they should at least shake it up. Why even have a colour guy if he's going to put people to sleep? Simmer has some good qualities and I think they're being wasted where he is now.

The production value... good lord. Audio not synced, screen fading out sometimes, picture quality (HD my ass) literally the only reason people watch this garbage is because they don't have a choice.

Worst part is, it won't change. They have their deal, why improve?

I genuinely feel bad for Kerr, Simmer, Millions, and the rest of the guys. I know I take shots and Kerr once and a while for being a little over the top, and Simmer for being bland, but you do at least always get the sense that they're at least trying. You can tell the guys love the game but it's being muffled by the penny pinching above them.

[AC]

Simmer used to work on the Phoenix broadcasts if I remember correctly.

I think Rob Kerr is excellent on the radio, I'm not sure why it doesn't work on TV but it just doesn't. Millions as play by play with Kerr as the colour commentator would work much better IMO.

[PeteMoss]

Originally Posted by Cleveland Steam Whistle

Thinking that sportsnet will keep the same production value as they have on their regional broadcasts for the national coverage next year is silliness.

I thought this as well until I saw their cheapness with the Blue Jays this winter. They own the team, actually built up momentum by making moves and increasing payroll (saw ratings and attendence go way up despite the team's poor performance last year) and then basically closed the wallet this off-season. They've killed all momentum they had last year when going to a Jays game was actually a thing to do out here.

And they own the team, the stadium, the tv rights and radio rights... basically every cent of revenue the Jays make goes to Rogers and they still cheap out on them. Doesn't give much confidence that spending billions to earn TV rights is going to do much to improve the quality of the NHL or Flames local broadcasts.