Opinion

Comcast to add NHL Network to popular digital tier

Posted June 02, 2009 11:00 pm

Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA -- Comcast Corp. said Tuesday that it has renewed its contract with the National Hockey League and it will add the NHL Network to the channel lineup of its most popular digital cable TV plan by the start of the next professional hockey season.

The nine-year agreement calls for the NHL Network to be shown on Digital Classic, which has nearly 11 million subscribers, and continue to be available on a premium sports package that costs an extra $8 a month. The sports tier has over 2 million subscribers.

Comcast, which owns the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team, entered into a contract in which the NHL has agreed to pay smaller fees per subscriber but the NHL Network will be added to a tier with a wider audience. Digital Classic reaches about two-thirds of Comcast's 17.3 million digital subscribers.

The NHL Network has been on the sports tier for the past two years. The network features live games, pre- and post-game reports, special event coverage and others.

Earlier this month, Comcast reached an agreement with the National Football League to move the NFL Network to the Digital Classic tier from a premium sports tier.

Article Comments

Article Categories
Content Providers Opinion

Article Comments

Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.