If Bell loses the rights to air the Leafs and Raptors games on radio, is there any point to TSN 1050?

This is not good news for sports fans. Rogers now pretty much has a monopoly on Toronto teams broadcasts and I cannot stand Sportsnet’s Raptors coverage. And RadioActive makes a good point about TSN 1050’s future.

Just shows you how much disposable income Rogers has, first they underhandedly pouch Corus’ main speciality channels and now this. Deep pockets coming from a gouging telecom. I am also very curious to see how Bell spends their $4.7 billion, maybe beef up 1010 etc. a bit? Doubt it!

paterson1 wrote:

This will help Bell Media's bottom line for a while but could also indicate that they won't be a major bidder for NHL Canadian broadcast rights when they are up for grabs in a few years. 

There's a very good chance that this is just step #1 to exiting media altogether,.

So if Bell were to lose all rights to broadcasting the Leafs, Raptors and Argos, where in the world would Rogers put all the games? I suppose they could use 680 as a secondary source, which they've done before. But it doesn't happen often because TSN 1050 is always around for most of those rare conflicts. 

If Rogers ended up with all the exclusive rights and no one to share them, there could be a lot of hopscotching going on over the Toronto radio dial. 

RadioActive wrote:

So if Bell were to lose all rights to broadcasting the Leafs, Raptors and Argos, where in the world would Rogers put all the games? I suppose they could use 680 as a secondary source, which they've done before. But it doesn't happen often because TSN 1050 is always around for most of those rare conflicts. 

If Rogers ended up with all the exclusive rights and no one to share them, there could be a lot of hopscotching going on over the Toronto radio dial. 

It the US, it's common to buy time on a smaller station....so 740 or CHIN could be options.

Rogers may need money to sign baseball, free agent Juan Soto, not to mention Vladdy and Bo. This deal is "Big Boys" money...

My concern is, will hockey still be in vogue, given the changing face of the various ethnicities in Canada?

It is like the CFL, which has a really tough time attracting a younger and wider audience. A number of CFL fans are 55+. 

It is going to be interesting to watch this play out. I am wondering if my Rogers bill will increase?

 

Muffaraw Joe wrote:

I am wondering if my Rogers bill will increase?

Nope. More likely the sports package, or sports related options on your bill. 

RadioActive wrote:

RadioAaron wrote:

RadioActive wrote:

. Will TSN still be able to broadcast the games or will Rogers have an exclusive as they do with the Jays? Apparently not. According to a press release:
 

For now...

The deal will provide Bell with the opportunity to renew its existing MLSE broadcast and sponsorship rights long-term at fair market value. 

Actually, according to a BCE press release this is a done deal and TSN is safe for at least the next 20 years. So pretty much status quo for a long time to come. I'm guessing this was part of the deal that let Rogers take over. 

"Bell Media has secured access to content rights for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto Raptors on TSN for the next 20 years through a long-term agreement with Rogers, also subject to league approvals. This deal cements TSN's place as Canada's Sports Leader, delivering Canada's best and most-watched sports content. TSN will also continue to broadcast Toronto Argonauts and Toronto FC games through independent agreements with the respective leagues."

Canadians can count on TSN for Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto Raptors game action through access to content rights for 20 years
 

Seems to contradict Rogers' release, but is more detailed. Odd.

This move will still not bring a Stanley Cup back to Toronto.
Just this kind,
 

The insatiable appetite of Edward Rogers to control the sports scene in Toronto has taken another step.  Rogers’ domination of the sports market in the city is evident with his recent purchase of Bell’s investment in Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment for $4.7 billion dollars.  Bell is out Rogers is in.  MLSE owns the Toronto Maple Leafs; the Toronto Raptors; the Toronto Blue Jays, the Rogers Centre and Sportsnet, the Toronto Argonauts and Toronto FC Soccer Club.  That just leaves MLSE chairman Larry Tanenbaum, with his 20% and 5% owned by OMERS, a Canadian pension fund.  It’s only time before the Toronto’s sports teams are neglected the way The Blue Jays have been.  It’s all about Rogers’ bottom line and no more.  You only have to look at Rogers’ failure to devote interest in the Jays, it will be mirrored in their other sports entities.  What the city lacks is a sports-minded enterprise, not a profit-obsessed corporation who doesn’t know a hockey puck from a catcher’s mitt, and could care less.
 

Rogers neglecting the Toronto Blue Jays??  Really?  They just spent a boatload of cash to turn the Rogers Centre into a real ball park.  The Jays sit at #9 out of 30 teams in MLB in terms of payroll, at about $218 million per year.  So I don't know how you can call this neglecting the team.  Yes we can question coaching and any of the moves the team makes in terms of players and staff, but that isn't neglect.  More like poor decisions..

paterson1 wrote:

Rogers neglecting the Toronto Blue Jays??  Really?  They just spent a boatload of cash to turn the Rogers Centre into a real ball park.  The Jays sit at #9 out of 30 teams in MLB in terms of payroll, at about $218 million per year.  So I don't know how you can call this neglecting the team.  Yes we can question coaching and any of the moves the team makes in terms of players and staff, but that isn't neglect.  More like poor decisions..

Renovations = higher ticket prices (profits), high payroll = initial bad extended contract decisions, 15 years in Cleveland = no winner, nine years in Toronto = no winner!  No reaction from Edward Rogers re:  Shapiro and Atkins failure to succeed. 
I rest my case. 

laffin wrote:

paterson1 wrote:

Rogers neglecting the Toronto Blue Jays??  Really?  They just spent a boatload of cash to turn the Rogers Centre into a real ball park.  The Jays sit at #9 out of 30 teams in MLB in terms of payroll, at about $218 million per year.  So I don't know how you can call this neglecting the team.  Yes we can question coaching and any of the moves the team makes in terms of players and staff, but that isn't neglect.  More like poor decisions..

Renovations = higher ticket prices (profits), high payroll = initial bad extended contract decisions, 15 years in Cleveland = no winner, nine years in Toronto = no winner!  No reaction from Edward Rogers re:  Shapiro and Atkins failure to succeed. 
I rest my case. 

Not having a winning team is not neglect.  Poor coaching and front office decisions, I agree but not neglect.  If Rogers wasn't spending money on the team and facilities that would be another story. The Jays haven't turned a profit since 2020 (COVID complicated things naturally) but Rogers to their credit is spending a good amount of money on the team and the park.  More from Forbes..https://www.forbes.com/teams/toronto-blue-jays/

At least one professor who studies the business of sports is predicting that the biggest winner from the Rogers takeover deal could be Amazon, once the NHL contract comes up for bids in two years. 

With NHL national rights up in 2026, could Amazon be the big winner after MLSE deal?