Posts by Eddie Clark
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I'm picking Ducks-Detroit in the western final.
I say this every year, but the Sharks are looking good... and substantially different from last year. If D Heatly takes time off from being a complete ass and actually plays hockey, they might actually have some playoff success this year.
I also agree on the likelihood of Caps/Pens in the east, but I do think the Bruins could upset the applecart there. Also picking Atl to finally make the playoffs again this year.
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Giovanni and I have a mission to lead all things PAS to ice hockey. In such a mission, there is no such thing as off topic.
Oh well in that case: Original 6 final this year? Bruins/Hawks?
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Gah, I've created an off topic monster.
DC Red, as kyle pointed out to me, I made too general a point. RDS, the French language broadcaster, broadcasts the vast majority of Canadiens games east of Ottawa. Elsewhere, of course, its up to the home franchise's broadcaster to provide commentary, which will be in English. Plus those games that are on CBC nationwide.
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Kyle - my bad, you're right. I should have said that quebec and eastern ontario residents can't get Canadiens games in English unless they're one of the (relatively infrequent) HNiC games.
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We're not going to get to see either of the next summer and winter olympics without having Sky. 15% of the population having to shell out a few hundred for a freeview box doesn't seem so harsh, it's just an advance on digital shutoff anyway.
Actually, I understand they're basically going to dump the whole lot on Prime for at least 12 hours a day. That's what they've proposed for the Comm Games, anyway. Again, Prime only has 90% coverage like MTS, but once you've bought your TV you don't need anything else to watch it.
In general, though, I heartily agree that "Rugby as a human right" is an outdated concept - encapsulated by the fact that the idea's leading proponent in Parliament is the obsolete Jim Anderton.
Now if I could only get better NHL coverage without huge torrent downloads... (go Bruins!)
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there is a huge amount that you just can't follow at all unless you speak the language.
That argument only applies if the play-by-play commentary is going to be in Maori. Which I understand it will not be. Also, as I said above - radio commentary. Radio Sport would love the advertising revenue from us monolingual whiteys tuning into them with the TV on mute.
The fact that most of the small towns in New Zealand won't be able to see it unless they pay for it is the thing that peeves me off the most about the issue though. And the feeling that we are being screwed over by politicians for their own vanity.
Oh FFS with the faux populism. TV is not and has never been free. Astonishingly, you have to buy a TV in order to be able to view even FTA broadcasts. Up until a few years ago, even small TVs were quite expensive. How much was a nice colour TV to watch the ABs in the 1987 world cup final? And how much more is the outlay for the cheapest Freeview Satellite box and a Freeview sat dish today?
Also, rugby isn't a human right. As I said, my understanding is that TVNZ and TV3 are unwilling to pay what the IRB wants for the FTA rights... absent MTS' bid, what is your solution to getting it on FTA TV?
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Andre:
5 to 10 % of the commentary and flavour stuff is going to be in Maori. You really can't put up with that? Maori is an official language of NZ.
Lets use an analogy from another country with multiple official languages (and DeepRed, I'd disagree that it is a bone of contention, really - Quebec nationalism is a massive one, but the language issue is only a small part of that).
Every Montreal Canadiens game is broadcast on TV in French only. While the majority of Montreal residents are fluent in French, a significant minority are not (the city has a large immigrant population, both from elsewhere in Canada and overseas). Also, the club has fans all over Canada, and French is not widespread outside Quebec. So you have a large team constituency that does not fluently speak the language of the commentators. There is almost no bitching about this in Canada. Oddly enough, people manage by either muting the commentary, which is inane whether or not you can understand it, or turning on the radio.
Let me repeat - this is the entire commentary in French. Not 5 to 10% of the prematch BS, which is what I understand MTS is proposing. You really can't handle that?
As for the coverage - even the current VHF networks only hit 97% of the population, so no terrestrial network in NZ has universal coverage. Some people are going to need to get a satellite service to receive the broadcast no matter who gets it. The question therefore is whether we say only TVNZ and TV3 are allowed to broadcast the RWC (both of whom seem unwilling to pay the price that the IRB is asking), or whether we also allow MTS and Prime to bid. If we don't let the 90% UHF broadcasters bid, there is a serious prospect of no FTA coverage.
I'd also note, and this is something that people are not really processing yet, that the digital terrestrial footprint once analogue TV is switched off (which will almost certainly be within 5 years) is only going to be 75%. 90% looks pretty good in that context.
Now, Russell's point about whether it's appropriate to blow 3 million bucks of TPK's budget on this (seemingly given to Sharples as a bribe to get him to shut up about all the times this term that the Nats have screwed over the Maori party) is another issue entirely, and one that I agree deserves some scrutiny. But complaining about coverage levels and language as 'disenfranchising' is just absurd.
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I'm not calling you disingenuous, but...
Can I suggest "mendacious" instead, then, Emma :P?
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...and DPF comes out with wide-eyed, disingenous, indignant spluttering when Danyl (quite mildly) sticks the knife in on on DPF's coverage of a couple of those issues.
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Steven - wha?
Something's clearly got you pissed off, but I'm not sure what or who.
Or how the fact that crap tv is currently playing on my (relatively small) flat screen tv affects my, or anyone else's, ability to discuss anything.