After down season, NFL fans angered by prices getting jacked up
NFL TV ratings were down about 10 percent in the regular season and about 3 percent for the Super Bowl during a 2017 season marred by national anthem protests and injuries to marquee players like Aaron Rodgers and J.J. Watt. The league also felt the effect of a growing number of cable cord cutters.
So, given that trend, it would seem counterintuitive for DirecTV to charge more for its NFL Sunday Ticket package.
But that’s exactly what the company is doing.
For the 2018 season, DirecTV has raised the basic Sunday Ticket package to $293.94, up from $281.94 a year ago, USA Today reports — an increase of about 4 percent..
The price for the max package, which includes the Red Zone channel, will cost $395.94, which is up for 4.5 percent from this past season, the report said.
The increases are not as high as they were for the 2017 season, when DirecTV raised rates about 9.3 percent for the basic package and roughly 5 percent for the max package, according to USA Today.
And that was after ratings declined about 8 percent in the 2016 season.
Hey @DIRECTV have had your service and NFL Sunday Ticket for close to 20 yrs. With your price expected to go up to $399 I think it's time to cancel and head to the bar to watch. Thanks for screwing a loyal customer
— Big Mike NYC 🇺🇸 (@MiaFins1) February 21, 2018
The Sunday Ticket packages allow subscribers to have access to every game being played on Sunday, regardless of which market they are in. DirecTV pays about $1.5 billion per year, through 2022, for the broadcast rights.
This past season the satellite provider had some subscribers request cancellation of their service due to the national anthem protests.
Now, many fans are not happy about the rate increase in 2018.
I’m out: https://t.co/LV8qJtdTpJ
— Jason Miller (@JasonMillerinDC) February 20, 2018
#DirecTV is raising prices on its NFL Sunday Ticket package, which is the only way to watch every NFL game.
The retail price will reach an all-time high of $293.94 in 2018, with the package that includes Red Zone Channel increasing to $395.95. Per @awfulannouncing
Thoughts?
— Mike Jurecki (@mikejurecki) February 19, 2018
$400 for NFL Sunday Ticket next year. With 16 games in a season, if you discipline yourself to only spend $25 at a restaurant after tip, you can still watch the games and spend the same amount of money with food in your belly.
— JT (@Jaberuski) February 20, 2018
Someone at @DIRECTV explain to me why cost for the #SundayTicket continues to rise while my exclusivity to games decreases?? I’m seeing less games because TNF/London games but paying more $$? Ridiculous! May as well cancel…
— Brandon Murchison (@RotoSuperstar) February 20, 2018
Well that’s it for me bye NFL
— Thomas Jamison (@Jamison5Thomas) February 20, 2018
Will these increases lead to even more subscribers walking away?
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