Football fans have long enjoyed the use of DirecTV’s NFL Sunday Ticket package as a means to watch as much pigskin as humanly possible. The satellite company’s exclusive deal with the NFL is especially valued by displaced fans who want to watch their favorite out-of-town professional squad. But this whole dream could be in jeopardy in the not-so-distant future.
DirecTV Chief Financial Officer Pat Doyle told reporters at the Deutsche Bank Media, Internet & Telecom Conference in Florida on Wednesday that his company may consider pulling the popular package from its program offering.
Asked about the future of DirecTV’s NFL Sunday Ticket amid rising sports costs, he said that if the price tag went too high in the next rights deal negotiations, DirecTV would consider striking a non-exclusive deal with the NFL or possibly even dropping the popular package.
Complicating matters is the fact that the popularity of the RedZone channel, now available via cable, has made the Sunday Ticket package less important to many fans. Also, the availability of every game on NFL Rewind after the fact reduces the attractiveness of features that previously were exclusive to DirecTV.
The company’s current deal with NFL Sunday Ticket isn’t set to expire until 2014.
