
ESPN to ISPs: Pay for Your Customers to Play Video  - nickb
http://blog.wired.com/business/2009/02/espn-stands-fir.html
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jmatt
Reverse net neutrality. Instead of the restriction coming from the ISPs it's
coming from the content provider. I don't see how going back to mid 1990s
style AOL ideology will ever work.

To see if your ISP is already involved in this go to
<http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/espn360/index> and click watch now. It
also has a scary message if you don't have access:

 _ESPN360.com is available at no charge to fans who receive their high-speed
internet connection from an ESPN360.com affiliated internet service provider.
ESPN360.com is also available to fans that access the internet from U.S.
college campuses and U.S. military bases.

Your current computer network falls outside of these categories. Here’s how
you can get access to ESPN360.com.

1\. Switch to an ESPN360.com affiliated internet service provider or to
contact your internet service provider and request ESPN360.com. Click here to
enter your ZIP code and find out which providers in your area carry offer
ESPN360.com

2\. For Verizon Customers Only: Sign-in using remote access if you already get
ESPN360.com_

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halo
I seriously hope this crashes and burns. Various industries are trying to
encourage this particular business model, and it's undoubtedly terrible for
the consumer as it limits choice.

It's also worth wondering if ISPs could be accused of anti-competitive
practices by encouraging 'product tying'.

~~~
quantumhobbit
If the ISPs become content providers, wouldn't they lose their status as
common carriers. If they pay for ESPN's services wouldn't they become liable
to the FCC for the content that they are paying for and possibly by extension
the whole internet.

IANAL and I don't see an ISP losing its common carrier status over paying
ESPN(It's too easy for them to buy the regulators.), but I can hope that
something would stop this from occurring.

Not that I would advocate anything illegal, but couldn't someone set up a
proxy from within an ISP that pays ESPN and open it up to those without access
to ESPN.

~~~
wmf
Legally, ISPs are not subject to common carrier regulation today, so they are
not worried about losing a status that they don't have.

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hrabago
Ugh, one step closer to the nightmare illustrated in
[http://www.boingboing.net/2007/09/22/how-a-nonneutral-
isp.ht...](http://www.boingboing.net/2007/09/22/how-a-nonneutral-isp.html)
Here we all were watching the ISPs closely to avoid this from happening, and
it turns out that it's the service providers who would take the first step.

~~~
josefresco
I agree, I didn't even see this coming. I figured content creators would want
their content on as many 'pipes' as possible. Turns out they're just as greedy
as ISPs.

How many times can they sell the exact same product to us?

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indraneel24
ESPN360 has been around for years, and I'm honestly surprised it's still
running. ESPN is _the_ leader in sports, and I honestly don't know why they
don't switch over to a Hulu-type thing, with free content + advertising (I'm
sure they can get all their TV advertisers to switch over). I'd love to
understand why because, aside from the fact that they themselves don't own
sports teams, I don't get it. The day I can watch live sports online is the
day I get rid of cable.

Also, Verizon paying for this really makes me excited for FiOS to hit my
neighborhood.

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iigs
I think this is awesome. To me this represents the first step in the content
providers saying "f-you, we're not paying to deliver, you're the one with the
money connection to the viewers".

The ISPs that are going down the anti-NN rathole are pitting themselves
against both their customers and the content providers. In macro they might
make some revenue from this stuff but I can't see how it could end well.

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dougp
I never have and never plan on watching sports on espn's web site. I am going
to be very disappointed when my bill goes up because of this.

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old-gregg
Did you all forget that content rules the Internet just like any other form of
media?

I'm sure that ESPN, Fox as well as WSJ and New York Times will do just fine.
They have _content_ , something that will never become a commodity, while
pipes and delivering software will be for sure (if not already). Google
understands it, Yahoo understands it, this is why they're beefing up on their
own content because I don't think anyone doubts that eventually the
gatekeepers of information ("traditional" media) will wake up and grab the
rest of middlemen by the balls. There is absolutely no reason for ESPN or
anywhere else to allow all kinds of reddits to make money on their content, so
they're naturally making it available for customers who pays.

What it means for us is now we have yet another vehicle for monetization: can
you come up with a way to make TimeWarner a more appealing ISP compared to
others? They don't want to be just another no-name pipe provider, they are
desperate for value-adding ideas. They are, just look at all that shit they're
putting on "Internet CDs" they advertise, like it makes "their internet" safe
or faster than someone else's. So if you happen to come up with something
better than customized browsers and magical malware blockers, then sell it to
them.

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paul7986
Well from a business perspective something like this or capped bandwidth/pay
for overages is gonna come to fruition!

I have not had Cable TV for a few years and when I watch TV/movie content it's
all thru the net. In time more will do the same and advertising will not be
able to sustain the losses accrued from fewer & fewer(to zero) cable TV
customers!

It will take sometime (10 to 20 years), but it's inevitable!

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Flemlord
"Switching ISPs" is too difficult. ESPN should also offer paid subscriptions,
which would enable video regardless of your ISP.

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sjs382
ESPN has always offered ESPN360 to a limited number of ISPs. For instance, I
can't get it while at work because our ISP doesn't subscribe. Pretty
frustrating since I'm a Verizon customer and can get it at home. Would be
great if they allowed me to log in with an ISP account rather than do IP-
detection.

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nazgulnarsil
can i just proxy through a university system?

