Media Notes
 |
HBO Receives Praise For Its PPV Coverage
Of Saturday's Pacquiao-Cotto Fight |
SI.com's Pablo Torre reviewed the HBO PPV coverage of Saturday's Manny Pacquiao-Miguel Cotto fight, writing the broadcast booth of Jim Lampley, Larry Merchant and Emanuel Steward "is as seasoned as it gets." The entire production "noticeably used that experience to smartly zero in on one storyline as quickly as it emerged in the fourth round: How long can Miguel Cotto last?" The in-ring cameras "focused almost exclusively on Cotto's corner in the timeouts between rounds." While broadcasters "usually like to gin up an event to keep viewers, it turns out that a perk of paying $54.99 for a bout is that HBO's crew doesn't need to persuade you to stay -- instead, it began the night by eviscerating the soporific undercard and was bluntly honest when it thought the main event was over" (SI.com, 11/16).
STEEP PRICE TO PAY: In DC, Tim Lemke wrote he was a "bit stunned to see the price" for NBA League Pass Broadband, as it costs "five payments of $29.99, or about $150 for the season." One "would assume that the NBA's package would cost less" than the $109 MLB's broadband offering cost, "since there are half as many games in a season." An NBA spokesperson said the league is "unique from MLB, in the fact that our NBA League Pass product is integrated through both the television and the Internet." The spokesperson added, "Along with the DVR features, (the) option to view multiple games at once, and access to live radio broadcasts (both home and away feeds) for every game, we have tapped into our digital archive -- to provide our fans with access to a complete archive of the full season, to view any game whenever they choose" (WASHINGTONTIMES.com, 11/13).
LOOKING BACK: MLB Net's Bob Costas said he "loved" being back in the broadcast booth with the network this season. Costas: "I was worried I would be a little bit rusty, but I think I was probably 95% in the groove of it." Meanwhile, Costas said of working at MLB Net after HBO, "What I miss is the event feeling that 'Costas Now' had, and the fact that at HBO, you could tackle any sports subject. I love MLB, but obviously it is all baseball." But Costas added, "I thought this was probably the last time I would have a chance to embrace baseball, which has always been my favorite sport, this way" (BROADCASTING & CABLE, 11/16 issue).
TARGET PRACTICE: Patriots LB Junior Seau prior to re-signing with the team in October visited Target Chip Ganassi Racing to tape an episode of Versus' “Sports Jobs,” which debuts December 2 at 10:00pm. The show, featuring the Target race team that supports IndyCar driver Scott Dixon, will air December 23 and reveals what it takes to get Dixon’s car ready for a race. Seau, as host of the program, jumps in as a member of the crew (Target Chip Ganassi Racing).
|
