If you’re used to watching Premier League matches on-demand via the NBC Sports App, that option will no longer be available beginning with the 2019/20 season according to a NBC Sports spokesperson.
World Soccer Talk has learned that full match replays will only be available online to NBC Sports Gold subscribers, thus forcing NBCSN subscribers to pay an additional $64.99 per season for the right to access games on-demand digitally that were available last season at no extra cost. This is coupled with the change that full-match replays will only be available after 9PM ET on matchdays to NBC Sports Gold Premier League Pass subscribers.
The latest development follows last week’s announcement that NBC Sports has added more restrictions to the way that soccer fans legally stream games from the Premier League in the United States.
The newly-created Premier League MatchDay Pass tier only makes games available live and not on-demand. And the aforementioned Premier League Pass tier forces soccer fans to wait anywhere from 6.5 to 11.5 hours after games end to watch them online, thus making the replays practically useless by that time of the day.
In essence, NBC Sports has created a Frankenstein monster of a streaming service, cobbling together more content from its partnership with Sky Sports as well as significantly restricting what soccer fans can and cannot watch, and at what time of the day.
The retooled NBC Sports Gold could have been so much more.
For TV subscribers to NBCSN, the changes will mean that consumers will need to DVR more games for viewing later if they can’t watch them live. For cord cutters opting not to get NBC Sports Gold, the changes may mean consumers will watch less Premier League matches than they did in the past, which isn’t a good look for NBC Sports or the Premier League.
How can NBC fix NBC Sports Gold?
Analysis by Christopher Harris, Soccer media analyst
Before we analyze how NBC Sports could turn NBC Sports Gold into the Netflix for Premier League viewers in the United States, we first have to briefly discuss how we got here.
Since 2013 when NBC Sports launched their coverage of the Premier League, the broadcaster received critical praise from both the media and fans for the way they made all 380 Premier League games through the NBC Sports Live Extra app, which was available at no extra cost for NBCSN subscribers.
After changing the name of the service to the NBC Sports App in 2016, it wasn’t until 2017 that NBC launched the Premier League Pass service via NBC Sports Gold. But by not making all of the games available to soccer fans, the launch of NBC Sports Gold was a giant step backwards for NBC. The service provided less access to Premier League matches than the old NBC Sports Live Extra. And NBC Sports were charging customers more.
But the issue at the heart of NBC Sports Gold has never been about price. It’s been accessibility.
The two biggest issues with NBC Sports Gold are (1) it asks current cable/satellite subscribers to pay more for content they were getting for free before, and (2) it doesn’t offer cord cutters a service that includes all of the games live and on-demand. By doing so, it infuriates both target audiences with a product that satisfies very few people.
Price isn’t the issue. In fact, a lot of soccer fans in the United States would be willing to pay more money to access all of the Premier League games live and on-demand. For example, soccer fans in Canada will be paying fifteen U.S. dollars a month to access every Premier League game via DAZN’s streaming service, which would be a dream-come-true for cord cutters in the United States if a similar product was available here.
The crux of the issue for NBC Sports is that they don’t want to offer a product that is going to undermine the number one reason they’re in business — television.
But the fact of the matter is that consumers in the United States are cancelling their cable and satellite TV subscriptions in record numbers.
NBC is stubbornly trying to force consumers to stick with their TV subscriptions while trying to generate supplemental revenue from the NBC Sports Gold product.
A more enterprising company would offer NBC Sports Gold as a standalone product that includes every Premier League game live and on-demand. And to then continue broadcasting matches on television to the consumers who prefer to watch their games that way.
At the end of the day, NBC Sports needs to try to recoup the almost $1 billion it spent on renewing the Premier League rights for the six years from 2016 through 2022. Personally, I have no issue with NBC Sports charging a subscription fee to access legal streams of the Premier League. My biggest bone of contention is that it doesn’t offer everything live and on-demand.
By launching the heavily-restricted version of Premier League Pass for the 2019/20 season, the service is more likely to encourage soccer fans to watch games illegally because consumers feel it’s reciprocity for cheating them out of something that used to be free.
Vice-versa, if NBC Sports retooled NBC Sports Gold to offer access to all Premier League games live and on-demand, it’s more likely that consumers would pay for a reliable and robust product that offers incredible quality and convenience for the money.
With NBC Sports Gold currently offered the way it is, NBC Sports finds itself caught between a rock and a hard place where they’re trying to appease their overlords (NBC Sports is owned by Comcast) while attempting to be seen as a digital destination for sports (NBC Sports has never publicized how many subscribers their Premier League Pass service has, so we can only assume it’s not a remarkable number).
No doubt, the latest changes to NBC Sports Gold will anger the diehard soccer fans more than ever before. The big question is what the reaction will be among the mainstream who watch the Premier League.
200+ Channels With Sports & News
- Starting price: $33/mo. for fubo Latino Package
- Watch Premier League, World Cup, Euro 2024 & more
Live & On Demand TV Streaming
- Price: $35/mo. for Sling Blue
- Watch Premier League, World Cup & MLS
Many Sports & ESPN Originals
- Price: $9.99/mo. (or get ESPN+, Hulu & Disney+ for $13.99/mo.)
- Features Bundesliga, LaLiga, Championship, & more
2,000+ soccer games per year
- Price: $4.99/mo
- Features Champions League, Serie A, Europa League & NWSL
175 Premier League Games & PL TV
- Starting price: $4.99/mo. for Peacock Premium
- Watch 175 exclusive EPL games per season
110+ channels, live & on-demand
- Price: $59.95/mo. for Plus Package
- Includes FOX, FS1, ESPN, TUDN & more
82 Comments
Leave a Reply
Leave a Reply
SOCCER TV SCHEDULES APP
 |
 |
STREAMING OFFERS
 Includes: Premier League + 84 Sports Channels | |
| 7-Day Free Trial | |
 Includes: Bundesliga & La Liga | |
| Sign Up |
|
Includes: Champions League & Serie A | |
| 7-Day Free Trial | |
Includes: Premier League | |
| Sign Up |
|
 Includes: USA, NBC, FOX, FS1 + more | |
| Browse Offers |
|
Will
August 30, 2019 at 4:00 am
After reading this thread and seeing Gold matches being accessible from 9pm EST, to 4 hours after final whistle to maybe 1 hour (as it was last season), what is the result? I haven’t yet subscribed to Gold and I’m curious when a Gold replay is available.
Stanley
December 14, 2019 at 1:25 pm
“Replays of matches that originally appeared on Sport Gold will appear available as soon as one hour after the match has aired on Gold”
Marc
August 22, 2019 at 8:28 am
I know we are only two weeks, well going on three now, into the new EPL season but can anybody please give me their views on the Premier League Pass? My wife finally gave me a go ahead to plan our pilgrimage over to Britain next year and I figured a big way to save money is to get rid of Hulu Live which I would lose NBCSN. Thank you in advance.
nosferatu
August 11, 2019 at 6:30 pm
So here’s a random issue I’ve been having for over a year now–has anyone else encountered this?
I have Spectrum (formerly Time Warner) and oftentimes when I record Premier League Mornings on the DVR, when I go to watch it the screen comes up black and I can’t watch or use any controls. Occasionally this happens, too, for actual games on NBCSN. Sometimes if I reset the cable box the recording will actually play. Sometimes it won’t ever work.
Now, not seeing pre-game coverage isn’t a big deal, but today, for instance, the Arsenal game recorded but wouldn’t work, even after resetting the cable box. In the past, I’d just go and watch the replay on the app on the Roku. Now that replay still isn’t up, so I had to find another way to watch.
The weird thing is that this only happens for these specific recordings. Not for other shows/games on NBCSN (I watch a lot of hockey, too) or other networks. Just Premier League stuff. I don’t even know if Spectrum would have a clue. Has anyone else encountered this or have any advice?
Thanks in advance for anyone who read this whole thing, but I’m at a loss and very frustrated now that the replays of NBCSN games are delayed so much even for people who have a cable/satellite package with it.
James
August 9, 2019 at 9:42 pm
Goal Rush – will I get it with the Matchday pass or do I need the Premier League pass?
Christopher Harris
August 9, 2019 at 9:47 pm
You should be able to access ‘Goal Rush’ with Matchday Pass.
James
August 24, 2019 at 10:18 am
So get this……I paid for the Matchday pass and weeks 1 and 2 I was able to watch the Goal Rush. Wake up this morning for week 3 and they’ve suddenly locked access to it so I can only watch the NBC Sports Gold games, not the Goal Rush! E-mail sent to their support but expecting to be told it’s now only accessible with the Premier League pass.
ComeOnYouSpurs
August 9, 2019 at 7:49 pm
The most ridiculous part of this is that the replays are available in Spanish shortly after the match concludes. Is that lingual discrimination? I guess I need to brush up on my Spanish! At least I’ll get to enjoy a few “GOOOOOOAAAALS” this year.
Carlos
August 10, 2019 at 12:13 am
I was about to post that the Spanish replay is available. That’s actually great news. Just like Univision for the UEFA coverage, you now have another choice.
Azer
August 8, 2019 at 9:30 pm
It has been 89 days since we last watched the EPL on NBC Sports. I wonder if NBC learned anything during the summer months, either from Premier League Production or Sky Sports.
Did they improve? Will they surprise us on the first day? I’m not betting on it. I believe NBC/Comcast owns Sky in the UK so why not learn from your business partner overseas. Why would that be wrong?
FlatBackFour
August 8, 2019 at 6:42 pm
So if I’m understanding this situation correctly, I think I will be able to watch every game as I did last year, but using the DVR for all NBCSN/NBC/CNBC matches and watching every other game on Gold. I hope this is how it works. For those concerned about spoilers, you can tape a piece of paper over the top right part of the screen to block the scores and then fast forward through the halftime coverage and skip the post-match until you’ve watched all of the games in the Saturday 3 pm time slot. That’s what I did last season and it worked 99% of the time.
Christopher Harris
August 8, 2019 at 8:40 pm
Your assertion is correct, sir. Nice job!
Dennis Anderson
August 8, 2019 at 9:23 pm
I did the same thing last year & will do the same this year. Including that same piece of paper.
Frank
August 5, 2019 at 7:54 am
I contacted NBC regarding the duration for which replays are available (I’ll be gone Aug07-17 and will miss match day 1 and the beginning of 2) and when replays of on-demand matches will be available:
Hi Frank,
Thank you for contacting us. All matches will be available as replays until the next match. Replays of matches that originally appeared on Sport Gold will appear available as soon as one hour after the match has aired on Gold. Replays of matches that appeared on NBC Networks WILL be available Sports Gold, however, those will not be available until around 9-10pm after the match has aired.
Thanks,
xxx
NBC Sports Support
SaintsFan
August 8, 2019 at 10:16 pm
“Replays of matches that originally appeared on Sport Gold will appear available as soon as one hour after the match has aired on Gold”
Cool – same as last year then. Basically nothing much has changed apart from having to pay $10 more for the season to keep this option and to get loads of other stuff (that you’ll prob never ever watch!).
Roll on the new season.
oviano
August 4, 2019 at 3:12 am
How to fix it?
Put all 380 games on it, at 60 frames per second so it actually doesn’t look rubbish, charge whatever is needed to recoup/handle cannibalisation of the traditional channels.
Add a premium for 4K if you like.
In short, just give people a better service, don’t try and be too clever and stop taking people for idiots.
Harry crosland
August 2, 2019 at 3:39 pm
Sad to see that NBC is going the Fox Sports route with this app. It had so much promise when I reviewed it back in 2013-14
FlatBackFour
August 2, 2019 at 3:22 pm
Thanks for reporting on this problem. I need (not want, need 🙂 ) to watch every single EPL match this coming season, and I’m concerned that with a cable subscription and the highest Gold pass, this won’t be possible. If I also bought Fubo or Sling, would it help the situation? Thanks!
Bruce Harris
July 22, 2019 at 8:29 pm
Hi Christopher. Delay in replays on Premier League Pass – NBC Sports customer support, after asking the question twice, told me via email that it was a Premier League restriction. On the face of it, this doesn’t seem creditable. Can you confirm from your sources what the reasoning is. That said, they did however say replays for Gold matches would be available 1-2 hours after event finishes, not 4 hours.
ComeOnYouSpurs
August 9, 2019 at 7:51 pm
It seems odd that it would be a Premier league restriction when the broadcasts are available in the US in Spanish, just not in English.
Steven
July 20, 2019 at 9:28 pm
If NBC Sports has made these changes to increase revenue then I can understand the increase in price. But What I cannot understand is why the delay to watching games. How does this increase revenue? Is this new policy going to attract more subscribers? Has NBC studied this and concluded that by restricting when you can watch on-demand more people are going to sign up?
Ritchie
July 22, 2019 at 4:23 pm
I’m guessing that NBC Gold delays their on-demand so as not to cannibalize NBCSN, which would be carrying games and goal zone until around 3:30pm on Saturday.
NBC probably wants as many people as possible subscribing to BOTH the linear channel and gold.
Danny
July 19, 2019 at 7:38 am
NBC has done the same with professional cycling. It is the NBC gold channel they charge you a foot and leg for to watch cycling now. Or, you can stay up until 1 or 2 a.m. to watch for a one hour show on NBCSN. I have basically quit watching cycling because of NBC’s crap here. It is the way of the beast wanting more money. They will put it on the Internet and charge you more and more, even tho you are paying for DirecTV, Dish or cable already. So, $75 here, $85 there, another $125 over there, and before long you have $350 tied up in watching 95% of the same channels, but on 25 different platforms. As for me, to hell with them. I will watch on DirecTV and if it ain’t there, I don’t watch. I just simply hop on my own bike and go riding for 50 or 60 miles on my own with my wife. Probably better to ride than sit on my hip pockets anyway.
Yespage
July 21, 2019 at 10:25 pm
It is ridiculous for NBC to put the replay for The Tour behind a paywall. I think the price for the ad free version is quite alright, but to pay extra to watch commercials, that just seems real dumb.
joe
July 19, 2019 at 6:43 am
NBC exec Joe here, Jack I love your suggestion for an “NBC Sports Platinum” app, we always strive to please fans like yourself. As a matter of fact, with your kind of thinking there may be job waiting for you at our home office.
Nicholas
July 18, 2019 at 1:16 pm
Does fubo use an NBC broadcast for 4k? If so why wouldn’t NBC make it available through their own app?
Christopher Harris
July 18, 2019 at 1:28 pm
The 4K feed is available on television through DIRECTV. But as far as I know, fuboTV is the only streaming provider that makes that same feed available to their subscribers. NBC Sports is not making it available through any of their apps.
Jack S.
July 18, 2019 at 2:50 pm
They’re not making 4K available *yet*. Probably will create another offering called “NBC Sports Platinum” or some such, for a higher annual fee that will offer 4K as well as instant availability of the matches post-final whistle. It’s all about the cash…
Nicholas
July 18, 2019 at 11:33 am
Will the games through NBC sports gold be available in 4k? Would be worth paying if they were
Christopher Harris
July 18, 2019 at 1:12 pm
They won’t be available in 4K. On streaming, fuboTV is the only one that makes Premier League games available in 4K.
See https://worldsoccertalk-wp.futbolsites.dev/watch-soccer-via-fubotv/ for more info.
Eplnfl
July 17, 2019 at 11:13 pm
I am in the minority here but I resisted the paid app until now but I am gong to sign up for this season. I miss more than anything most of the extra coverage especially during the week.
Daniel
July 18, 2019 at 1:57 pm
I’m with you and know we are in the solid minority. $60 for a no-fuss app to watch all the matches I’m interested in + bonus programming is worth it for me. I miss the old days too and hate being fleeced by my Cable/Internet co. but what can you do?
Ryan
July 17, 2019 at 7:36 pm
Just wait until 2022 when Amazon buys the rights
David the Yank
July 17, 2019 at 11:06 am
I am quite convinced Gold sales are going to fall this year. i.e. this plan will backfire for Comcast. I am further convinced that most of last year’s subscribers are going to auto-renew (they auto-renewed me) but when they wake up in August/September and learn of the new restrictions, Comcast is going to be faced with many refund requests. The new gold premium package only makes sense for those who are both supporters of the teams not shown routinely on NBCSN/NBC and those who somehow want to match the matches non-live but many hours later. I just think there are very few of those. If you are such a big fan of Sheffield United or Norwich that you will watch all the games LIVE, then you just need the cheaper Gold package. But if you can’t be exactly at your TV from 10am-noon Eastern time or 7am-9am pacific time, then you are likely to HATE the new and utterly unnecessary 4 hour delay EVEN AS YOU ARE A FULL PAYER!
Yespage
July 17, 2019 at 12:17 pm
I think the delay in On Demand access for non-broadcasted games is a killer. There is no absolutely justification for that.
Rich
July 18, 2019 at 6:55 am
They probably want people to watch the 12:30 et game and goal zone. That ends around 3:30, hence the blackout until 4 (my guess).
nosferatu
July 18, 2019 at 2:04 pm
You could well be right, but this would just go to show how clueless the people in charge are. Those who are waiting to watch the Gold games don’t want to be spoiled on the outcomes (with the scores of earlier/current games showing on the screen throughout the 12:30 game), let alone the highlights during Goal Zone.
croc
July 17, 2019 at 8:12 am
hi , why no PL Asia Trophy on NBC?
Christopher Harris
July 17, 2019 at 8:47 am
NBC streamed the tournament on NBC Sports Gold last year, I believe. They decided not to stream it this year unfortunately.
SC
July 17, 2019 at 12:59 pm
They did stream it on the regular (cable authenticated) NBC Sports App. They have the replays of both matches available now, and also have the consolation game and final on Saturday listed in the “Live and Upcoming” section as well.
Brendan
July 16, 2019 at 9:16 pm
I am now hearing that only the games on NBCSN ,NBC , CNBC are subject to this 9pm delay on replays and the games shown live on NBC Gold are subject to a 4 hour delay so if a game on Saturday finishes at 12 noon will be available at approx 4pm . Use your DVR to tape the games on cable , why would they delay games on Gold that has already been paid for ,B/R Live with all its faults have made replays or on Demand available very quickly after the final Whistle .
nosferatu
July 17, 2019 at 2:06 pm
Indeed–and just like with every other streaming service, you can actually watch live streams from the beginning on B/R Live.
barnaby shepherd
July 16, 2019 at 6:18 pm
Can someone give me some advice here…I have a Spectrum Cable account. We get NBC sports, but we are now paying over $200 a month..it is cripplingly expensive. How do we reduce our bill and still see EPL? I really feel as though we are painted into a corner by the cable company…
Christopher Harris
July 16, 2019 at 6:27 pm
Barnaby, I would recommend you downloading some of the free guides we’ve created at https://worldsoccertalk-wp.futbolsites.dev/free-viewing-guides-soccer-fans-cord-cutters/ that go into more detail regarding what each different service offers, as well as the best bets to save money on Premier League viewing.
Rich
July 16, 2019 at 7:38 pm
What Channels can you absolutely not live without (Not a rhetorical question)?
That will really dictate what services can fit your needs.
Yespage
July 17, 2019 at 10:00 am
Sling works quite well, but there is given and take and depends on what access you have to all sorts of things. A cable bill of $200 means you are likely paying for a lot of equipment.
Steven
July 18, 2019 at 6:17 am
It depends on what else you want to watch besides EPL games. I ditched cable for Fubo TV as they offered me almost all of what I wanted. Sling TV is another option, depending on your needs. You can try them out for free for 7 days to help you decide. Good luck.
Robert
December 8, 2019 at 6:17 am
I have spectrum as well, got the triple bundle for $120 monthly. That is with 200 Mbps and a landline which no one really uses though. Also buy your own modem router, it will save $10 a month. I have this deal with TWC before the merger though. I also don’t have the DVR. But most of the sports channel I have that since that is what I wanted the most. We can only get it with the upper tier list of channels. If NBC has ala carte per club I’m the first subscriber with that.
Anthony
July 16, 2019 at 5:23 pm
Early NBC premier league coverage was great because you could watch all games, and extra games were often on CNBC. Since then, they have clearly tried to direct as many eyeballs to the live televised “windows” as they possibly can.
The one huge advantage NBC has is that only they can reliably promise totally FREE (over the air) coverage of the Premier League on a consistent basis. One of my TVs is antenna and streaming only, and I often watch Premier League via antenna.
From the standpoint of the Premier League, would you rather have your product aired by ESPN+ (I cant really see ESPN/ABC televising a lot of live Premier League games in the fall) where fans can pay extra for a “Premier League Pass” and get everything live or on demand? Fox certainly has limited room to televise such games. Or would you rather stick with NBC, who can promise 12:30 PM NBC games for the large majority of weeks in a season? I am thinking the Premier League would rather stick with NBC.
Ritchie
July 16, 2019 at 6:13 pm
I think the EPL is likely to stick with the outlet that pays them the most, just like the NHL did when they left ESPN for Comcast (and they’ve been there ever since).
The ESPN+ model is similar to NBC gold (though you get more bang for your 5 bucks over there). For Serie A, you have to subscribe to different services to get all the games: ESPN through a distributor and ESPN+ directly from the network.
I do agree that NBC has more available time slots for OTA broadcasts than ABC, though I’m not sure how much that influences things on the front end of negotiations these days.
JP
July 16, 2019 at 8:13 pm
Actually ESPN offered more for the NHL but the widely decided to take less but gain exposure. Big fish in a small pond instead of being lost on ESPN because they have so much else to cover and competing for air time.
Evident in how much of the playoffs NBC shows (virtually all of it) vs when on ESPN especially for the early rounds.
JP
July 16, 2019 at 8:14 pm
*wisely not widely
Ritchie
July 16, 2019 at 10:59 pm
Are you sure? When Comcast (via Versus Network) won the NHL rights, there essentially was only one channel available to Comcast to show the games. Through mergers, NBC can now show the entire slate of playoff games, but when the NHL made the move, ESPN had the much more ubiquitous outlets.
JP
July 17, 2019 at 8:51 am
Yes when it went out for bid after the initial Vs contract was due to expire
Eddy
July 17, 2019 at 10:20 am
From what I gathered and I frequent and am a member of HFBoards(Main Hockey board) Outside Network predecessor to Versus which was the predecessor to NBCSN rescued NHL and offered the most NHL really had no choice as ESPN offered low balled them and offered something like only like $40m yr and offered to air only a quarter of the games after realizing they overpaid on the original deal of $100m yr that ended in the late 90s.
ESPN got NHL to leave FOX and entered in negotiations after killing off a competitive bid of the only rival sports network then. When they left FOX NHL unwittingly helped play a part in killing off a rival competitor bidder which in fact allowed ESPN to low ball them.
Eddy
July 17, 2019 at 10:46 am
“I think the EPL is likely to stick with the outlet that pays them the most”
This above ^ can’t say it enough the EPL is first and foremost about profit they want the money. We need to realize their is no EPL loyalty to NBC it was just sheer genius by NBC to realize they could double the numbers for a league EPL that was only getting a TV average of 220k viewers 6 yrs ago when games were on ESPN /FOX.
NBC deserves credit for that and they showed the way forth for networks to help grow a soccer league put GASP soccer games on free to air TV it was unheard of at the time for a network to air 25+ soccer games on Broadcast cable. NBC aired 27 EPL games on NBC last year. The down side is when you are dealing with a Money league like EPL that is used to getting crazy TV fees all over the globe they expect the same from the US market.
It’s obvious NBC is struggling to keep up with the $167m yr they paid EPL. As a result the fees will be shifted to consumers. I think it’s entirely plausible and likely that if ESPN outbids Comcast and offers something like $250m yr to put games on ESPN and ESPN+ with a handful of games on ABC 5-7 games similar to FOX with Bundesliga EPL will take the highest bidder. There is differing opinions from what the fans have liked(access to games) and what EPL likes(money). We had it good but the strategy was always to find another well of money resources as the UK tap has dried up. This has always been about Priming the US market for higher fees it’s a business. UK fans are quick to tell us we’ve had it good all these years,
Carlos
July 16, 2019 at 5:16 pm
I called this a couple of days ago when I saw golf and Tour De France events that aired on NBC Sports, where then in the app moved over to Gold for replay. Very unfortunate all the way around, every year it get’s less convenient and the streaming quality is poor. I will just go with ESPN + for the Championship, Serie A, FA Cup, etc.
Steven
July 16, 2019 at 4:30 pm
Has NBC Sports given any reason for the 9pm delay? Is there some contractual reason NBC is doing this? It would be interesting to know why they are doing this.
Christopher Harris
July 16, 2019 at 4:39 pm
I asked their spokesperson for an explanation, but unfortunately none was given.
Christopher Turney
August 11, 2019 at 11:43 am
Hi Chris – Do you know the name of this spokesperson?
Yespage
July 16, 2019 at 3:49 pm
Well, this is interesting.
1) DVR will fix the no replay from streaming on the app.
2) Seems ridiculous to block streaming On Demand from the app for games that have been paid for.
3) I’m glad Stoke City aren’t in the EPL at the moment, as NBC managed to provide two avenues for streaming, but not a good one. The live only is a cheapo option, which is fine as a bare bones option. But the next option up isn’t much better other than offering replays, Want to watch a lower tier game… well, if you missed the start it is either deal with it… or wait several hours. That isn’t cool.
4) NBC doesn’t provide a go to for live Football for non-NBCSN subs.
5) The prices aren’t high, but what is provided isn’t great either.
Derbyday
July 16, 2019 at 3:46 pm
I would see the thought process if it were the linear tv games that were held back until 9pm to protect the model, but the Gold Exclusives as well? That’s perverse.
nosferatu
July 17, 2019 at 2:00 pm
I see absolutely no logic to this. The games aren’t on TV, so it can’t be that they’re trying to encourage people to watch on there. Unless they’re trying to force people to watch the game on NBC at Noon ET (and get spoiled in the process for the Gold game from 10 that they want to watch?
It’s inane. The Gold games should have live DVR–the ability to start them from the beginning from any time–and be put on demand immediately. This is some weird regressive technology they’re trying to push on us, and at a price hike!
JP
July 17, 2019 at 2:09 pm
It sets the stage for them to offer a 3rd option for $75-$85 that has instant on demand access to the streaming only matches along with the delayed TV matches.
Brendan
July 16, 2019 at 3:20 pm
I am a diehard EPL fan , I am usually done with Premier League well before 9 pm on Saturday night , I am usually watching a Championship game or La Lique game at that time . NBC sent me a renewal e-mail that I would be charged 59,99 on or before August 5th to my bank account for the new season . Now I have to wait 9 hours to watch a replay this is unacceptable . I like the new content they have but u cannot access the real games for 9 hours , u don’t see that on ESPN + all of their content is available shortly after the final whistle . What about mid – week games & the holidays ( Boxing Day & New Year’s Day) when only NBCSN is available to show 1 game at the 10 am slot . A dumb own goal by NBC executives will surely come back to haunt them . Whatever few subscribers they have on Gold will certainly be lost . They need to look at this again after very successfully fan fest they had last season . I agree live & on demand the only option . Netflix is now carried by most cable / satellite providers so why not NBC Gold and move the whole NBCSN crew over to it and have live & on demand that would be the sense able thing to do
FlatBackFour
July 16, 2019 at 2:52 pm
I’m confused, first I thought that the 9pm delay was for the lower tier Pass subscribers, but now it seems like even the Gold package will be delayed until 9 pm? So they’re raising the price and reducing the benefits? Sounds like a really bad idea…
Christopher Harris
July 16, 2019 at 3:04 pm
Full-match replays of televised games are available at 9PM ET on matchdays via NBC Sports Gold’s Premier League Pass.
Full-match replays of non-televised games that are streamed on NBC Sports Gold’s Premier League Pass are available on-demand approximately 4 hours after the game ends.
The lower streaming tier, Premier League MatchDay Pass, has no games available on-demand. Live only (140 non-televised games per season).
Bobby
July 17, 2019 at 9:03 am
People need to remember where we were under Fox sports with Warren Barton and rest. Imagine Fox gets the package back or worse Steve Nash and the TNT crew. TNT has totally ruined European Football, we don’t get any coverage of UEFA league and have to listen to bunch of morons at pregame halftime and post game broadcasts. In comparison NBC is doing a great job. Things would be no different if ESPN got the package next. The amount of money the winner has to pay for the EPL TV rights far exceeds the amount paid for all the other European leagues combined.
Azer
July 17, 2019 at 11:14 am
Warren Barton, Brain McBride actually played in the Premier League, same with Steve McManaman former ESPN commentator with Ian Darke. Both men know what they’re talking about. Kyle Martino never played in the EPL or any professional football, yet NBC Sports still hired him to be an analyst. How does that work? ”NBC doing a great job” Are you kidding? It’s the opposite of great. Open your eyes man. The peacock network has shown it’s true colors. I’m done with them.
JP
July 17, 2019 at 11:44 am
True, think we tend to overrate their coverage of the actual matches. Didn’t mind when it was on Fox Soccer but NBC is easily better than ESPN (they’d include the ticker scroll as usual).
Most of the ratings increase isn’t anything NBC has done, just that it became more accessible. NBCSN more widely available and on lower tiers than Fox Soccer and promoted better than ESPN so know when matches are on. With ESPN never knew which match window they’d show or on ESPN or ESPN2 etc
Efrain
July 16, 2019 at 2:38 pm
Agree with Chris on this one. If all live matches and replays (available within an hour or so) then the $65 is worth it. Pricey, but that comes to about $7 per month for the season. Real shame NBC continues to make their service worse.
JP
July 16, 2019 at 1:26 pm
Ok, so cable subscribers can’t watch TV matches later online…..lower tier Gold subscribers can’t watch any replays at all, and premium Gold subscribers have to wait hours for replay access….oh, and when watching live online cannot pause, rewind to the start, etc.
Garbage product, at least Premier League fans are lucky NBCSN and NBC show pretty much all the most important matches of the weekend so casual fans can easily do without all this nonsense.
Have to figure die hard fans of mid table and lower clubs can find other ways to watch. NBC is not doing themselves any favors, crazy I’m now happy Serie A is on ESPN Plus compared to EPL and NBC.
Jeff
July 16, 2019 at 9:03 pm
“Ok, so cable subscribers can’t watch TV matches later online…..lower tier Gold subscribers can’t watch any replays at all, and premium Gold subscribers have to wait hours for replay access….oh, and when watching live online cannot pause, rewind to the start, etc.”
In other words, everybody who wants to watch PL games on demand is being shafted!
In a way, these restrictions makes OTT TV services like fubo and YouTube TV more ‘attractive’. While it only solves the issue with televised games, at least their DVR functions mean you can record the matches and then stream them when you want
Ritchie
July 16, 2019 at 12:43 pm
I left a comment about this on WFT about 3 weeks ago when the new Gold was announced. I basically said, “hey, if Gold has all replays, I hope that means that NBCSN doesn’t lose them.”
All that is to say, I’m not surprised.
Jasinho
July 16, 2019 at 11:44 am
I think the Premier league pass would be easier to stomach if matches were made available an hour after the final whistle on a given matchday, like 3pm eastern on weekends or 6pm for weekday matches.
9pm is going to be tough to sleep on.
Ritchie
July 16, 2019 at 4:59 pm
They used to be available within minutes after the game.
Tom
July 16, 2019 at 11:11 am
Is it Comcast? Then it’s a lousy product and too expensive plus, if the streaming match is popular, the servers are overwhelmed and crash.
Christopher Harris
July 16, 2019 at 11:25 am
Comcast owns NBC Sports, but the streaming platform that NBC Sports uses is very reliable after some initial bumps when Premier League Pass first launched.
Bobby
August 2, 2019 at 4:18 pm
I was wondering if the weekly highlight show will available in the package and for how long? We used to get free on Fox Soccer Channel. Also Soccer Saturday is usually 5-6 hours long, will all of it be broadcast or just the window of 3-5 UK time? Thanks again.
Eddy
July 16, 2019 at 10:36 am
Chris I’m debating paying I think I will just watch the games on TV and thats it this year, but do you think it would be best for NBC to lose it’s exclusive digital streaming rights in 2022 to say a OTT service like ESPN+ at this point that would be the best case scenario as it’s at a better price point and the streaming BAMTECH technology is better wouldn’t be surprised if they offered 4k on ESPN+ in the future.
The real elephant in the closet is if things stay the same what happens when the NBC/EPL deal comes up for renewal in 2-3 yrs. If NBC is doing this to recoup the billion they spent how will they be able to pay the Premier League the rights increase they want, if they do, do you think they will shift that down to the customer with higher pricing?
Greg C
July 16, 2019 at 9:27 am
Agree with most of this. Judging by comments on here though, I strongly disagree that price is not an issue.
Amir
July 16, 2019 at 8:45 am
In Canada we had premier league for more than 20 years on TV and for the past 6 years or so, two main sports channel shared the rights meaning almost all the games were available on cable. Now, no more premier league on national television. So, we’ll see if it will help the beautiful game to grow or not.