Is ESPN+ available on the smart TV app?

ESPN+ requires a subscription, correct? If I’m right, looks like $6/month? I like my free Pluto. I don’t think the quality improves since they will use existing crews (from what I read)

I wish we could improve the video quality. Not sure what that takes. I paid a few bucks to NDSU to watch the game we played at their stadium a year or two ago. The quality of their video feed was great. Definitely more cameras than the one stationary camera we seem to have. Not sure financially how they pay for all that, but seems like it is doable. Aggie fans might be willing to pony up more dough per game watched if the quality was better.

something like that. Bundled with Disney+ and Hulu it's $14 which is a pretty good deal for that amount of content.

I personally like ESPN+ to catch a lot of FCS and mid-major games, but yeah for just Aggie ball it's a net sideways move for more money, most likely

Anyone know if this will end the availability of replays on the big sky site?

The ESPN universe can be confusing in the way it extracts cash from your wallet -

• ESPN+ is a strictly streaming service available a la carte for about $6/mo or as part of various Disney+ / Hulu bundles or as a gimmick from some mobile phone providers. It does have an app available for smart TVs and mobile devices. It includes some "original content" (read: obscure games that don't warrant a spot on a cable channel) and some replay games. It does NOT include live content from ESPN, ESPN2, or ESPNU cable channels without having a valid cable subscription as well.
  
• ESPNU is a cable channel. To watch it, you must subscribe to a cable package that includes it. This could be from a legacy cable provider like Spectrum or Comcast or it could be through a streaming cable provider like Hulu+LiveTV or Sling (~$65/mo). If you subscribe to a cable package that includes ESPNU, then you can link that license to your ESPN app to watch it there, if say, you wanted to stream it on a tablet or phone instead of your TV. Note that having a cable subscription that includes ESPN channels does not automatically include access to ESPN+ streaming-only content, you still have to pay the $6/mo for that.

Bottom line is that the games will be paywalled, behind two DIFFERENT pay walls, depending on whether it is an ESPN+ or ESPNU game. Presumably the ESPNU games will have production quality suitable for national cable. Hard to say if the ESPN+ games will have better cameras and graphics but it should be a more stable platform than Pluto - assuming that the constant buffering was Pluto's fault and not the result of a really unstable uplink from the stadium. Don't know what this means for free replays on BigSkyTV, but I would think that if Disney is charging $6 to stream the replay, they wouldn't want it free somewhere else.

Thanks for that clear explanation. Sounds like a net negative.

Net positive or negative depends on your starting position. If you already have both services, it's probably a positive to improve production quality and technical reliability. Also gets at least the ESPNU games on several thousand sports bar screens across the country. Maybe not the "main" screen, but still exposure. Personally, I already have ESPN+ as part of a Disney bundle. But I do not have cable and do not want it for $60-100/mo because there would be so little I watch. So the ESPNU games present a problem for me. I guess I could go to a watering hole or listen to radio.

I’ll be in the same situation as you after I subscribe to ESPN+, which will likely be of no other interest to me. The ESPNU games are just two for the league each year, so that will be a rare occasion the Aggies are on it.

As a side note, i have been able to get espn+ free on a trial basis. They run specials where you get it for a month before you are billed. I think i took advantage of that when there were a few bball games i wanted to catch. You just need to remember to cancel.

I was reading an article where the author indicated the production would likely be the same. Schools are responsible for the production teams they use.

if that’s the case, hopefully we take the opportunity to avoid embarrassing ourselves to a wider audience. If it is too costly to get proper production tractor trailers out, ESPN does have technology where they can do the engineering and production remote from their Orlando control rooms with limited onsite equipment. Can be more cost efficient if Rocko is reading.

this isn’t exactly the New York Times so take it with a grain of salt. Sounds like many schools currently on + have rather poor quality.

https://tubsattheclub.com/2021/06/09/espn-for-big-sky-is-a-lateral-move-dont-be-fooled/?fbclid=IwAR3FWoKqrNQKviOiTfSUEB527Q-0Ghwzbviw32sfPd6CBdjINfQuKLw4D50

I would think the ESPNU games will have better quality than +. When I originally read the release I thought it meant two ESPNU games per school, but rereading I think it means two for the conference. Odds probably against us getting one of those slots. If the production quality for + is all on the school, it doesn’t mean we still shouldn’t invest at least in the low hanging fruit. Like having a stable internet connection and muting hot mics when Scott thinks he’s off air. I suppose nothing is cheaper than the Davis High School AV Club, but in terms of hired production, renting time from a well equipped remote engineer can be a cost cutter over deploying lesser equipment to the site. This is how they do North American coverage for titillators like Romania vs Lithuania women’s soccer.

I agree; getting quality broadcasts should be a high priority. I thought the games on 31 would have a professional crew but it seems like it was the standard streaming broadcast. Maybe that’s the deal we had to strike to get it on local Tv (little or no cost to them). This is a great platform to show potential recruits.

That being said….our visual isn’t great but our audio tends to be head and shoulders over other BSC broadcasts). The Scotts do a good job and have obviously done their homework on the teams

I personally have settled on sling after dumping youtube tv and it’s jump to $65. I get sling orange for $30 that gets you ESPN, espn2, espn3 and access to ESPN app on tv via smart tv or box (apple, Roku, etc.). I add the sports package $10) in fall for college football that adds ESPNU and other channels that cover ncaa football. I do add ESPN+ because it carries a bunch of FCS football and they have replay on-demand. The good thing about sling is that you can dial back after the season is over. I did add an attic attenna for local networks and that brings in more college football. Anyway, that’s what I do.

Listening to the Idaho Vandals fans on their Suds at the Pub video recapping the media days for the Big Sky Conference apparently the conference is funding some upgrades for the schools with poor facilities to improve their broadcast quality.

Facilities or videography equipment? If the latter, hopefully we qualify.

Maybe facilities was a poor word choice; i think the conference recognizes that some schools lack the resources to support a stream of a game at the desired quality. I suppose the needs may vary,

Thank you guys for checking us out from time to time. Would love to maybe host one of you on episode this fall before out trip to Davis. Here are links to the Video about ESPN+ mentioned above that are bit sized.





Brian was at media days and talked one on one with Tom Wistrcil. an audit was sent out to schools to say all the equipment they had. Then the conference disbursed funds based on who needed most help and everything was earmarked for that specific purchase. Much like Idaho, UCD has an above average stream for BSC. I imagine you all had minimal in way of improvement money.