Thought I would share this release sent out by CBS Sports yesterday. The network had some fun with numbers in its continuing battle with Time Warner.

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A CASE STUDY ON TIME WARNER CABLE & RIGHTS FEES

In Los Angeles, TWC is on the other side of the table in terms of rights fees.

Here are the facts that many don’t know about their fight for the consumer.

Half of LA Lakers games used to be on free over-the-air TV before TWC outbid everyone for the rights for $3 billion.

TWC then created a Lakers channel charging subscribers $4/month whether they watch the games or not.

This works out to $49 per subscriber for 52 exclusive games this year, or nearly $1/game.

TWC followed this up by paying nearly $8 billion for rights to the LA Dodgers.

And next season the Dodgers will reportedly also move from free over-the-air TV to a newly created TWC Dodgers channel that by industry estimates will cost even more than $4 per subscriber per month.

Neither the Lakers nor Dodgers TWC channels are available to consumers on an a la carte basis.

A class-action lawsuit has been filed against Time Warner Cable on the matter (attached).

Meanwhile, per local regulations, TWC discloses on the back of its bills that they are charging $20/month for “broadcast” television.

This is 54% higher than they charged just two years ago, during which time it’s been made known that both the Lakers and Dodgers have been removed from broadcast (TV).

Time Warner Cable has yet to address this matter publicly.

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