I mentioned Comcast Redzone yesterday in the Luke Links so I could gauge how many of you Colts fans had Comcast. I also wanted to know whether those of you with Comcast purchased and liked their Redzone add-on. For many of the responders, Comcast seems to provide a good service, especially with them adding NFL Network for free to subscribers. Coltsfan58 offered a good (and funny) evaluation:
I have the Comcast digital package and sports package, so it’s Channel 271 for me. In fact, I’ll probably never watch the NFL Network except for actual games or NFL Films footage again, now that my ADD-addled mind can flit through red zone possessions in 6-9 ongoing games. That way, I can avoid hearing the NFL Network’s crappy announcers and only be exposed to hacks on Fox and CBS in small doses.
I found the last sentence of this review especially humorous.
I'm glad many of you have good experiences (for the most part) with Comcast because they are sponsoring Stampede Blue for the season. Comcast approached SB Nation because they were looking to get the word out about Comcast Redzone. Comcast knew the best way to reach hardcore NFL fans was through SB Nation blogs, which (when you really think about it) is very flattering. We've come a long way from where we were three years ago, when I was one of six NFL bloggers in this entire network.
Since Indianapolis is one of Comcast's subscription areas, it seemed a no-brainer to have them sponsor our blog for the year.
As many of you longtime readers know, I work very hard not to bombard you with insane, distracting advertising. You're here to read football, not sales pitches. While ads are a part of Internet life (because we all gotta make a living), there is a fine line between sponsorship and what I call "Infomercial-style blogging." So, just because Comcast is sponsoring us does not mean I will be bombarding you with marketing messages every day. But, I will remind you every once in a while about some of the great sports features available from Comcast, like Redzone. And with the reminders, I'll tie them into something pertaining to the team, such as stats and trends for the Colts redzone defense, which is a big point of emphasis for Colts defensive coordinator Larry Coyer.
Also, I've got a special note: This weekend on Sunday, October 4th, Comcast is offering a free preview of NFL Red Zone this Sunday for the 1pm games. So, if you are curious about this add-on, this weekend is a good time to try it.
Plus, Comcast has stuff like On Demand content from the NFL Network including game recaps of every game, every week; draft profiles, player profiles, etc. So, if the NFL Network announcers don't annoy you as much as they annoy Coltsfan58, this extra bit of content is up your alley.
Special thanks to Comcast for sponsoring Stampede Blue and 18 other SB Nation NFL blogs. And, thanks to many of you for your honest reviews of Comcast in the Luke Links article yesterday.
A few other things Comcast has going on after the jump...
- Recently moved all of the major sports networks to their most popular tier of service giving it to millions more people at no additional charge, and launched ESPNU. Also offering ESPN360 to their internet customers for free.
- Comcast has the new NFL Redzone on its Sports Entertainment Package (about $5-7) this channel is getting a ton of buzz, and fans love it. This weekend Comcast will offer the NFL Redzone for free to all of its 17 million digital customers. The ³free-view² will be available this Sunday, October 4 from 1 PM to 4:15 PM EST.
- This weekend, NFL RedZone joins Comcast¹s current offering of live sports programming, as well as NFL Network, NBA TV, NHL Network, ESPNU, MLB Network, ESPN, ESPN2, TNT, TBS, Golf Channel, Speed and Versus among others on its Digital Preferred package, and will also be available to its Digital Starter customers. Comcast¹s SEP, the usual home for NFL¹s RedZone, also includes the major professional sports networks, as well as CBS College Sports, Fox College Sports, Fox Soccer, Gol TV, the Tennis Channel and other networks.
- They also have On Demand content from the NFL network whose game recaps of every game every week, draft profiles, player profiles, etc.