The Tennis Channel

[mntlblok]

Just switched to Dish Network from DirecTV, as Dish Network now caries The Tennis Channel.

Kevin B

[petegrif]

I got adelphia/warner cable rather than directv specifically because of the tennis channel, but I have to report that it's incredibly lame. A lot of old games, boring interviews bag check (!), fashion shows, trips around exotic towns. Who gives a rat's ass? Let's see more quality tennis.

[marcossaito]

now that is not cool

[EdWeiss]

Tennis Channel

My take on the Tennis Channel is more positive. Yes, some of the programming is mundane and there is a tremendous amount of repeated material (it seems like they play that same show on Agassi every day). The fact that the commercials are the same day after day probably adds to the impression that everything is a repeat. On the other hand, some of the instruction is good and when they do have live tournament coverage (which is reasonably often) it is great. For example, being able to see the Russia-Argentina Davis Cup tie live was terrific. Hopefully, when the Tennis Channel can turn the corner and become profitable they will have greater money to spend on original programming. I would also personally like them to do more interviews with coaches - take just a single camera and interview Landsdorp, Higueras, our own John Yandell, etc. Also, show better classic match footage. Would'nt it be great if they showed, for example, when Laver beat Roche to win Forest Hills and the second grand slam in 1969 - I know that one was televised becasue I watched it on T.V. when I was a kid. What about some matches with Arthur Ashe? The great Gonzalez-Pasarell match at Wimbledon (I know the BBC still plays that one druign Wimbledon rain delays so the footage is still around). I do think they could be more imaginative in their programming. But let's give them a chance to keep growing. An issue I do worry about is whether the Tennis Channel taking on more tournament coverage could lead to tournaments being shown less on ESPN or ESPN 2 or other cable networks which have much greater visability and therefore greater potential to have tennis reach a broader audience. In that vien, I worry that the number of people in the U.S. who will see next year's French Open will be far less as I understand it will be on the Tennis Channel and not ESPN 2. I would be interested in other people's views of this.

[jhm36]

Hi Ed,

I just picked up the tennis channel a few months ago and like just about everyone who has it, I imagine, I too have mixed feelings about it. So much repetition. Even the tennis matches they put on live are then repeated over and over again.

It's a very bad programming idea for the tennis channel to show relatively few matchs and relatively few instructional programs. Seems to mainly be personality driven shows on the network. Odd. Programs don't cost much to produce, I guess, and it of course costs very little to just hit the repeat button 20 times a month instead of producing new shows or buying tournament rights.

Anyway, I do like some of the matchs and have learned a few things from the instructional shows that I often have to record because they come on at 5 or 530 in the morning. Davis Cup was nice to get. I was even able to record an old Davis Cup match that Henman actually won. That was the first time I've seen Henman win a match! Everytime I see him on TV he's getting pounded by Federer or Murray or somebody.

And while it may in some ways be good for the struggling to grow Tennis Channel to land the French Open, surely it's bad overall for tennis that such a major tournament is being aired in the USA on such a minor channel. Hard to see how ratings are eventually going to go up for the French Open by putting it on a channel that fewer people have. I guess it is possible that most of the people who watched the French Open also get the Tennis Channel and that ratings won't be changed by much. I wouldn't say though that holding steady at the current pretty low ratings is something to aim at or be happy with.

Last time I checked the Tennis Channel won't even release their ratings so we can't compare the tournaments already being aired on it to those over the major networks or ESPN2. How does Mardid compare with Pacific Wells, for examble.

Anway, good luck to the tennis channel. I'll keeping my sports package that includes it. Only about 5 dollars a month extra for it a fair number of other unusual sports channels and it's certainly worth that.