Why no NFL package on cable?

[Wildbill703]

For the past several years I have lived near cities with NFL teams that suck, Jacksonville and Kansas City. When I lived in Jax they couldn't sell enough tickets to be on local TV. So even when the Texans played it wasn't carried. I'm always stuck with the regional game which rarely is what I want to see. Why can't cable have an NFL package like direct TV? I'd be willing to pay for the option to watch the game I want. It can't be a bandwidth problem as I have over 100 useless channels as it is. Was the NFL fooled into an exclusive rights package or are the cable companies too cheap to pay for the games?

[JustBonee]

For the past several years I have lived near cities with NFL teams that suck, Jacksonville and Kansas City. When I lived in Jax they couldn't sell enough tickets to be on local TV. So even when the Texans played it wasn't carried. I'm always stuck with the regional game which rarely is what I want to see. Why can't cable have an NFL package like direct TV? I'd be willing to pay for the option to watch the game I want. It can't be a bandwidth problem as I have over 100 useless channels as it is. Was the NFL fooled into an exclusive rights package or are the cable companies too cheap to pay for the games?

DirecTV pays wild money for the rights to Sunday Ticket ..... and the rest of the story:

Currently, DirecTV has an exclusive deal with the NFL, making them the sole provider of NFL Sunday Ticket in the United States until the contract expires in 2010, though past history suggests DirecTV will renew the contract by then in order to maintain one of its key marketing pitches to potential subscribers. [1] Prior to the NFL's latest television deal, other satellite and cable providers were allowed to bid on the rights to carry NFL Sunday Ticket if they agreed to carry the NFL Network. However, DirecTV still won exclusivity for the package, bidding over $700 million a year to do so.

Due to limited bandwidth on DirecTV's satellites, DirecTV drops the HD feed for TNT on Sundays to open up more room for NFL telecasts in HD. DirecTV also drops PPV programming, NewsMix & SportsMix, however DirecTV restores these services after the Sunday games are over. It is rumored that some of NewsCorp's foreign satellite companies, such as BSkyB, may offer NFL Sunday Ticket within the next couple of years.

Criticism

Criticism is cast at the fact NFL Sunday Ticket is only available on satellite, as the great majority of potential NFL customers in the U.S. are cable subscribers. Many customers are not able to subscribe to satellite TV for various reasons. DirectTV gains many viewers solely based on its exclusivity for NFL Sunday Ticket, and this is viewed as the main reason it bid so generously for the rights.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NFL_Sunday_Ticket

[TexansCM]

Why not sign up for Directv. What does cable have that Directv doesn't and you can get Sunday Ticket. I am very happy with Directv and Sunday Ticket and being able to watch the Texans and the Pats Colts game was great.