Thirty-five years after the NFL moved games to cable for the first time ever, the league has exported a major weekly broadcast package to the latest new frontier in television — not television at all.
The streaming evolution/revolution continues tonight, when the league’s newest weekly trend, Thursday Night Football, becomes the exclusive property of Amazon Prime Video. The NFL decided to christen the S.S. Bezos with Chargers at Chiefs, a critical, early-season AFC West game.
The question remains whether enough people will watch. Amazon reportedly told potential advertisers that it will get 12.5 million viewers per game. That almost certainly will not happen; multiple industry sources believe that the best of the Amazon games in 2022 will draw maybe 5-7 million viewers.
Whatever the number, Nielsen will measure streaming consumption for the first time. So we’ll see (eventually) the actual numbers as to who tunes in.
It still seems as if not enough has been done to make enough NFL fans aware of the seismic shift from three-letter over-the-air network to six-letter pay-for-play streamer. (Not that long ago, the NFL was defending its permanently suspended blackout rule with a clunky argument that shadowy “Pay-TV lobbyists” were hoping to “charge fans for games they currently watch for free.” Which, as of tonight, is officially beginning.) But consider this. When the NFL launched its first ESPN package in 1987, 45.2 million homes had the four-letter network. As of 2022, more than 150 million Amazon Prime users are located in the United States.
Regardless, does the average NFL fan who would have in any other year flipped the dial to the local Fox affiliate know that tonight’s game can be seen only on Amazon Prime Video? And will the average NFL fan be willing or able to ensure that their preferred TV can show the game in a quick and easy way?
Amazon has devoted major internal resources to the effort; ads for the game have taken over the website’s home page. But anyone who regularly goes to Amazon likely knows (if they even care) that Amazon will be broadcasting NFL games. Likewise, ardent NFL fans are aware of that fact, too.
The league, trying both to be a good partner and to advance a strong self-interest in having as many people as possible watch NFL games, has enlisted its paid staff of reporters and analysts to promote the new home of Thursday Night Football, by using their personal social-media platforms for posting graphics that promote the game. (We’ve obtained a copy of the email sent to the on-air talent containing the request/mandate.) But anyone who follows the various on-air NFL Network personalities on Twitter already knows (or should know) that Thursday night games have moved to Amazon. Having the “talent” shill for those who pay them won’t do much to get more people to suddenly pivot to Amazon.
Sorry, to pivot to “Prime Video.” Yes, the preferred name for the TNF destination is “Prime Video,” with “Amazon” not mentioned at all.
The league also wants its paid staff to promote that the game will be available on NFL+, an in-house streaming service that (as we hear it) is falling far short of the league’s expectations when it comes to the generation of subscribers and revenue.
For Thursday Night Football on Amazon (sorry, Prime Video), the revenue isn’t the issue. The league will receive the same giant sack of cash it always does. In the past, however, the league got both millions of dollars and millions of eyeballs. At least in the short term, the eyeballs won’t be there like they used to be. In time, the audience surely will grow.
Here’s the real question. When streaming fully matures and traditional TV goes the way of the T-Rex, what will the ceiling be for a live NFL game? Will it be 20 million? 15 million? 10 million?
The process of getting to that ceiling starts tonight, with a game that would easily attract more than 40 million total eyeballs (the cyclops demographic would knock that number down a bit) if it were in the many millions of homes that can quickly and easily access Fox.
Wonder what the Chiefs will look like playing and NFL defense that has cornerbacks and a pass rush. Cardinals were so undermanned on defense they blitzed Mahomes more than any team ever; and that’s the one thing you can’t do.
Cardinals played the Chiefs on defense as poorly as possible, ain’t gonna be the case against the Chargers.
did the NFL cut off their nose to spite their face ???
Like most people in the U.S., I already stream all of my media content from a variety of platforms so watching an NFL game on Amazon is not a big deal.
It’s a shame such a great game won’t be televised to everyone. Boneheaded move to put this particular matchup here if you ask me.
Meanwhile in Canada it is broadcast on Cable and over the air via CTV. Go figure???
Good thing we’re taking football off regular TV and making Bezos richer. I’d hate to think we’d deny him even more money.
I will miss watching Thursday Night NFL Football…..what college game is on ?
Not me , Iam tapped out of $$$$$$ for this stuff ! Amazon can KMA !
Well, count me as one set of eyeballs that would have watched this game on one of the 3-letter networks, ESPN, or the NFL Network who will not be watching tonight. I currently pay for the DirecTV sports package and NFL Sunday ticket plus a couple streaming services. I’m not adding Amazon Prime just to watch Thursday night games, which have historically been pretty bad! I’m sick of being nickel and dimed to watch games. I’ll just watch whatever college game ESPN is broadcasting.
Great game to watch IF IT WAS ON TV! Not going to make that much effort to watch the game…
Just please let’s not have the “color rush” unis – those are an abomination and hurt my eyes.
I live out in the country where we only have Hughesnet for internet, probably the worst internet provider there is so thanks to the NFL and their greed, I will no longer be able to watch Thursday night games. Thanks a bunch NFL, I hope this fails miserably and you lose a ton of you followers.
I still have cable,so I guess I’ll watch the replay on the NFL Network. Why couldn’t they just leave well enough alone? Greed,that’s why…
I’m trying to figure out how I’m going to be able to flip between the game and Big Brother…
This will be interesting. I know people who have Amazon prime but have never watched a movie on it.
19,784,123 million viewers. Don’t ask me how I know.
i have prime so I will watch, but I wouldn’t buy it just for this
the nfl needs to get smart and just sell directly to consumers a Sunday ticket package , or make it available on all platforms
I’ve been an Amazon Prime customer for years. This actually feels like a benefit I can use besides free shipping and 2 day delivery. It actually makes it feel worth the money I spend on Prime. I also got rid of cable a long time ago. Having gigabit internet available to me made it an easy choice. I get that there are still people that have limited options on ISPs and some of them don’t meet the criteria to stream video. This should further push ISPs to expand their high speed platforms and get it in the hands of those that don’t have it.
canada its on tsn. why does the nfl hate their american fans?
Those who don’t like this or do not want to adapt are SOL. This is the direction media is going. We’ve been streaming for years now and love it. Want to cancel something? Done and no penalty. We routinely watch one platform for a month or two and get rid of it when we’re done. We save plenty not paying for bundles of garbage we don’t watch. Nothing different here.
Adapt or be left behind people.
goodvibes says: September 15, 2022 at 10:11 am It’s a shame such a great game won’t be televised to everyone. Boneheaded move to put this particular matchup here if you ask me. ____________
It is being televized to everyone. All you have to do is open a Prime account as more than 150 million US citizens have already done. Then you can watch wherever you want on whatever device you wish. It really couldn’t be any easier.
NFL games are quickly becoming as boring to watch as the endless hoopla of the now departed Queen and King Charles.
If you don’t pay for Amazon prime already, are you just stuck in the dark ages? Sure, it’s $14 a month, but that’s worth my sanity for not experiencing Walmart or target…. Not to mention the time, traffic, traffic or paying the local taxes. I consider the streaming service a perk….
Plus I watched King Pin this morning, I just hope KC doesn’t Munson the game.
The people complaining about the Amazon Prime broadcast need to realize what dinosaurs they sound like. They probably complained about the first cable broadcast also: “I ain’t watching nothing that I can’t get free over my dadgum antenna”.
Progress always leaves those who are unwilling to adapt behind.
60ftlesbianoctopus says: September 15, 2022 at 10:06 am Wonder what the Chiefs will look like playing and NFL defense that has cornerbacks and a pass rush. Cardinals were so undermanned on defense they blitzed Mahomes more than any team ever; and that’s the one thing you can’t do.
Cardinals played the Chiefs on defense as poorly as possible, ain’t gonna be the case against the Chargers.
How did their offense look last year against the #1 defense in the league in the playoffs?
Not me. I just don’t about the matchup
Same argument was made when the League started scheduling games on Thursday….remember? Oh the safety of players…now it’s a prime game that everyone NEEDS to see.
As far as i can tell, all games are pay to see. If you want to watch tv you have to buy one….in fact just recently everyone had to buy an HD tv to continue watching eben over the air….or watch a loww quality feed.
Most people today consume tv on pay television….Nielsen itself had Streaming as the #1 2ay tv was consumed in July with Cable second. You are not paying to watch the game. You are paying for the service, just like Cable.
goodvibes says: September 15, 2022 at 10:11 am It’s a shame such a great game won’t be televised to everyone. Boneheaded move to put this particular matchup here if you ask me. ———————— When Thursday Night Football was on NFL network, plenty of non cable, streaming and even some cable people were shut out (bc they didn’t want to have to upgrade to get NFL Network), so not sure what you’re talking about
Oh no, I have to press a different button on the smart tv remote. Heavens me, how will I survive? Who doesn’t have Prime? You guys know that’s the only place to watch The Boys right? That’s worth the $100 a year, not to mention getting stuff delivered same or next day.
Bezos is no longer the CEO of Amazon. As of July 5, 2021, Andy Jassy took over the company. While Bezos may have had a hand in the deal and owns stock, this is Jassy’s baby now.
I have this and am anxious to try it. if it works out so much the better
I definitely will – games moving to streaming platforms makes it easier for me to watch. I know it may limit some viewers/non-subscribers/older audience, etc.
We haven’t subscribed to cable for a couple of years and haven’t missed it- there is no time to plan TV and hoping to catch something when we turn it on isn’t happening.
With 3 young kids we do have Amazon Prime, Netflix and Disney Plus. And an over the air antennae to catch some channels.
NFL moving to AP is great for us.
You can count me out. After the last Prime price increase, I canceled my membership.
Maybe if Bezos focused on shipping products instead of playing TV executive from the master suite of his super yacht, he wouldn’t need to keep raising prices on average citizens who can’t afford it.
It’s a bad faith deal that voids fans an opportunity to view games here and there.. they should’ve waited until next year when new arrangements are made. And then they hijack one of the biggest games of the year !!! Where’s the commissioner, hiding in his vault counting the extra millions ???
I wonder what the number of viewers will be through shadier means.
redandgold55 says: September 15, 2022 at 10:08 am Like most people in the U.S., I already stream all of my media content from a variety of platforms so watching an NFL game on Amazon is not a big deal.
No, “most” people in the US do not watch TV over a variety of platforms.
The NFL is eating itself.
Unless it’s on TV in some form or on Dazn or something I won’t watch. NO prime and as another poster noted i’m not buying more and more different streamers for different games.
put all the games in one sport or piss off NFL.
Maybe not a high volume this year, but DirecTV was popular and the quality overall was awful. The cord cutting has already begun because Comcast/Verizon/others are overpriced garbage
The one thing about Amazon prime, is that it easily pays for itself.
I’d much rather get rid of Netflix than Amazon prime.
So now everyone who wants to watch TNF is required to be at home. Gonna lose a lot of eyeballs…
I’m sure the game will be rebroadcast on the nfl network within 24 hours
I have Prime Video, and I’m aware that this game is on, but it is very unlikely I will bother with it. Streaming services require people to make an active choice to watch something, rather than having the TV on and stumbling across things. Also, it should be noted that the Thursday Night package was originally on the NFL Network which was not included in most basic cable packages. So this certainly is not the first time the NFL has asked people to pay for access to certain games.
Less people will watch the game tonight than they want, due to many people not having access to prime, and the game not being on regular tv.
No dice until better broadband speeds are available in my area.
Now some of you feel how many of us felt when all we had was over the air tv. Oh, cry me a river. The solution is simple but you want to be cheap than that is your right. You do not, however, have a right to see something you don’t pay for. Idiots buy NFL Sunday ticket products.
Thanks for posting this Mike. I wasn’t aware of the Amazon connection and now can watch it tonight. Much appreciated!
I’d be more likely to watch if Amazon Prime Video allowed the viewer to watch it delayed and be able to actually see what is happening when fast-forwarding as I do when I DVR a game off of cable or satellite. Why are streamers unable or unwilling to make their streams have smooth fast-forward or rewind???
The NFL Network was not on “free” television. My present cable company (one of the big ones) requires a 2-level upgrade from their standard service to get it. I have Prime so for me this is a big improvement.
Everyone should be paying attention tonight. The Raiders are out of the picture in that division, these are the two teams to watch!
Thats a big NO from me dog Thursday hight games have been terrible since the beginning and we all have to get up early to go to work. Pass from me.
Guessing if not enough viewers Bezos will have a clause to void the contract, which will then kill the perceived new revenue streams for the NFL for another 5 years or so. Streaming TV is like electric cars still well below 5% of all cars, but being pushed as the new, must have norm. Simply not enough people are into streaming TV, and most are not willing to make the change. The TV clickers will end up on the 4 letter network and watch whatever college game is on after they can’t find the NFL game on any network.
I don’t think people in general will gravitate toward the medium for football quickly at all. Prime is one of many streaming sources I have had a long time – and very hooked on the NFL, but something about a football/streaming mix so far just does not sit well.I do wonder if a lot of others have this same feeling – and/or is it just that basic natural human resistance to change.
I doubt traditional tv goes the way of t-rex. Most of these streamers already are gravitating to ad-based programming—Netflix reportedly has even been looking to create a mainstream television channel for its content. OTA broadcasters are switching to NTSC 3.0. That means numerous things: 4K, HDR, high refresh rate, multichannel Dolby audio, on-demand content, better transmission, better reception, and compatible with mobile devices. I think you’ve got it backwards.
Chiefs win by a small margin. it will be fun to watch the ONLY two teams making the playoffs in this division battle it out tonight.
The smartest play is to get NFL+ (it’s cheap) to watch these TNF games. Surprised the NFL is allowing this, as it takes people away from having to have/buy an Amazon Prime subscription. And everything else you get from NFL+ (game replays, All 22, archives, etc.) is outstanding.
As I understand it, in-market areas are still airing it OTA. So it’s really no different than Monday Night Football or when the Thursday night games were being aired on the NFL Network.
A lot of people want to make a big deal out of this. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t have Prime, and I cut the cord from DirectTV about 5 years ago. People want to talk about being nickel and dimed – every cable or satellite service does it. If you pay $120/year for your “sports package” ($10/month), that would pay for Prime. I have Youtube TV, which is half the cost of what my DirectTV package used to be.
The other part of this, of course, is that it’s incredibly easy to find pirate streams of almost every sporting event. Neilsen won’t capture those numbers. But, streaming games legally is incredibly easy these days, and the quality is better every year. I rarely have any technical issues.
More concerned about the large amount of tech illiterate people who don’t even have an email let alone streaming service capability. Had to spend an hour showing my parents how to watch this game tonight and I doubt they’ll figure it out on their own.
I will watch the game today but I am not a fan of streaming NFL games. I streamed NFL Sunday Ticket one year when my son bought it as a college student. I hate the delay that comes with streaming. I often would be notified of touchdowns and field goals on my phone before the plays would show up on my screen.
In Latin America where I live, cable providers have the NFL license under the ESPN and FOX umbrellas. ESPN shows Thursday, Sunday, and Monday nights & has the red zone channel on Sundays. Fox gets two Sunday afternoon games in each time slot. Playoff games are split. ESPN gets conference championships and super bowl, though. Not sure how many people watch down here but it’s popular enough that the games are usually on ESPN 3, 4, and Fox 3, 4. We get perks while you guys in the states are nickled and dimed until the saddle falls off.
I think everyone is in for a big surprise. Will be plenty watching.
I can only go by my own situation and that is I’m paying DTV 124 a month and thats on a promo that ends in March and jumps to 170. Why does the NFL think they go all streaming – we know this is a test case with Amazon, but its where the NFL is heading. Why do they think I will then pay big bucks on top of what I pay now to watch football? My wife says not to these Plus channels for the same reason, we are already paying big bucks for TV. I do have an issue as to why I cant pick up local channels and with an antenna and then go piecemeal with various plus channels. I think cable and satellites are paying cities to block local broadcast and are getting big bucks to do it.
lots of angst about bezos getting richer and people denied viewing. I remember having to purchase ESPN to see Monday Night Football. Here’s an idea. Sign up for Amazon Prime and stop crying.
Who doesn’t have a prime account? I can never go to the store ever again if I choose. It’s one of the best value bargains there is along with Costco in terms of value shopping for almost anything and getting quality.
To anyone complaing:Grow up, Peter Pan. How much did you pay to subscribe to HBO to watch GOT for eight years? This is what watching TV is these days. Subscribe for a month at atime and then cancel. You should be doing the same thing with all streaming channels.
NFL+ was terrible last week. Super laggy. I will cancel it if it’s that bad. I just like watching games on the go. I can go sit at the park with a tablet and headphones etc.
Count me OUT! My household is NOT watching TNF on Amazon.I am a long time subscriber to DirecTV sports package and NFL Sunday ticket plus a couple streaming services. I am NOT adding Amazon Prime just to watch Thursday night games.
Thats it! i’m moving to canada! this seems good reason as any
Here’s the problem with Prime. Its a hook. I was into a good series, one that was on TV, so it was a re run at that, after season two, they wanted $39 dollars for season three. They werent happy enough with 119 a year. In addition they charge for the better movies. Want a popular movie, get your credit card out it costs more. Thus, the 139 gets you in the door, thats it. That gives you the crap stuff.
I don’t think I know anyone that doesn’t have an Amazon Prime account. The main thing in my opinion, like this article said, is how many people actually know this game is Prime exclusive. Like anything new it will take awhile to become normal.
I’ve had Amazon Prime for years, so this is just an added bonus for me. I don’t have ESPN or subscribe to any other streaming service, not even Netflix. On Amazon Prime, I can subscribe to different channels if I want, or watch a movie pay-per-view. I wish I could subscribe to an NFL channel on Amazon and watch all the games I want, or have games available via pay per view. As it is now, I use free streaming services (Reddit) a lot to watch Sunday games and MNF and the NFL is getting none of my money.
I wonder how many people “cut the cord” and are now paying the same or more for all these different streaming options as opposed to cable/satellite.
ocdn says: September 15, 2022 at 10:15 am Good thing we’re taking football off regular TV and making Bezos richer. I’d hate to think we’d deny him even more money. ——————————————————————————————- As opposed to the non-profit, good guy networks? SMH.
hendricks83 says: September 15, 2022 at 11:35 am Count me OUT! My household is NOT watching TNF on Amazon. ///// This isn’t the airport. You don’t have to announce your departure. Just go.
I am going to follow the game obviously but will not be watching any of it, or any other Amazon prime games.
I’ll take a knee towards Amazon tonight.
When I was a kid I thought CDs were gonna be a fad. I had an extensive cassette collection and had no desire to switch over. My parents got a CD player for the house in 1988. My dad bought Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd, Eagles greatest Hits Vol. II and Aja by Steeley Dan on CD. The thing I was most impressed with was being able to skip to any song I wanted. I went out and bought And Justice For All by Metallica and I’ve never bought a cassette since.
When cell phones became common I thought it was foolish. I resisted until 2002. Now I couldn’t live without one.
When texting became popular I thought it was stupid. I resisted until 2008. Now I think it’s the greatest thing ever and couldn’t tell you the last time I talked on my cell phone.
When I first heard about cutting the cord and streaming things online I laughed. Why deal with that when I had a perfectly fine cable subscription? I upped my internet speed in 2016 and cut the cord and it was the smartest thing I could have done. ZERO regrets.
My point is that as a Gen X guy who is almost 50 I have bristled a lot lot of technology only to find it very useful. Streaming is the future. In a few years all NFL games will be pay per view and I think that’s a great thing. As a Chargers fan living in Colorado I would love to be able to buy just a Chargers game package for the season.
In my opinion the NFL is going to offer several different package that you can customize. For example, your favorite team, plus primetime games (MNF, TNF, SNF & playoffs).
Cable companies are struggling because you can watch so many things online especially with a VPN. With a firestick and a VPN you literally don’t need to pay for anything other than the cost of your internet.
Times are a changing people, like it or not.
nflfan69 says: September 15, 2022 at 11:23 am I will watch the game today but I am not a fan of streaming NFL games. I streamed NFL Sunday Ticket one year when my son bought it as a college student. I hate the delay that comes with streaming. I often would be notified of touchdowns and field goals on my phone before the plays would show up on my screen. /////// Ummmm….just turn off notifications on your phone. Or…..maybe don’t look at your phone non-stop? It’s literally a delay of like 5 seconds. I’ve been streaming the nfl for years on the sunday ticket app. It works great! I don’t have directv.
If you’re just interested in watching the NFL games and don’t want to pay 139/yr 14.99/yr Amazon Prime fee, Amazon does have a 8.99 per month for a subscription to Prime Video.
I just hope both teams lose.
Not watching. I pay enough for my current streaming. I’m not adding Amazon to watch a game with no local interest. If it was of local interest, one of the local channels would have it.
zeke2517 says: September 15, 2022 at 10:55 am
So now everyone who wants to watch TNF is required to be at home. Gonna lose a lot of eyeballs…
– – – – – – – You realize it can be watched on Tvs, Phones, Tablets, Laptops, etc. Think that opens up the ability for more eyeballs to be on the game. Welcome to the new century.
“No, “most” people in the US do not watch TV over a variety of platforms.”
Netflix has 75 million subscribers in the US alone, and on average, 2 people watch per subscription. And that’s only *one* platform.
In other words, yes, most people in the US watch TV over a variety of platforms.
zeke2517 says: September 15, 2022 at 10:55 am So now everyone who wants to watch TNF is required to be at home. Gonna lose a lot of eyeballs…
This. Can someone guide me to a “how to” to record streaming video so I don’t have to be home at kickoff and can still watch it live-ish?
ghjjf says: September 15, 2022 at 11:46 am I wonder how many people “cut the cord” and are now paying the same or more for all these different streaming options as opposed to cable/satellite.
Way less for this boomer. The only way you pay more is if you sign up for services and don’t cut them when there’s nothing left to watch. Westworld is over? Bye bye HBO. Simple as that.
I live in a rural area, no cell signals, no cable – on a Satellite internet system with slow, limited bandwidth. I cannot stream anything. I can however watch TV with my Direct TV.
I pay for Sunday Ticket, am a die-hard NFL fan, and yet, I am left out in the cold. There are absolutely “zero” options for me to watch Thursday night football regardless of the price.
Folks like me are obviously a “nothing small percentage” to the NFL.
I just had a friend of mine call me about watching the game tonight. He thought it was on the NFL Network. Had to let him know that it’s being televised on Amazon Prime.
NFL/Amazon not marketing this game as much as they should……
I’m wondering how many non-Amazon subscriber NFL fans will choose to watch the midnight ET NFL Network replay each week? I think that’s what I’ll do, recording the game and then watching it early Friday morning without knowing the result. If there’s a game I feel I absolutely have to see live (and that’s not usually the case with TNF games), I’ll find somewhere (friend/sports bar) to see it.
I don’t understand the fuss, many Yankees games are exclusively on YES, if you live out of the area where your favorite team plays, you must pay for MLB or NFL Ticket to see the games
Games on ESPN require some type of cable or streaming access
it’s yesterdays future and it has arrived as an Eagles fan who lives in North Carolina i willingly pay to see every game , as opposed to seeing the Panthers or Atlanta every week
ghjjf says: September 15, 2022 at 11:46 am I wonder how many people “cut the cord” and are now paying the same or more for all these different streaming options as opposed to cable/satellite. ___________
Why should you care? If those folks want multiple options that’s their business, not yours. Perhaps they like the wider variety that they are getting.
I have prime, so I can certainly watch the game. Probably wont though. I think it was absolutely stupid for the NFL to put the games on Prime. When my team is playing thursday nights I will watch, but none of the others.
If it’s not received via my OTA antenna I’ll have to get along without yet. I think I’ll survive.
The problem with Amazon video is that there is often a delay in the video and audio and the two don’t always sync. No a broadcast where you don’t see the announcers talking is fine, but I don’t want to here them talking about the last play or the next play when the video says otherwise. This is a huge problem with amazon in many big cities for many people. I don’t experience this with content provided on netflix, disney+, appletv, youtubetv. Only on Prime.
Loving read everyone’s temper tantrums on here! I don’t have prime either, and never will. But seriously, listen to yourselves. Children.
The good news for people in local markets (not me tonight) is that you can still get the game on a 3 letter network. I forget which one. I am not a Prime member so I won’t be tuning in to any TNF games until my team is on, and then I’ll watch on whatever local channel has it. Some day when everything turns into pay-to-watch then it looks like my Sundays will suddenly be wide open and I’ll do some scoreboard watching. I’m probably in the minority but I can’t be the only one either. As a 40 year old male I’m sure I’m in their prime demographic (excuse the pun). I watch every single Sunday religiously, but I won’t be handing over additional dollars for the privilege. Neither Bezos nor the NFL will go bankrupt without me.
I watch the condensed version the next day. I’ll let you know. I never waste 3.5 hours watching live games
dmb182 says: September 15, 2022 at 11:21 am More concerned about the large amount of tech illiterate people who don’t even have an email let alone streaming service capability.
Imagine the people that had to teach the horse and buggy crowd how to drive an automobile. Times change. Even faster now. Progress is a good thing.
DISCLAIMER: I am a Prime member and will watch through Amazon Prime. That said, anyone who wants to watch the game without Prime can with a little (and I mean VERY little) effort. Search around. There are ways and there are ways……
Lotsa folks kvetching & complaining about what really seems to be a non-issue. Why all the angry screeds & diatribes, people ? Life is short, watch some football (or don’t), but good grief, give the unnecessary anger & misplaced outrage a rest. Serenity now…….
I seem to recall over the past couple seasons that there were some TNF games I tried to watch OTA (over-the-air) but certain TNF games were not available OTA and were only available on a 3-letter or 4-letter network, via subscription ?
Perhaps I’m mistaken about that, but Amazon Prime is not the villain here, football fans. They are simply a platform (albeit a platform with deep resources). In some sense, the Shield might simply be using Amazon as a guinea pig to try this out for a few years, and then if things go well (read: increased viewership; increased profits) then the Shield can choose not to re-new streaming contracts and pull everything back in-house. That, of course, would require that the NFL IT Dept git their p00p in a group, because I can personally attest that NFL+ is a disaster: I’m currently paying for the “Premium” version, and it is terrible, regardless of device. Glitchy, slow, lacking in viewing options, and erratic. Not unlike my ex-wife, but I digress.
Interested to watch the game tonight, and hoping for a pleasant streaming experience.
One final note: Florio’s comment about the “cyclops demographic” is comedy gold! Thanks Mike, I needed that laugh this morning 🙂 Ranks right up there with your “insufficient flowers” quip a while back. Keeps us old fellas reading, and enjoying. Keep up the good work.
“(Not that long ago, the NFL was defending its permanently suspended blackout rule with a clunky argument that shadowy “Pay-TV lobbyists” were hoping to “charge fans for games they currently watch for free.” Which, as of tonight, is officially beginning.)” – – – – This is 1,000% inaccurate. Games carried on ESPN, or previously TBS, were NEVER watched “for free.” Do you think payment for those networks isn’t folded into your cable bill? Of course, it is. What’s more, people in the teams’ markets will continue to get them “for free” over the air, though if they watch their local channels via cable they’re paying for that as well. And the NFL is merely playing catch-up, as the NBA, MLB, and NHL have had games on cable-only for decades.
I wonder what the number of viewers will be through shadier means. —————————————————————————————— I know you hobbits are not technologically advanced, but What shadier means are you referring to? If you mean sharing Amazon accounts with others, those will still be counted, because it is still a unique device using the service. If you mean shady sites that allow you to share their rebroadcast, well that already exist and are part of the landscape, yet i doubt it is available for streaming content. Particularly a tech savvy company like Amazon.
I’ll watch … I haven’t had cable or over the air channels in 15 years … I do most of my watching (which is a lot because of health) on Amazon and YouTube … the rest is news … more than enough entertainment for me …
I have Amazon Prime so that’s not an issue, my issue is I work late on Thursdays and I rely on DVR to catch the game from the beginning when I get home. It’s going to suck either having to miss the 1st Qtr or 2 of Thurs night games, or waiting until the game is over to watch it assuming Amazon or the NFL network offers some kind of replay.
So I guess that, according to some of the posters,if you still have and are happy with cable,and don’t have streaming services,you are a dinosaur. I have NFL Redzone and NFL Network. That’s good enough for me. If I miss Thurdsay night games,so be it.
I have been an Amazon customer since they started, but I’ve never been a Prime member and I’m not going to start now. When I want to buy something, I just put it in my cart and wait until I have enough stuff to get free shipping. I don’t need Prime Video because I already have Netflix, which has a much better library, and a few other streaming services as well. I’m not a dinosaur; I know about streaming and I stream regularly. But I’m not going to add yet another streaming service just so I can get what are usually lousy Thursday night games.
Don’t forget there are loads of people in this country who don’t have fast internet and/or can’t afford to add Prime to their other household bills. This is a straight-up money grab by the NFL and I hope it fails.
The biggest reason I cut the cord was I was paying almost $200 a month for DIRECTV and literally watched about 10 channels at the most. Sports, documentaries & occasionally Adult Swim or Comedy Central. Amazon Prime has a TON of documentaries along with literally millions of other things to watch. I have Verizon and they pay for my Hulu/Disney+/ESPN+ account. Like other have mentioned, if you put a tiny bit of effort into it you can find any sports event online for free. I literally don’t need anything else. As an avid Amazon user the free 2-day shipping is worth it’s weight in gold. All of the streaming content & now TNF is just a fantastic bonus.
For all of you wringing your hands about how “limited” the audience is, read the stats Florio put up carefully. 150 million Amazon Prime subscribers. That’s about half of the United States.
There really are NOT that many hardcore football fans in today’s day and age that have ONLY OTA TV.
The whole “I already pay too much for x,y,z streaming services” boils down to personal choices so hate away haters. If only 5% of Prime members are football fans, that’s an automatic 7.5 million viewers tonight. Cry harder about wasting your own money.
I guess I won’t be watching as I don’t have a need to get multiple packages in boxes six times the size of the actual item being shipped several times per week.
If it is not on regular TV then I will never see them. I like the games but not like I use to. I will not pay extra to watch. I will wait until ESPN shows the highlights.
Meanwhile, the nfl ticket has been on the dish network forever.
So let me get this straight. For the past 10 years, all I read here was that Thursday Night Football was HorRiBlE product!!!
Now that it’s moved to Amazon, the narrative is “Oh no, I can’t watch my football. Dumb move NFL!!”
165m Amazon Prime members in the US. Many of them are businesses. 120m households in the US per Google. They definately have substantial coverage Only people who are not in a household with a Prime membership hate technology. The cost of haveing to drive for everything is definately more than the cost of membership for most.
I won’t be able to see it i would if i could but the greedy NFL owners think i’m not important .
Let’s see… I already subscribe to Amazon Prime. I have a Fire Cube. AND it’s a good match up: Chargers v. Chiefs. I can’t imagine why I would miss this game.
This is a lot of hogwash. How long have games been on The NFL Network which you could only get with a cable or satellite subscription? And how many people paid out the nose for the Sunday Ticket package, which in my view was all but worthless. Fans have been paying to watch football for years. Just because it’s on a different network doesn’t really change anything. And as for the people that complain that streaming isn’t up to their standards, I have been strictly streaming for almost 4 years and have had fewer problems than I did with satellite. I think there will be a lot more viewers on Amazon Prime than the talking heads are saying.
I can’t channel surf during commercials.
I would have watched of the game was on regular TV.
My wife quickly walked by and asked why I was watching a game from the 70’s as the quality was like an NFL films rerun. I said no, it’s a live game. I swear, her first response was “Prime?”. Amazon, we are not shopping for books, we are streaming live video. You need to prioritize your product in the pipeline. Goddell looked uncomfortable and annoyed sitting next to Bezos and his girlfriend with her hands on his lap.
If I had to fill out a NFL Thursday Night survey.
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