"We recognize and appreciate that Comcast is making a tremendous investment in the NHL and that hockey will be a priority on OLN," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said. "This multifaceted partnership with OLN and Comcast creates exciting opportunities for our fans and for us, and we look forward to a terrific relationship in the years ahead."
OLN is currently in 64-million homes, and is recognized as the leader in competitive and adrenaline-charged content. Their programming includes The Tour de France, The America's Cup, Professional Bull Riders (PBR), the Boston Marathon and USSA Skiing.
WHAT ARE THE TERMS OF THE AGREEMENT
The Outdoor Life Network, OLN, will at least 58 regular-season games on Monday and Tuesday nights. The games will be exclusive to OLN. OLN also gets exclusive rights to the NHL All-Star Game in the United States, and will provide in-depth coverage of the Stanley Cup Playoffs including early round games, the Conference Finals and the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final.
In addition, OLN will provide behind-the-scenes access and wire players and coaches with microphones. OLN will also have in-game interviews and a net camera.
TOTAL COVERAGE
Comcast will launch the NHL Network in the US sometime in the future, and possibly syndicate additional games on their regional sports networks when agreed upon by the local team and team’s rights holder. Other coverage improvements include:
- Weekly games televised in high definition (HDTV)
- Video On Demand (VOD) highlights of past and present NHL moments
- Nightly online streaming of two live games (subject to local blackout)
"Comcast's leadership and innovation in delivering integrated sports and other entertainment on HDTV, VOD and on the Internet is being met with rave reviews from our customers. We will use this experience to bring the NHL to hockey fans in ways that they have never seen before," said Jeff Shell, President of Comcast Programming for Comcast Corporation.