....And here is their canned response:
Thank you for contacting TVG! Tampa Bay is available for wagering and video streaming. Currently TVG pays Tampa Bay, just as all ADWs do, to offer wagering to our customers. In recent years, we have worked closely with Tampa to help the track promote and market its product through our television network. They have benefitted enormously from exposure on TVG, for which they contributed nothing financially. Throughout that time, the track has continued to increase its betting fees and this year has done so again; we are paying all of their requested fees, however they are not willing to pay any of our fees to promote their racing on TVG. TVG does not want to disappoint its customers but we will continue to prioritize television content sourced from track partners who want to grow our businesses together for the long term. TVG is committed to providing top tier racing television coverage but we can't do that by having our customers pay ever higher take outs fees for tracks while those tracks make no contribution whatsoever for television promotion.
Sincerely,
TVG Customer Relations
1-888-PLAY-TV
I particularly love this line:
They have benefitted (sic) enormously from exposure on TVG, for which they contributed nothing financially.
So... they don't contribute programming? Their signal doesn't afford TVG a mechanism for your talking heads to endlessly promote your ADW and Mobile betting platforms? Or are you saying that they should pay you for that luxury?
Or this:
TVG is committed to providing top tier racing television coverage but we can't do that by having our customers pay ever higher take outs fees for tracks while those tracks make no contribution whatsoever for television promotion.
Yeah...Except that a: You're not providing "top tier racing television coverage", you're providing every "C" and "D" track in the country that no one wagers on because you won't spend what the market bears for "Top Tier racing television coverage"; and b: TBD has continued to LOWER their take out fees, not raise them, so your concern for your customers paying "ever higher take out fees for tracks that make no contribution to television promotion" is disingenuous at best.
It seems to me that television networks pay for programming, and make their money back on advertising and in TVG's case, cross promotion of their ADW - which they get free of charge - I don't see TBD bitching about TVG making money from their signal, why so the other way around?
Have fun covering Turf Paradise, Retama, and Zia Park - I won't be watching.
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