NFL Game Broadcasts Coming to iPods

[sahyder1]

Jan 18, 10:38 AM EST

NFL Game Broadcasts Coming to iPods

NEW YORK (AP) -- Starting next week, football fans will have a new way to listen to games: on their iPods.

The National Football League on Tuesday announced an agreement with Audible Inc., an online distributor of audiobooks and other spoken-word programming, to make recordings of this year's remaining playoff games available for portable audio players, including Apple Computer Inc.'s iPod.

The recordings will be available for purchase through Apple's iTunes Music Store, which has an existing relationship with Audible, and other sites that sell audio over the Internet, according to the NFL and Audible.

The first recordings of football games for sale under the agreement will be this Sunday's NFL conference championships, which will be available on the Internet the following morning.

Replays of the Super Bowl will also be available under the deal.

In morning trading, shares of Audible rose 69 cents, or 3 percent, to $23.65 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

Chris Russo, senior vice president of new media and publishing for the NFL, said complete recordings of games, including versions that feature local sportscasters, are expected to cost around $10 each, while highlights of games are expected to cost between 95 cents and $4.95.

"This is not a replacement for watching games," Russo said. "It's really for fans who want a keepsake of the event or who to want hear the local call of the event."

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[King Ellis]

This doesn't sound a like a good idea. Maybe someone would buy it if they're a real hardcore fan or it was a memerable game but otherwise it seems like a waste of money.

[Guest Pirate Chasin' Booty]

I'd rather spend that money on a video tape, and record the game. Stupid Idea, they might make a small sum, theres no effort involved, so either way they can't fail.

[Cactus Drags]

What Ellis said. I'd consider it maybe for my team seeing as I can't see the games, but the price is a bit high for that.

[K]

My MP3 Player can pick up and (I think) record FM radio, take that Ipod.

iRiver wins again!

[Heel Turn]

I'm going to cough up ten bucks for a game I almost assuredly watched the previous day, and hence know the outcome to? Yeah, right, nice try. The dozens of gigs of MP3s I have on my iPod will do a better job than this keeping me entertained at work, and they're free.

Edited January 18, 2005 by Heel Turn

[Farmer Reil]

Can I make the token "what do you expect, it was Russo's idea" joke?

No?

Ok

[apsham]

My MP3 Player can pick up and (I think) record FM radio, take that Ipod.

iRiver wins again!

←

Agreed, I wonder sometimes how my stereo with antenna can't pick up shit, but my iRiver does.

[Farmer Reil]

Because your stereo with antenna is analogue and your iRivier is digital

[Psicosis]

I don't see the value of buying an audio replay of a football game, it's not like you can listen to it over and over again and get the same value you would out of say, a cd.