Sold Out Sunday: Game Televised Locally....

[GoColts8818]

I'm not 100% certain, but weren't the taxes that were to pay for the city's portion of the stadium in the form of tourist taxes? Hotel tax, cab tax, etc.?

Yes the biggest one that hits tax payers of the city is the 1% food and beverage tax for restaurants and bars in and around downtown in terms of those taxes.

[GoColts8818]

I read this thread and get the idea some people feel like they are entitled to get to watch the Colts on TV. That's just not the case. The Colts and the NFL are business and I think sometimes that's forgotten. Just like any businesses they have the right to set a price for their product that they feel is fair market value for it. Their product just so happens to be the games. Like any product not everyone maybe able to afford it. For example I would love to have season tickets but I can't afford it. I look at it this way I can't walk into a store and say I would really love to have a Play Station 3 but I only have $50. They aren't going to lower their price for me just because I can't afford it and they sure as heck aren't going to start giving them away for free if they still have them on the selves to sell which is pretty much what fans wants the NFL to do when they complain about the blackout when there are tickets to sell. You are asking this business to eat profit to benefit you. As cold as that might sound 99.9% of businesses aren't going to do that.

From there there is the tax issue. I think it's important to recognize those new taxes went for the building not the Colts. That building was also built for more things than just Colts football. It was built so we could expand the convention center and host more major events including final fours, and the Super Bowl. The Colts are without a doubt the biggest tenet that uses the building and it was designed for them but they are far from the only people who use it. Also to the person who said too bad I didn't get a say if it came out of wallet or not you kinda did. It was voted on by elected officials. If you are unhappy about the person who voted to build the stadium and use our tax dollars in that way then I would encourage you to not vote for that person in the future. I also think it's important to recognize that Lucas Oil Stadium is not the only venue that was paid for with tax dollars that you still have to buy a ticket to enjoy. Clearly the fieldhouse and Victory Field are examples of this but how about a none sports one? The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra is paid for in part by tax dollars but you still have to buy a ticket to enjoy them. On top of that if they Symphony sells out (which they do now and then) you don't even have a TV option like the NFL gives you you are just out of luck. I'd also ask where does it stop? Circle Center Mall was built with public funds should you not have to pay to park there in the garage or at the stores since the building was built with public funds? That's all the Colts are doing asking you to pay to enjoy their product at what is fair market value. Last thing on this point I think more people would have been more upset with the law makers had they voted not to build the stadium and the Colts left than would have been paying for the stadium and I think a large of the people here who are now trying to complain about paying for the stadium with tax money would have been calling for the law makers heads had the Colts left town because they voted not to build the stadium.

Also I'd say it is fair market value since they had no problem selling out for well over 10 years and made it known they were NOT raising ticket prices this year. It seems like more fans have elected to not buy the Colts product this year than in years past. That is clearly well with in fans rights to do but by the same token it does not become the Colts job to give away their product for free for people to enjoy because people have elected not to buy tickets to see them. If they started to do that then why would people pay at all to go see them short of just being there? Indianapolis honestly has a very good example of why the blackout rule is important to get fans to attend games. The Indianapolis 500 is blacked out every year in Indianapolis and shown on a tape delay. Meanwhile they have lifted the blackout for the Brickyard 400 and it is shown live. Since they started doing that with the 400 the 400's attendance as gone down while the 500's has gone up. Now to be fair that is not all because of the blackout but the people who study that have said that plays a role.

Next thing 85% rule. Like most when I first saw that I thought great the Colts can lower the number and be on TV and make their fans happy. Then the full story came out that for whatever % they picked the Colts would have to give up half the money they made on every ticket they sold over the % they picked to the visiting team and i understood right away why the Colts did not opt into this. Look at it this way say you owned a McDonalds and you had to sell 100 burgers every day (I am just using simple numbers here) to be thought of as a successful chain. Well say McDonalds then came out and said tell you what we will lower it to 85 hamburgers you have to sell a day but for every burger you sell over 85 you have to give half your earnings to a McDonalds three blocks away. Why on earth would you opt into that if you were already selling 99 to 100 hamburgers a day? That's pretty much what the Colts were looking out. They have sold out every game since the Jags game since 2003. Clearly they have a fanbase that will go to games. They aren't the Chargers who struggle to get to the 85% mark even with a winning team.

It stinks for those of us who can't afford season tickets but we are in no way entitled to just get to watch the NFL's product for free because we enjoy it. It's up to them how they want to make that product available to us. They could be like pro-wrestling and go to Pay-perview if they wanted. They have elected to sell a portion of their product to TV networks so they can air it because they make a profit off the commercials. They have just put a protection in there to make sure they keep fans coming to games to keep their profit up. Is it greed? Yeah sure you can call it that if you want too but I don't call it greed if people are willingly paying for it like they are. I call that market value.

Now I would agree with people who say hey it would be a good PR move on Irsay's part that if there are any games on the Colts schedule that are in danger of selling out that he step in and buy tickets so the game can be on TV. With that said he doesn't have too and I can understand from how his point of view he wouldn't because it hurts his bottom line and frankly he probably wont have too. Odds are WISH TV would probably step in at that point and buy the tickets so the game could air and so they can sell tickets knowing full well it would cost them more money to lose the commercials they would lose by not having the Colts on than they would lose on buying the tickets which they can turn around and donate to a charity and write it off as a tax write off.

[BIGugly]

Well, ole BIG and the Mrs. are helping out. Even though we don't live in an official donut county, Madison County has no common boundary with Marion County, we always drive to Marion county to eat at McDonalds so we can help with the "Colts Tax", which is really a convention center and stadium tax..... just our way of helpin' out...riiiiiight.

[shakedownstreet]

The issue of potential blackouts for Colts fans in the Indy market must be frustrating. Hopefully the home games will continue to sell out and hometown fans can see the games. The situation is even tougher for Colts fans living in other parts of the country. Now that we are retooling or rebuilding, the Colts games are shown in a far smaller part of the country. I am glad I have The NFL Sunday Ticket, otherwise I would miss out on most of their games - I live in New Jersey and the local teams are the Giants, Jets and Eagles and the networks always show their games in this local market.

that's a fact. my buddy in new orleans used to get the colts games more often than not. now he gets the broncos every week

[Luck4DaColts]

Anyone know of somewhere where I can watch the game online?