Jamie Davis making Versus a force in three years
By: Jim Williams
Examiner Sports Columnist
September 27, 2009
Jamie Davis is a man on the move. The Versus network turns three this year and there has been success -- but, like any good executive, the network's president wants more.
This week I spoke to Davis about the moves Versus has made, as well as DirecTV's dropping of the network.
JW » Why was Versus was dropped by DirecTV?
Davis » "They wanted to put our network in a pay tier sports package calling us an infomercial network and saying our fees were out of line. We are working out a new contract and I understand posturing as you try to get a better deal but this makes no sense. What made me angry was that DirecTV disrespected our viewers by dropping us while we were in contract talks. We did not change our price to them; we offered DirecTV the same deal that we have offered to all the other cable companies. That said, I am optimistic that we will be able to do a deal. We have had 80,000 viewers contact DirecTV wanting us back on. Plus, Dish Network and other cable companies coming on board have made up for that loss of viewers. But we still hold out hope that we can come together before we open the NHL season and get a deal done with DirecTV."
JW » Versus has come a long way in three years.
Davis » "We are very proud of being the fastest growing network on cable. The NHL, Indy Racing League, big time college football, the Professional Bull Riders League, the Tour de France, the WEC fighting and our outdoor programming have made us a hit nationally. Our ratings in each category are up over last year with a stunning 68 percent increase in viewers on the weekends. We had FSU's big upset over BYU and this week we open our NHL coverage. Plus, the end of the IRL season is just a few weeks away and there is a real battle for the driving championship. So, yes, we feel that viewers are finding Versus but better than that -- once they find us they are coming back."
JW » What is in the future for Versus?
Davis » "We want to continue to find programming that is compelling to sports fans. The NHL looms with the regular season starting this week and all of our broadcasts -- from the opener with the Caps all the way through the Stanley Cup playoffs -- will be in high definition. Speaking of HD, we will -- for the second straight year -- offer Tour de France coverage in HD. We will continue to improve our college sports schedule with our partners in the PAC 10, Mountain West and Ivy League conferences. At the same time, we hope viewers checkout the vast amount of broadband content we have to offer on our Web site."
Jim Williams is a seven-time Emmy Award-winning TV producer, director and writer. Check out his blog, Watch this! on washingtonexaminer.com.
