Last year I was enticed to switch my fantasy football league from my website to NFL.com just after the season started. It was free, and there were plenty of goodies to play with, such as instant scoring updates, customizable team webpages, and more, even a logo maker. Everybody liked it- they got into using the message board to talk trash and even had a couple of chat sessions.
Fast forward to this year. I was going to send an email from the site, as continued messages placed there by the webmasters assured me my league could continue- with no mention of price. When i opened the site a message was waiting for me marked “Important.” Of course I read it.
The note informed me of the fact that CBS Sportsline has taken over the function of running the NFL’s fantasy leagues, and if I wanted to keep my league running (including last year’s stats and standings, mind you) I would be paying $139.95.
Now this is a league we had between a few friends and family, just a few players. No money involved, just a $10 trophy.
Shit! Why did they wait until it was just before the season? Why didn’t they give me time to get a league of other players together? And why so damn much money?
Now it’s either time to scramble to get players and fees, or give up on the automated site. I got comfortable with not having to compile lists of scores from late night surfing (the only time to get on without long delays.) So if I want to run the league without paying for the site, I have to compile the scores by hand- a time-consuming chore.
The Steelers just promised $70 million in contract extensions recently. Why does the cheap-ass NFL have to start charging for the FF service anyway?