Network concedes to Linsanity

Posted by Jon Creem.

Jeremy Lin

If you don't live in the greater Manhattan area then you might not have known that even fans living in the Big Apple were not able to witness Harvard phenom, Jeremy Lin, inspire and ignite the Knicks to their winning ways. Time Warner, who provides the cable to the customers who watch games played on MSG, along with MSG themselves, have been in an ongoing dispute over carriage fees, or the amount of money MSG pays Time Warner to broadcast events.

Since Lin arose to the Knicks starting point guard, complaints from the New York faithful began to increase. As the outbreak of demand continued, pressure by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo drove talks from the companies to make a deal. MSG chairman, James Dolan, and Time Warner Cable chairmen, Glenn Britt, then met Monday, February 13th to finally end the dispute.

What's even more compelling is that even with the Rangers, being in first place and hockey fans fuming, it took Lin's rising celebrity status to get a deal to work. Unfortunately, no financial agreement has been made public, but according to the NY Post, after a deal was made and MSG was back on the air, the network posted a rating of 4.66 and drew 344,272 viewers. The rating was the highest since Carmelo Anthony's Knicks debut.

If your a Knicks (or Rangers) fan, add this to the thank you list for the front office to consider for next year, as contract talks will most certainly heat up as Lin continues to put the team on his back.