You guys are both forgetting that the exclusive rights benefit both parties. Its netting the NFL a huge payout, and it is giving the purchasing company a hot product which is in high demand and GUARANTEES them no competition in pricing. It does seem plausible that more companies in the mix = more money for the NFL. However that concept doesn't take into account the fact that if any cable/TV provider can offer NFL Sunday Ticket there is less money to be made by each of those companies which offer it. The pricing of the Sunday Ticket package would have to drop as the different companies compete to sell it to their customers. In return, the cable providers are taking in less money on it so they will not be willing to spend as much on it.
I understand why companies choose to market their product exclusively through a retail channel. Look at Apple and the iPhone. The iPhone was a hot product that consumers wanted, and as a result, they had AT&T and VZW by the balls.
It's think it's a little more complicated here, because it's not entirely exclusive. The NFL is also getting nearly $5bn from other sources (FOX, NBC, CBS & ESPN) for the right to broadcast some games. Sunday Ticket competes against "free", so it's really only going to appeal to diehard football fans.
Turning your statement around, if it's non-exclusive, providers pay less, and therefore would have to charge less. Monopolies can usually charge more, while open competition charges less. In this case, open competition is good for the consumer, and depending on how deals are structured, it could be good for the NFL.
Finally, the viewership landscape is changing. When the last deal was structured, we didn't have the viewing options we have now. Even DirecTV, while slow, is accepting this, and allowing people to watch on their computers and/or mobile devices. And with all of the other major sports allowing people to subscribe directly, it feels like the NFL is stuck in the last century ("You mean I can only watch football on my
TV?").
I'm not saying it will happen; I have no inside information. I'm only saying that it
should.
In other words, imagine you have a pie made out of sweaty football players and cash. You can either sign an exclusive deal and have the whole pie to yourself -or- you let pie be cut it into smaller and smaller pieces each time another provider comes along and wants a piece....sooner or later there's nothing left on your plate but your fork (and a sweaty jock strap).
I understand what you're saying, but I think its a faulty analogy. A pie is a finite resource; rebroadcast rights to TV is (theoretically) infinite. The NFL can sell as many pies as it wants (and already has sold different kinds of pies to FOX, NBC, CBS & ESPN). DirecTV would like to have bragging rights, saying that it's got the pie and you don't (they even say as much in their advertising).
Also, eww. Need eye bleach.