I heard this all day yesterday from both sides:

That FCC ruling two days ago has NO bearing on the situation in Portland. I’m beginning to think this thing will NEVER get settled.

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I don’t know. Honestly. But I hope this story gives some of us hope that one day soon we can watch Trail Blazer games and, especially, “Talkin’ Ball” on our dishes.

(Thanks, Clueless Vince!)

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After talking to several people at the exhibition game last night, it became apparent to me that a lot of them believe Portland’s decision to air its games on its web site this season may give the team leverage to help settle the Comcast-satellite TV disputes.

Make no mistake, Portland’s Comcast Sportsnet Northwest is but a small piece in the major war between Comcast and Directv. The customers of Directv saw Versus disappear from their channel guide a few weeks ago as part of this war, with its hockey and college football gone with it.

But the idea is that Comcast’s Trail Blazer exclusivity is gone if the games are also available on your computer. That, theory, makes Comcast more likely to negotiate a deal.

It’s still not a full solution to the problem, though. I don’t think gathering the family around a computer screen is anything close to cuddling up in front of that 52-inch plasma screen on your television.

At this point, I’ve given up trying to predict what’s going to happen in this negotiation. We have no choice but to sit back and see what’s going to happen next — innocent pawns in this major corporate battle.

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I have learned today from two sources that telecasts of  Portland Trail Blazer games may finally be accessible to a much wider audience this season, even though there’s no word of any sort of immediate resolution in the battle between Comcast and the satellite TV companies.

During the offseason, the NBA apparently decided that teams could make live telecasts of their games available on their web sites, but left it up to individual teams to decide whether to do it. And what I’ve heard is that the Trail Blazers have already decided to stream all their games live this season on their web site.

I’m not sure how that impacts the relationship between Comcast Sportsnet and the Trail Blazers, but  it’s well known that the Trail Blazers have been frustrated that their games have not been available to a wider audience than just those with cable TV connections. Comcast has been negotiating with Directv and Dish Network for more than two years, trying to reach an agreement that would allow Comcast Sportsnet Northwest to be available via satellite. But no deal has been made and such a deal does not seem imminent.

There were several web sites last season that pirated the signal of Trail Blazer telecasts and aired them on the Internet. The NBA has attempted to halt that piracy with varying degrees of success.

Major League Baseball has opened up a solid revenue stream by making its games available for a price on the Internet. All MLB games throughout the season and in the postseason are available — for a price – on the web.

No word yet on what the NBA or the Blazers will set as the cost  of watching the games, whether they’d be available on a per-game basis or only on a season basis.

The Trail Blazers Tuesday refused comment on this story.

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Contracts between Comcast Sportsnet and Directv have expired in New England and the Bay Area and it’s prompting negotiating battles in both areas. In fact, it appears the dispute is headed for an arbitrator. While I have no confirmation on this, I have heard that may be good news for those Directv subscribers who cannot yet receive Comcast Sportsnet Northwest — and its outstanding, probably-Emmy-winning, star-studded program, “Talkin’ Ball.”

It’s possible that the Comcast Sportsnet Northwest dispute will be included in the arbitration hearing and that all the Comcast-Directv contract issues can be resolved at one time. And fairly soon. I’m hoping that, anyway. I got to get me some of that Comcast Sportsnet Northwest. Man, that “Talkin’ Ball” show — starring the wacky Jim Pasero — is the hottest thing on TV.

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