Flo Wrestling is good/bad for wrestling

[russelscout 1,274]

Instead of other threads getting hi-jacked all the time, why don't we just keep the discussion in one thread.

I think Flo wrestling is good for wrestling. The first thing that is always up for debate here is whether or not flowrestling helps grow the sport. 

It does. Why? 

Consistency and accessibility. When I was growing up there was one way to watch wrestling. Iowa Public Television had a handful of Iowa matches every year. That was about it. There would be the occasional National duals match or National Finals, but not much else. Now I can watch every Big10 match and a handful of other programs live or days/months/years after the event. This is unprecedented for wrestling. I would never have dreamed 20 years ago that I would have this much access to wrestling. Not only that, but I have wrestling podcasts, news, recruiting, storylines produced daily whether is is written articles or in podcast form. It has allowed me to go beyond being a casual fan. I have yet to find another website that compares with the consistency  or mass of content produced.

Now could ESPN take over those matches? Absolutely they could and it would probably be cheaper too, but lets assume they were ever even interested, the moment that there was a conflict with ESPN's larger goals, wrestling would take a back seat. I don't see wrestling taking a back seat at flo and I am willing to pay so I don't have to deal with that threat.

I don't see why anyone has a problem with the payment model. 1. its actually affordable. 2. it makes sense to charge more monthly than annually. 3. There is enough demand to ask for as much as they do. It is the right to determine that cost, and I don't really see how that has hurt interest in the sport. Even without a flo account, I still have more access to wrestling content than I did 15 years ago.

 

[WillieBoy 691]

Slow connections make for poor opportunities here.

Hope they improve and become more reliable. Shoe more professionalism in presentation. No excuse for third grade quality with the technology available now.

[russelscout 1,274]

12 minutes ago, WillieBoy said:

Slow connections make for poor opportunities here.

Hope they improve and become more reliable. Shoe more professionalism in presentation. No excuse for third grade quality with the technology available now.

Its obviously a work in progress, but can we atleast agree that a few connection problems > no coverage at all?

[qc8223 327]

Overwhelmingly great for wrestling. It's only because we've grown used to the great coverage they provide that we can nitpick about the things that annoy us. I'll always have disagreements with their content team, but that's the same for any group of pundits that cover any sport. It's actually a good thing. If I agreed with them every time, it wouldn't be any fun listening to them. The streaming does need to be more reliable and I think it will get there. I don't remember any catastrophe's on my end from this past season, so I think they're heading in the right direction.

[russelscout 1,274]

Where you at @jon. Its an actual thread to talk about your favorite topic. Not as fun when you cant derail another topic, piss everyone off, then take the moral high ground when people call you out on it?

Edited September 26, 2019 by russelscout

[russelscout 1,274]

12 minutes ago, qc8223 said:

Overwhelmingly great for wrestling. It's only because we've grown used to the great coverage they provide that we can nitpick about the things that annoy us. I'll always have disagreements with their content team, but that's the same for any group of pundits that cover any sport. It's actually a good thing. If I agreed with them every time, it wouldn't be any fun listening to them. The streaming does need to be more reliable and I think it will get there. I don't remember any catastrophe's on my end from this past season, so I think they're heading in the right direction.

I have called out willie on this site many times, but still could never actually end my subscription. I think you are right. A little divisiveness can make it fun.

[Lurker 959]

Keyboard warrior at it again. 

[russelscout 1,274]

23 minutes ago, Lurker said:

Keyboard warrior at it again. 

*he says as he tries to "win" the thread* 

Sorry Lurker, I must have really gotten under your skin last time. 

Any thoughts on flo?

Edited September 26, 2019 by russelscout

[Ultimatepip 31]

I would never pay a dime for Flo...ever.

[russelscout 1,274]

12 minutes ago, Ultimatepip said:

I would never pay a dime for Flo...ever.

why?

[MSU158 1,378]

FLO is good.  But, good is relative.  They are NOT ESPN.  In fact, they are much closer to "The Ocho".  The Ocho is better than nothing.  But, do you really want to be happy with "better than nothing"?

Now, I know that the sports they cover do not create the revenue, nor the fanbase to warrant major productions, top notch announcers/analysts or seamless coverage.  As a result, the quality that should be expected IS within the ballpark of what FLO provides.  However, that doesn't mean that the critiques shouldn't be voiced or should be ignored.

jon is admittedly a broken record and the way he goes about his message leaves a lot to be desired.  But, that doesn't mean a lot of what he says is incorrect.  It also doesn't help that some of the FLO guys come on here and argue when people complain.  It comes off like a "big fish in a little pond" mentality with a "how dare you question me" image.  

I like much of what FLO does.  Guys like Bader come off as truly genuine and much of his content is great.  The Techniques portion is TOP NOTCH.  Yet, there is MUCH that can be significantly improved or completely revamped.  This is especially true when it comes to purchasing options and I say that when I use it enough that I am fine with what I pay now.  But, the "die hard" is the only demographic the current system appeals to.  I just don't get why you wouldn't market certain duals or events and give them a "pay per view" option.  Do you really think you are going to lose the die hards that pay yearly?  Hell, if you did, I would bet many of them would possibly end up paying more buying multiple pay per views or whatever you decided for access to the technique portion.

I doubt guys like Willie will listen to this, but the "kill them with kindness" or "taking the high road" goes a lot further to caring about customer support does than getting into petty arguments on wrestling boards.  This comes from a guy that has had plenty of these petty arguments on wrestling boards, but I don't have a brand/image that I should be protecting...........

[Ultimatepip 31]

Between the Big 10 network and USA Wrestling on YouTube, I get everything I need. 

[Lurker 959]

30 minutes ago, russelscout said:

*he says as he tries to "win" the thread* 

Sorry Lurker, I must have really gotten under your skin last time. 

Any thoughts on flo?

I honestly don’t recall what last time was? 

I don’t subscribe to flo but I have no problem with Flo. Far from perfect but I don’t have a problem with them. I believe they are good for and have contributed to the growth of the sport. To what degree can be debated. 

[Dr. Novak 147]

Bader's interviews with Downey are cringeworthy.

[russelscout 1,274]

46 minutes ago, Dr. Novak said:

Bader's interviews with Downey are cringeworthy.

I have never understood the love for Downey. To each their own.  I guess they are looking for content and Downey provides it.

[1032004 478]

3 hours ago, russelscout said:

Instead of other threads getting hi-jacked all the time, why don't we just keep the discussion in one thread.

I think Flo wrestling is good for wrestling. The first thing that is always up for debate here is whether or not flowrestling helps grow the sport. 

It does. Why? 

Consistency and accessibility. When I was growing up there was one way to watch wrestling. Iowa Public Television had a handful of Iowa matches every year. That was about it. There would be the occasional National duals match or National Finals, but not much else. Now I can watch every Big10 match and a handful of other programs live or days/months/years after the event. This is unprecedented for wrestling. I would never have dreamed 20 years ago that I would have this much access to wrestling. Not only that, but I have wrestling podcasts, news, recruiting, storylines produced daily whether is is written articles or in podcast form. It has allowed me to go beyond being a casual fan. I have yet to find another website that compares with the consistency  or mass of content produced.

Now could ESPN take over those matches? Absolutely they could and it would probably be cheaper too, but lets assume they were ever even interested, the moment that there was a conflict with ESPN's larger goals, wrestling would take a back seat. I don't see wrestling taking a back seat at flo and I am willing to pay so I don't have to deal with that threat.

I don't see why anyone has a problem with the payment model. 1. its actually affordable. 2. it makes sense to charge more monthly than annually. 3. There is enough demand to ask for as much as they do. It is the right to determine that cost, and I don't really see how that has hurt interest in the sport. Even without a flo account, I still have more access to wrestling content than I did 15 years ago.

 

I don’t really get the “when I was a kid we could only see a handful of matches and the rest of the results were from newspaper box scores or Internat magazine a month later.”

Sure, but that was 20+ years ago.  I mean have you been on YouTube lately?  The amount of content (useful or not) available on there compared to 20+ years ago is night and day.  If it wasn’t Flo, I’m sure it’d be someone else.  That said, yes Track seems to be even worse and I know people say “well start your own company then!”  I can’t do it, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see someone try.  The issue isn’t necessarily developing a better product than Flo, it’s overcoming the stranglehold that Flo has on the market.

They can certainly charge whatever the market will bear, but I personally don’t see the value.  I guess I’m one of the few that does currently pay for cable, and I do (regrettably) probably get my money’s worth for what I pay.  So as mentioned above, between BTN and ESPN for NCAA’s, plus YouTube there hasn’t been much that I’ve wished I could’ve watched on Flo. 

[russelscout 1,274]

36 minutes ago, 1032004 said:

Sure, but that was 20+ years ago.  I mean have you been on YouTube lately?

Yes, but without someone purchasing the coverage, whats the incentive to put it on youtube? I guess people can just throw it on there, but there would be no quality or consistency without pay, and that hardly seems the right road to support growth. Wrestling doesnt have the following for someone to make it on youtube ads alone

Edited September 27, 2019 by russelscout

[TBar1977 3,546]

Without Flo about 80 to 90 percent of wrestling that is currently aired goes off air. The fact they put so much content on air, even behind a paywall, is good. 

[pish6969 258]

FLO is good.  But, good is relative.  They are NOT ESPN.  In fact, they are much closer to "The Ocho".  The Ocho is better than nothing.  But, do you really want to be happy with "better than nothing"?
Now, I know that the sports they cover do not create the revenue, nor the fanbase to warrant major productions, top notch announcers/analysts or seamless coverage.  As a result, the quality that should be expected IS within the ballpark of what FLO provides.  However, that doesn't mean that the critiques shouldn't be voiced or should be ignored.
jon is admittedly a broken record and the way he goes about his message leaves a lot to be desired.  But, that doesn't mean a lot of what he says is incorrect.  It also doesn't help that some of the FLO guys come on here and argue when people complain.  It comes off like a "big fish in a little pond" mentality with a "how dare you question me" image.  
I like much of what FLO does.  Guys like Bader come off as truly genuine and much of his content is great.  The Techniques portion is TOP NOTCH.  Yet, there is MUCH that can be significantly improved or completely revamped.  This is especially true when it comes to purchasing options and I say that when I use it enough that I am fine with what I pay now.  But, the "die hard" is the only demographic the current system appeals to.  I just don't get why you wouldn't market certain duals or events and give them a "pay per view" option.  Do you really think you are going to lose the die hards that pay yearly?  Hell, if you did, I would bet many of them would possibly end up paying more buying multiple pay per views or whatever you decided for access to the technique portion.
I doubt guys like Willie will listen to this, but the "kill them with kindness" or "taking the high road" goes a lot further to caring about customer support does than getting into petty arguments on wrestling boards.  This comes from a guy that has had plenty of these petty arguments on wrestling boards, but I don't have a brand/image that I should be protecting...........

Wow MSU. I think this is your first post in all these years I actually agree with you 100%


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[1032004 478]

48 minutes ago, russelscout said:

Yes, but without someone purchasing the coverage, whats the incentive to put it on youtube. I guess people can just throw it on there, but there would be no quality without pay, and that hardly seems the right road to support growth. Wrestling doesnt have the following for someone to make it on youtube ads alone

Sorry I’m not saying it all should be on YouTube (although quite honestly a lot of it is), I was just using YouTube as an example of all of the content that is available in 2019 that wasn’t 20 years ago.  Comparing Flo in 2019 to Iowa Public TV in 1989 is apples and oranges.

The other thing for me as far as the cost is I compare it to other streaming services such as Netflix or even Amazon Prime/Video.  I can’t really justify spending more for Flo than those (and I don’t even have Netflix).

[SamStall365247 95]

Flo is good for wrestling because it makes it easier to be a fan. 

Flo is not growing wrestling. There is no evidence to suggest that wrestling has grown as a result of Flo. To imply otherwise, is a crock.

In other words, no one new is getting into the sport because of Flo, but for those that are fans, it is easier to keep up. 

Edited September 27, 2019 by SamStall365247

[MSU158 1,378]

6 hours ago, pish6969 said:

 

Wow MSU. I think this is your first post in all these years I actually agree with you 100%


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

There is hope for you, yet. At least this shows that you can’t be wrong ALL the time! ;)

[Ragu 43]

I really am tired of people complaining to FloWRESTLING about the payment of the FloPro account feature. You guys do know they have no control over that right? FloSports is a huge conglomerate of sports networks including track, football, basketball, grappling, ect. It's not even expensive and the FloPro account gives you pro access to all websites that fall under the FloSports name like MileSplit, FloHoops, FloWrestling, ect. I think they provide excellent wrestling coverage, technique videos, rankings, a free wrestling podcast, and FloArena is getting better all the time. They are constantly improving as a website and a company. Wrestling is still small guys and for the attention wrestling gets and the funds FloWrestling gets and uses they do an incredible job. I'm honestly shocked at all the slander they get. They are constantly getting better and we are ever growing our sport and no doubt they help in that avenue. FloWrestling is a 10/10.

[RealAmericanHero 72]

The concept of FloWrestling cannot be a bad thing. It airs events live from across the nation and globe. We, who are in one state, can watch a college dual meet in another state. That is a positive only. However, it is fair to ask if the "personalities" and lines of communication from said personalities are best for FloWrestling and the sport overall.

[LHU125 57]

Flo as a product is great. It's the personalities (CP + Willie) that constantly cause issues from the fanbase. Their dismal social media doesn't help either. I believe they'd have a much better overall product if they get some fresh faces. Nobody cares how many pouches of Cope Wintergreen Willie can fit in his lip.

Edited September 27, 2019 by LHU125