Comcast Sports Southeast/Charter Sports Southeast

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Comcast Sports Southeast
Charter Sports Southeast

Type	cable television network
Country	United States
Availability	Cable-only in the Southern United States
Owner	Comcast and Charter Communications
Launch date	1999
Website	www.css-sports.com

CSS is a regional sports cable television network based in Atlanta, Georgia, serving 4.5 million cable subscribers across eleven U.S. states. It is a joint venture between Comcast and Charter Communications, and appears on many of the two companies' cable systems across the Southern United States. The initials stand for Comcast Sports Southeast in Comcast markets and Charter Sports Southeast in Charter markets, although the logo mirrors that of Comcast's, implying that Comcast (which is much larger in scope than Charter) has taken the lead in programming the network; also, the copyright notice on its website says "Comcast". Both companies use CSS as a selling point of terrestrial cable service over satellite services such as DirecTV and Dish Network. For the same purpose, CSS is occasionally offered to subscribers of other cable systems that do not compete with Comcast or Charter in their specific markets.

CSS is in direct competition with FSN South and SportSouth, both of which are regional sports networks owned by News Corp/FOX and based in Atlanta. All three networks share some programming, including college coaches' shows. CSS, by and large, has closer relationships with many of the region's individual colleges and universities, whereas FSN South and SportSouth have ties to most of the South's professional sports teams and the Southeastern and Atlantic Coast conferences as wholes. CSS, on the other hand, will regularly broadcast live sporting events of some of the smaller and less heralded colleges of the region, as well as those of some of the large SEC and ACC schools. During football season, CSS produces its own feeds of many of the region's major college games exclusively for tape-delayed broadcasts, even though the games may have aired live on other networks.

Local cable systems are able to pre-empt normal CSS programming in favor of local sporting events, such as high school football and basketball games and local collegiate sporting events.

CSS airs a simulcast of WQXI's Mayhem in the AM from 7am to 8am ET, with Mike Bell, Steak Shapiro, and Nick Cellini. At 6pm, Sportsnite, a show similar to Fox's Best Damn Sports Show Period airs, with focus on the southern sports teams.

CSS also broadcasts Southern League and South Atlantic League Minor League baseball, and some CFL contests.

CSS also has a working agreement with ESPN to rebroadcast its ESPNEWS network content during certain dayparts. CSS also carries the feeds of select ESPN Plus broadcasts, including Big Ten conference games.

[edit] Broadcaster fired

On October 14, 2006, a massive brawl broke out at the football game between Florida International University and the University of Miami. CSS televised the game, and Lamar Thomas, former Hurricanes wide receiver and the game's color analyst, challenged the players on both teams to settle the dispute in the Orange Bowl's parking lot after the game.[1] For this and other inappropriate comments, Thomas was fired by the network the following Monday.

[edit] External link

• CSS official web site