Blazers Renew KGW Contract; Seattle Blacked Out?

Earlier today, the Portland Trail Blazers announced the renewal of their broadcast television contract with KGW. The new contract will last three seasons, keeping the Blazers on Channel 8 for at least 16 games per season through the summer of 2016. There has been no announcement that these games will be carried across the usual sister stations throughout Oregon, but it's a fair guess that will be the case.

Seattle is currently a home market for the Blazers, so their games are unavailable on NBA League Pass, but KGW is also unavailable in the area. As such, Seattle will be completely blacked-out for all games on KGW unless the Blazers either work out an agreement with a local Seattle network, or offer an Internet streaming option. For a few years, the games were offered on a subchannel of KING-TV (KING-DT2), but that agreement was not renewed for the 2012-13 season.

This contract is unrelated to the Blazers' ongoing broadcasting agreement with Comcast SportsNet Northwest, which will be in effect until the summer of 2017. -- Tim

The Blazers' press release:

TRAIL BLAZERS RENEW BROADCAST AGREEMENT WITH KGW NEWSCHANNEL 8 THROUGH 2015-16 SEASON

Partnership enters into third consecutive decade

PORTLAND, Ore. (July 31, 2013) – The Portland Trail Blazers have renewed their broadcast television agreement with KGW NewsChannel 8 for the next three seasons, the team and the NBC affiliate station jointly announced today. The agreement secures local broadcast carriage of Trail Blazers basketball through the 2015-16 season.

KGW NewsChannel 8, which has been the flagship broadcast television carrier of the Trail Blazers since the 1992-93 season, can broadcast a minimum of 16 regular season games from the upcoming 2013-14 schedule. The actual number of games aired each season is contingent on the NBA’s national broadcast schedule, which will be released next month. The Trail Blazers game telecasts on cable will also be announced at a future date.

"We have enjoyed a tremendous relationship with KGW NewsChannel 8 for the past 20 years," said Trail Blazers President & CEO Chris McGowan. "As a result, our fans all over the state have come to know KGW as the proud over-the-air home for Trail Blazers games. We are excited to be continuing this important partnership for the next three seasons."

The Trail Blazers’ highest-rated game last season aired on KGW NewsChannel 8 in a season-opening win against the Los Angeles Lakers on October 31, 2012. The game logged an 11.6 rating, 20 share and reached an average of 137,000 TV households per quarter hour.

"We’re thrilled to extend this long-standing partnership," said DJ Wilson, president and general manager of KGW NewsChannel 8. "The Portland Trail Blazers are a vital part of the fabric of our community. KGW is proud to bring the excitement of "Rip City" to Trail Blazers fans in our entire viewing area through free over-the-air telecasts."