2012 DirecTV Packages - Including Family, Select, Entertainment, and Grandfathered Pkgs

[jcrandall]

We are often asked about the Family and Select packages, what channels are included and what is not. Packages like Family and Select are available from DirecTV CSR's by requst for most customers, but they intentionally do not provide information on their website, including what channels are included.

We have compiled information from several sources to build a complete list of packages and channels, as accurate as possible. There may be a few misses in these, let me know if that is the case so I can fix it - you can just post it in this thread.

This new version is updated for 2012, including the addition of the Entertainment package, and that Select and Choice Xtra Classic are no longer available.

Note that if you had Choice Xtra or Total Choice Plus prior to 2/9/12, you will now have Choice Xtra Classic. Plus packages, like Plus HD or Plus HD DVR are also now on Choice Xtra Classic. The Xtra Classic package will have more channels than the new Choice Xtra package offered to new customers at the same price.

I hope this helps you understand what is available in each package, including the select packages. Remember, with Family, Select, or Entertainment packages you do NOT get your Regional Sports Network (channels like YES, Fox Sports Net, Comcast Sports Net, NESN, MASN, etc.)

Thanks for being Satelliteguys!

The pictures may be hard to read, I recomend downloading the PDF version below the pictues.

 

[lparsons21]

Thanks for the work that took.

Because of 2 channels I will stay with Choice Xtra Classic - Golf and NFL.

 

[AIRLINE]

Thank you for the hard work in pulling all of the channel lists together, and making them available in Adobe PDF.

As an FYI, late last summer of 2011, DirecTV quietly made changes to the Select channel line-up.

The following channel was removed:

Investigation Discovery--285

The following channels were added:

Animal Planet--282
ION (West Coast)--347
Lifetime Movie Network--253
Nick JR--301
Persuit--608
RFD TV--345

You may want to check with your internal sources at DirecTV to verify if the channel line-up changes for Select did indeed happen on a nationwide basis, or are geographic specfic to southern California. I can speak from first hand knowledge that the change did occur in southern California. To be clear, the channel line-up changes were for Select, and not Select Classic.

 

[jcrandall]

Thank you for the hard work in pulling all of the channel lists together, and making them available in Adobe PDF.
The following channel was removed:
Investigation Discovery--285

The following channels were added:
Animal Planet--282
ION (West Coast)--347
Lifetime Movie Network--253
Nick JR--301
Persuit--608
RFD TV--345

You may want to check with your internal sources at DirecTV to verify if the channel line-up changes for Select did indeed happen on a nationwide basis, or are geographic specfic to southern California. I can speak from first hand knowledge that the change did occur in southern California. To be clear, the channel line-up changes were for Select, and not Select Classic.

I will include what you show in the next update. The document is certainely a work in progress and with more HD channels expected in the next few months, it will need to be updated anyway.

For Ion, do you have only the west feed and not channel 305 as well?

I doubt they would do any regional changes to a package, it would be nationwide.

 

[Mr Tony]

The Ion E & W feeds are remapped to the local number if you have a Ion affiliate. That may be how he is getting it.
As example Ion here is on 41 so we get the national feed (East) remapped to 41 (along with 305 and 347)
Since he mentions Cali it would be the West coast feed

 

[jcrandall]

That would make more sense on Ion. None of the channel lists I found over the years showed Ion on Select.

 

[AIRLINE]

We do not have Channel 305. We do have Channel 347, the west coast feed of ION which mirrors the programming of Los Angeles local channel 30, KPXN. This dovetails with the response from Iceberg about mirroring.

 

[DodgerKing]

The DirecTV website is misleading. I wonder if they are doing this intentionally in order to get people to switch from the classic package to the new package? It shows Choice Extra listed twice with 2 different channel totals. The first Choice Extra is supposed to be just Choice so this is probably just an oversite. Then they shoe Choice Extra Classic has having fewer channels the the new Choice Extra when it reality it has more.


English Packages - DIRECTV

 

[jcrandall]

Mine shows Choice Exrta Classic with 210+ channels and Choice Xtra with 205+ channels.

Perhaps they were still updating it?

That said, they have used those channel counts as a way to lure people to upgrade before. I remember Total Choice showing less channels than Choice which was false.

 

[Mr Tony]

yeah its all jacked up

I go into my account and it shows 210+ on Xtra Classic but no list of channels. Entertainment it says 140+ then below it says 120+ then where the (incomplete) listing of channels is they say 140+

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

I notice they now call the Sonic Tap channels as "Satellite Radio" channels.

While they are delivered via Satellite, I dont know if I would call them "Satellite Radio" channels since you can't go into your car and listen to them like you can with SiriusXM.

 

[stardust3]

Wow if a person wanted to sign up on Directv, now would be the time to do it. The screen shot posted is for an mpeg4 dma, I believe there are 30+ such markets.

 

[stardust3]

It appears this promo is nationwide & not a separate promo for mpeg4 markets. It's about time it's the same for everyone.

 

[Mr Tony]

yeah Directv is basically not wanting to install SD receivers so they give you a HD DVR & 3 HD recievers for free (or $99 for the HMC)

 

[rta53]

Thanks for the work that took.

Because of 2 channels I will stay with Choice Xtra Classic - Golf and NFL.

That's the thing thing that somewhat frustrates me and probably lots of others. We got DTV in 2009 and at the time I remember getting Choice Extra because there was 1 or 2 channels that I wanted that wasn't in Choice. I believe it was ESPNU which wasn't in Choice. Well now ESPNU is in the Choice package. Hey I would save $5 a month now, yipeee! Most of what my wife and I watch are sports and the rest is shows on network TV which I can pick up with my rooftop antenna. So basically I am paying $80 a month for less than a dozen channels. I know it's my choice to pay or not pay. Just wish there were more options.

 

[Mr Tony]

So basically I am paying $80 a month for less than a dozen channels. I know it's my choice to pay or not pay. Just wish there were more options.

I agree. More options would be good.

 

[dishrich]

The pictures may be hard to read, I recomend downloading the PDF version below the pictues.

Jason, not to complain here - while the charts are awesome, I think that if you added gridlines (like on an Excel SS) to these charts, it would make it even easier to read. I would also suggest maybe adding shading to every other line...with this many lines & columns of text, one could really go bug-eyed reading this after awhile.

Also, would it be possible for you to post your original SS for those that would like to download for their own use, please?

 

[jcrandall]

Jason, not to complain here - while the charts are awesome, I think that if you added gridlines (like on an Excel SS) to these charts, it would make it even easier to read. I would also suggest maybe adding shading to every other line...with this many lines & columns of text, one could really go bug-eyed reading this after awhile.

Also, would it be possible for you to post your original SS for those that would like to download for their own use, please?

Gridlines would be good for next time, can do.

If you PM me your email I'll send you the spreadsheet.

 

[Bluemonick]

Your missing ESPN Classic in your lists, in sports pack and/or Choice Ulimate I believe.

 

[Mr Tony]

ESPN Classic is in Sports pack and Premier (which has the sports pack in it) which is at the top of the page