Erratic sunday ticket/gamesearch

[cfb]

Man is NFL sunday ticket just not working out for me this year.

I had read somewhere that games wouldnt be blacked out on the ST HD channels even if the game was being carried on the locals, and thats been the case for me this year. Until this week.

I got hosed the last two weeks when recording from the locals, when the network decided to 'go to another game' because the score was nutty. Unfortunately I enjoy watching my team beat the snot out of someone else, since I had to watch everyone else beat the snot out of them for a couple of decades.

Only way to make sure you get the whole game is to record the ST feed.

After recording both the local and ST feed for over a month and having the ST feed always be active, I was a moron and recorded only the ST HD feed this week for the packers/vikings game. When I went to start watching it a couple of hours after the recording started I got the "searching for authorized content" error followed by an apology screen blaming the NFL for their blackout rules.

I tuned to the ST HD channel and got the message that it was blacked out, but gamesearch would find the right channel. Didnt happen. Thats 0-for-3 for gamesearch working for me.

So I got to watch only the second half of the game live with commercials.

So the news is that you cannot count on the NFLST HD feeds to play the full game thats being played on one of the locals, even though that's worked for me about 19 out of 20 times. You cant count on gamesearch working, because it doesnt seem particularly effective at all. And check all your game recordings 5 minutes in to make sure they're actually happening.

 

[sddtvtech]

Man is NFL sunday ticket just not working out for me this year.

I had read somewhere that games wouldnt be blacked out on the ST HD channels even if the game was being carried on the locals, and thats been the case for me this year. Until this week.

I got hosed the last two weeks when recording from the locals, when the network decided to 'go to another game' because the score was nutty. Unfortunately I enjoy watching my team beat the snot out of someone else, since I had to watch everyone else beat the snot out of them for a couple of decades.

Only way to make sure you get the whole game is to record the ST feed.

After recording both the local and ST feed for over a month and having the ST feed always be active, I was a moron and recorded only the ST HD feed this week for the packers/vikings game. When I went to start watching it a couple of hours after the recording started I got the "searching for authorized content" error followed by an apology screen blaming the NFL for their blackout rules.

I tuned to the ST HD channel and got the message that it was blacked out, but gamesearch would find the right channel. Didnt happen. Thats 0-for-3 for gamesearch working for me.

So I got to watch only the second half of the game live with commercials.

So the news is that you cannot count on the NFLST HD feeds to play the full game thats being played on one of the locals, even though that's worked for me about 19 out of 20 times. You cant count on gamesearch working, because it doesnt seem particularly effective at all. And check all your game recordings 5 minutes in to make sure they're actually happening.

i had that exact thing happen to me. it wasnt even half time and my team was smoking the crap out of the other team and decided not to air it anymore. I didnt get to see the end which is stupid.


today i had off and on with the FOX station going in and out.. but that was happening mostly on commericals. the game didnt drop out at anytime for me.

 

[Jimbo]

For some reason, from what I've seen so far this year, the HD version HAS been blacked out , just like it's suppose to be in reality.
I know they have had it open the previous years and I was glad to see that....
It would have been the only way to see the Lions when they were BO.
Not that I was looking for thier game specifically, but my team is off today and was going to at least check in from time to time .....
I watched the NASCAR race at Talladega instead, what a wreak Ryan Newman got put into.

 

[cfb]

These arent even games that are blacked out, just games that are also being shown on the local channels.

I'd seen something somewhere that said that directv was going to leave the HD ST feeds on this year, but black out the SD feeds if the game was blacked out locally or on the local networks. Something about having met a threshold for a paying sports customer when local feeds werent guaranteed to be HD or something like that.

I know the chief problem causers here are the NFL and their bizarre rules around blackouts, local channel broadcasts, requirements to break away from games when a local team is playing, etc. It really takes a lot away from the game, IMO.

But directv was supposed to solve part of this problem with gamesearch, and it doesnt work. At all, at least for me.

Guess i'm back to recording it from both the locals and the ST HD feed, just in case the programming changes on the locals at the last minute. Unfortunately that cuts the number of games I can record in half.

With NFLST being a major selling point for directv vs the competition, they'd best improve the lack of consistency and the ability to record entire games with good reliability. Otherwise I cant see someone like me anteing up hundreds of dollars for the football games when I'm stuck having to collate local broadcast schedules with NFLST guide data, having games cut off at half time, games switched away because of local broadcasting contracts, etc.

Otherwise it starts to become compelling to just watch the games on NFL replay for free on tuesday and wednesday and to heck with the live broadcasts.

 

[Jimbo]

These arent even games that are blacked out, just games that are also being shown on the local channels.

I'd seen something somewhere that said that directv was going to leave the HD ST feeds on this year, but black out the SD feeds if the game was blacked out locally or on the local networks. Something about having met a threshold for a paying sports customer when local feeds werent guaranteed to be HD or something like that.

I know the chief problem causers here are the NFL and their bizarre rules around blackouts, local channel broadcasts, requirements to break away from games when a local team is playing, etc. It really takes a lot away from the game, IMO.

But directv was supposed to solve part of this problem with gamesearch, and it doesnt work. At all, at least for me.

Guess i'm back to recording it from both the locals and the ST HD feed, just in case the programming changes on the locals at the last minute. Unfortunately that cuts the number of games I can record in half.

With NFLST being a major selling point for directv vs the competition, they'd best improve the lack of consistency and the ability to record entire games with good reliability. Otherwise I cant see someone like me anteing up hundreds of dollars for the football games when I'm stuck having to collate local broadcast schedules with NFLST guide data, having games cut off at half time, games switched away because of local broadcasting contracts, etc.

Otherwise it starts to become compelling to just watch the games on NFL replay for free on tuesday and wednesday and to heck with the live broadcasts.

The WHOLE idea of ST is to be able to watch YOUR team, from a different city and you would THINK that because they are specifically showing ALL games, that they would show them in thier ENTIRETY , I would expect that from them at the least, this way if you want to turn away from a game that is becoming a blow out, you have the option with the ticket.

Fortunately for me, I have not come across MY team being cut away from, however, if the team is playing the 4 pm game and the early game is going to run a little late, I would expect the game on the ST channel to be AT the correct game at the start of a game regardless whether another game is running long or not.

 

[JAG72]

I see the problem here is that Directv is not being consistant applying the rules.

If the game is shown on your local station you are not supposed to receive the ST feed HD or SD.

 

[Jimbo]

I see the problem here is that Directv is not being consistant applying the rules.

If the game is shown on your local station you are not supposed to receive the ST feed HD or SD.

Correct ...... that said, WHY not, you still get the local advertisements on the ST for the city your in.
Why not have them BOTH on as there are many times where the PQ will be better on one vs the other.

They(D*) use to have the HD feed open regardless and if your paying the money they are asking including the HD portion, they should not have ANYTHING BO

 

[JAG72]

Correct ...... that said, WHY not, you still get the local advertisements on the ST for the city your in.
Why not have them BOTH on as there are many times where the PQ will be better on one vs the other.

They(D*) use to have the HD feed open regardless and if your paying the money they are asking including the HD portion, they should not have ANYTHING BO

The problem is that you don't get the local advertisements with the ST feed. They remove those commercials during the game.

 

[Jimbo]

The problem is that you don't get the local advertisements with the ST feed. They remove those commercials during the game.

Hmmm, are you sure that some of the locals are not in there, I guess I never paid that much attention, and seeing that I don't know, it means that the local advetrtisments are not getting my attention.
It all depends as to which I watch, I think so far it's been almost half and half as to weather the Steeler's are on locally or not here. Maybe it's closer to 25 % come to think of it.

 

[JAG72]

Hmmm, are you sure that some of the locals are not in there, I guess I never paid that much attention, and seeing that I don't know, it means that the local advetrtisments are not getting my attention.
It all depends as to which I watch, I think so far it's been almost half and half as to weather the Steeler's are on locally or not here. Maybe it's closer to 25 % come to think of it.

I am pretty sure and even if they had a couple of them in there who would they be local for? Detroit plays Seattle this coming weekend. The commercials on the game could not possibly be local for both of the teams.

I thought that I remember seeing the sunday ticket screen when they go to the local commercial segments. Don't forget they are getting the feed from the network just like the locals are. They get the feed without the local commercials added to it. Just think how upset people would be if they were able to see any weather warnings being broadcast to them for a city that is all the way across the country.

 

[Jimbo]

I am pretty sure and even if they had a couple of them in there who would they be local for? Detroit plays Seattle this coming weekend. The commercials on the game could not possibly be local for both of the teams.

I thought that I remember seeing the sunday ticket screen when they go to the local commercial segments. Don't forget they are getting the feed from the network just like the locals are. They get the feed without the local commercials added to it. Just think how upset people would be if they were able to see any weather warnings being broadcast to them for a city that is all the way across the country.

Good point ...s

I obviously don't miss the local commercials.
I get them when the game I need to watch is on the locals.

Still say, if your paying all that money, you should'nt have to deal with the commercials, give us the raw feed like you use to get with the old C- Band feeds.

 

[MikeinBaja]

Guess I'm lucky. I'm a "displaced" fan very far out of my favorite team's market (which is why I get the ST).

I've never had my ST game interrupted to break away for another game. On the days where my team's game just happens to be a network game, the ST is blacked out and I catch it on the local HD feed - which is the way I thought it was supposed to work?

 

[Jimbo]

Guess I'm lucky. I'm a "displaced" fan very far out of my favorite team's market (which is why I get the ST).

I've never had my ST game interrupted to break away for another game. On the days where my team's game just happens to be a network game, the ST is blacked out and I catch it on the local HD feed - which is the way I thought it was supposed to work?

That is the way it's suppose to work, it's just that D* has allowed (if it's D*'s call, I'm not sure) the HD feed to be open the last several years and we all got use to it.

btw, for the most part, I have had very little trouble with the Game Search other than it taking a lot of time to look.

 

[MikeinBaja]

That is the way it's suppose to work, it's just that D* has allowed (if it's D*'s call, I'm not sure) the HD feed to be open the last several years and we all got use to it.

btw, for the most part, I have had very little trouble with the Game Search other than it taking a lot of time to look.

Rationale "could" have been leaving the HD feed open since not all locals were HD?

Less and less of that now days.

 

[Jimbo]

Rationale "could" have been leaving the HD feed open since not all locals were HD?

Less and less of that now days.

You make a very good point there ..... imagine the GREAT pub they would have recved had the made that public

 

[stonecold]

Offical stance is if it on a local channel it supposed to be blacked out on sd and hd on st. Now if you get the hd feed with out a blackout ok fine but we stick to the above statment if you call in about it.

 

[cfb]

The problem with that is my old home team is nationally broadcast pretty regularly. That means I have to watch it on the locals. Then I often end up getting half of the game because the local channel breaks away to another 'more competitive' game.

They dont break away from ST games, you get the whole game.

As far as I know, ST games are feeds from the home teams local broadcast team, with the regional/national ads that local broadcast station have put in. ST games that are being broadcast over large geographic areas have 'national' ads and the local channels rebroadcasting can overlay some of their own local ads. The ST feed in this case is (I think) the national ads only, but I think I've seen directv stick some of their ads in where local ad overrides are allowed.

What'd be a perfect solution would be when a game is broadcast locally, for the dvr to map the local channel to the ST channel so its broadcasting the local channel on both. Then if the local channel runs off to another game, the ST channel would switch to the direct broadcast of the game.

Then you wouldnt have to double up recordings, look at multiple places where a game may be showing, miss half a game due to 'breaking away', or have any other problems.

Or just say "Gee, these folks are paying $300-400 to watch these games, let them watch them all on the ST channels without the local channel blackout/attendance blackout issues!".

 

[MikeinBaja]

Or just say "Gee, these folks are paying $300-400 to watch these games, let them watch them all on the ST channels without the local channel blackout/attendance blackout issues!".

Actually, I think this is an NFL rule, not within any provider's discretion.

 

[Ddevil]

I thought that if a locally broadcast game switched to something else, DirecTV automatically opened up the ST feed that had been blacked out.

Is this not happening now?

 

[cfb]

Actually, I think this is an NFL rule, not within any provider's discretion.

I understand that. But the NFL is taking a billion dollars from directv for exclusive rights to resell these game packages. You'd think that sort of revenue would give directv the negotiating clout to say "Ya know, since we're paying this much and our subscribers are going to fork over big bucks, how about we do away with the local station/sellout blackouts?"

This is pretty much "live tv watching" mentality, where the presumption is I'm watching the game live and will say "gee, that just went away, guess I'll change the channel to where the game is." But I have a dvr and i'm watching the games time delayed so I dont have to watch 2 hours of commercials per game.

I thought that if a locally broadcast game switched to something else, DirecTV automatically opened up the ST feed that had been blacked out.

Is this not happening now?

It might be. A few weeks ago when I was watching a recorded game and they switched to another game, I was able to flip to the NFLST channel and catch the last 10 minutes of it. Whether it switched on when the local channel changed over or it'd been on the entire time is something I dont know. I guess I dont have a lot of faith in someone at directv noticing that some local channel in my viewing area just changed games and throwing the switch to turn on the ST channel.

Even so, requires that you record both the local channel (to avoid what appears to be random blacking out of the ST HD channels) and the ST HD channel in case the local channel "goes away" from the game. That means you can only record one game per two tuner dvr instead of two. It also means you have to do all the recordings manually if you're going to add time to the first 'pair' of early games because they're going to run into the late games schedule, and manually double record one of the late games to start 30-60 minutes after it begins. Normally I'd just click 'record' on one early and one late game and only mess with manual recordings if I wanted to record two early or two late games.

Be nice if the whole thing was 'muxed" together so I could record from one source and be assured of a) seeing the game, and b) seeing the entire game.