I was a former cable subscriber until switching to DTV last fall, and overall I couldn't be happier with DTV. However, I don't understand why DTV is charging more for the MLB extra innings package than InDemand/cable providers? DTV's rate is $179 plus $50 for the ability to watch games in hd, while cable's rate is $159 which includes up to 10 HD games per week. I called DTV and they didn't have a reason for the price discrepancy, but said there was nothing they could do. I might try calling retention but I was curious if anyone had any luck negotiating a lower price for the MLB package.

I was a former cable subscriber until switching to DTV last fall, and overall I couldn't be happier with DTV. However, I don't understand why DTV is charging more for the MLB extra innings package than InDemand/cable providers? DTV's rate is $179 plus $50 for the ability to watch games in hd, while cable's rate is $159 which includes up to 10 HD games per week. I called DTV and they didn't have a reason for the price discrepancy, but said there was nothing they could do. I might try calling retention but I was curious if anyone had any luck negotiating a lower price for the MLB package.

First off..

DTV=Digital Television or Over the air digital tv signals

D*=DirecTV

D* MLB EI is more expensive because they offer more games. If you notice in the channel guide, they are offering both home team and away team feeds for just about every game available. The additional HD charge is because they offer almost every game in HD that they can. I believe the number I saw was in the 40 HD games per week range.

On cable, Indemand only offers 12 or 14 game channels for MLB EI and they get shared with NHL CI for the first month of the season. Also, not all providers have added the extra game channels that were created last season. Finally not all providers are even carrying Game HD/Team HD that will have the MLB EI HD games. InDemand will be offering ~10 HD games a week and Comcast has already announced they will not be carrying any of them. Some TW customers get Game/Team HD Feeds.

on D* do most of the Yankees games get shown with the YES Network feed? more notabley the HD yankee feeds, home and away

on D* do most of the Yankees games get shown with the YES Network feed? more notabley the HD yankee feeds, home and away

With D* doing home and away feeds this year, I would anticipate that all their games from YES will be available.

Check out http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/global/contentPageIF.jsp?assetId=3160004 for the D* MLB EI schedule including HD games

I am totally stoked about getting to choose what video feed I want to watch. Hats off to Directv for making this happen!

I will gladly pay for SuperFan to see both feeds. It's well worth the money. This is one of my happiest days to be a D* subscriber hands down!!!!

Getting to see the Indians in HD will rock!

THANKS DIRECTV!

With D* doing home and away feeds this year, I would anticipate that all their games from YES will be available.

Check out http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/global/contentPageIF.jsp?assetId=3160004 for the D* MLB EI schedule including HD games

WOW, very impressive D*...however noticed that none of the Yankees games are showing and HD feed...Not cool. hopefully D* still needs to update the schedule

I think D* has a free MLBEI HD free preview this week..watching KC/DET right now on 723-1.

I think D* has a free MLBEI HD free preview this week..watching KC/DET right now on 723-1.

Yes they do :)

loving the SZC in HD

I am totally stoked about getting to choose what video feed I want to watch. Hats off to Directv for making this happen!

I will gladly pay for SuperFan to see both feeds. It's well worth the money. This is one of my happiest days to be a D* subscriber hands down!!!!

Getting to see the Indians in HD will rock!

THANKS DIRECTV!

Excellent point. I may reconsider my cancellation this year. I will wait until the "free preview" is over before making a decision. However, the Indians opening day home feed was not available today; at least I couldn't find it.

Did you other "homers" find your broadcast?

Excellent point. I may reconsider my cancellation this year. I will wait until the "free preview" is over before making a decision. However, the Indians opening day home feed was not available today; at least I couldn't find it.

Did you other "homers" find your broadcast?

That is because it was an OTA only broadcast

I'm also slightly pumped about the fact that D* will unlock the appropriate RSN in the 600's so I don't have to go digging around in the 700's....Now if only they would add a Game Mix HD channel!!!

That is because it was an OTA only broadcast


I understand that. However, I think I can remember some game broadcasts a few years back that were over the air, but shown as a part of the MLB package. I might have this confused with the CAV's ota games that I am sure were included int he NBA package.

I understand that. However, I think I can remember some game broadcasts a few years back that were over the air, but shown as a part of the MLB package. I might have this confused with the CAV's ota games that I am sure were included int he NBA package.

According to a D* employee over on DBSTalk, D* is trying to work with OTA providers for coverage of games in MLB EI, but the agreements are very different and take more time.

kudos to D* for not blacking out the Angels/Twins game EI feeds last night. I figured I had no chance of watching it on FSNW due to ESPN2 having the game nationally, but hey hey!! I got to watch it in MPEG4 vs ESPN2's crappy MPEG2 feed.:cool:

I am sure locally, MASN will make sure any opposing team telecasts in HD are blacked out as well as the few times the O's and Nats will be on ESPN.

Most of MASN's games are in SD. With all the feeds and HD games, I am seriously considering getting EI for the first time in many years.

I'm also slightly pumped about the fact that D* will unlock the appropriate RSN in the 600's so I don't have to go digging around in the 700's....Now if only they would add a Game Mix HD channel!!!

They have a game mix channel as part of Superfan. However, the gamemix channel is not in HD.

Did the interactive features work for others last night? I was not able to access the in-game box scores like I was last season.

kudos to D* for not blacking out the Angels/Twins game EI feeds last night. I figured I had no chance of watching it on FSNW due to ESPN2 having the game nationally, but hey hey!! I got to watch it in MPEG4 vs ESPN2's crappy MPEG2 feed.:cool:
I thought that only the Sunday night game was the one that ESPN has exclusivity on, all the other hames should be viewable on an RSN...

They have a game mix channel as part of Superfan. However, the gamemix channel is not in HD.

Did the interactive features work for others last night? I was not able to access the in-game box scores like I was last season.

Is there a way to turn interactive off? I can't stand the popup box!!!!!!

Not to mention cable is still putting 2 games on one channel! I called my parents yesterday, and my dad was saying he had to wait for the dodgers game to start an hour late due to the first game running long. Not to mention no games in hd!
Joe

If you notice in the channel guide, they are offering both home team and away team feeds for just about every game available.

Unless you root for the Phillies. There are currently no games scheduled with the Phillies feed. D* has always shortchanged the Phillies phans, and its obscene.

Unless you root for the Phillies. There are currently no games scheduled with the Phillies feed. D* has always shortchanged the Phillies phans, and its obscene.

Is this really an issue with D* or is it Comcast Philly who's at fault?:confused:

I thought that only the Sunday night game was the one that ESPN has exclusivity on, all the other hames should be viewable on an RSN...

I could have sworn that I had this issue in the past with ESPN games other than Sunday night, but I could be (and probably am) mistaken.:eek::cool:

Unless you root for the Phillies. There are currently no games scheduled with the Phillies feed. D* has always shortchanged the Phillies phans, and its obscene.


Maybe they should stop booing their own team :p

Is there a way to turn interactive off? I can't stand the popup box!!!!!!

I do not know if you can turn it off or not -- but does this mean that it was working for you last night?

I could have sworn that I had this issue in the past with ESPN games other than Sunday night, but I could be (and probably am) mistaken.:eek::cool:

There used to be a Wednesday night exclusive as well, but this has not been the case for a few years.

Okay....Phillies first.

Comcast Sports Net Philly is not on satellite because Comcast won't let them. They are using a loophole in the distribution laws to keep it from DirecTV and Dishnet. However, MLB has granted the rights to DirecTV to show the Phillies games and DirecTV is working out the technical details to make that happen. They did have a few CSN Phillies games last year. (BTW, the Phillies home opener was OTA on KYW yesterday, not even on CSN-Philly.)

Second, OTA and non-satellite RSN in general. While DirecTV has the rights from MLB to put on games that are on RSNs, they do not have the rights to games that are OTA en masse. They have to get them individually and they are working on that. So far, both the Atlanta Braves games on OTA Peachtree TV are on in SD (with HD coming) and the Padres local cable broadcasts in SD (with HD coming). We also got some OTA Yankee games last year.

Anyway, long story short....there is a ton of stuff and more is coming!

TONYD79: Thanks for the clarification.

The one thing i dont like about D* this goes for both NBA Lg Pass and MLB EI...is that they will advertise a game as being in HD and listing it as a -1 channel only to turn on the game to see that it is the feed from the RSN HD channel but is not HD and is the 4:3
version...happened last night with me thinking the rangers/mariners game would be shown here on FSN-SW in HD only to see it was not HD

This is the second day in a row that D* failed to carry the Indians HD feed on the MLB package. It was carried on STO HD on DISH. No explanation given.

Makes my decision whether to subscribe to the MLB a bit easier.

Clearly there have been some snafus for DirecTV with its HD MLB EI coverage. But then at least they have provided HD MLB coverage for the vast majority of games played so far.

(I must admit Mikey that it is strange that you could see STO HD on Dish in Florida, since Dish has no contractual right to carry any MLB game outside of its home area.)

It appears DirecTV will provide RSN HD coverage of well over 50 games this week alone. That is far more than the "up to 40" games promised.

So, despite the glitches, a thumbs up for the folks in El Segundo.

Yes, I've been watching with the free preview and I'm about ready to sign back up again.

Last night, for the first time I am aware of, DirecTV's MLB EI showed HD coverage from Cox's channel4SD.

Really? Interesting.

Frankly, there's been far more HD baseball in the last 2 days than I could possibly watch.

This is the second day in a row that D* failed to carry the Indians HD feed on the MLB package. It was carried on STO HD on DISH. No explanation given.

Makes my decision whether to subscribe to the MLB a bit easier.

STO states that D* is having bandwidth issues. Satelliteracer (D* employee who posts at DBSTalk) was told that STO HD wasn't supposed to light up until 4/11, however, with STO saying that the 4/4 game may be up in HD, he is rechecking with his peeps.

Last night, for the first time I am aware of, DirecTV's MLB EI showed HD coverage from Cox's channel4SD.

It was in spanish for the first couple of innings, but very good picture

I'm also slightly pumped about the fact that D* will unlock the appropriate RSN in the 600's so I don't have to go digging around in the 700's....Now if only they would add a Game Mix HD channel!!!

Haven't the games been available on the 600-range channel number for a long time? I have had EI on D* since '00 and I have always noticed that MSG/YES has been "unlocked" for Yankees games, just remapped to a 700-range channel number.

Clearly there have been some snafus for DirecTV with its HD MLB EI coverage. But then at least they have provided HD MLB coverage for the vast majority of games played so far.

(I must admit Mikey that it is strange that you could see STO HD on Dish in Florida, since Dish has no contractual right to carry any MLB game outside of its home area.)

It appears DirecTV will provide RSN HD coverage of well over 50 games this week alone. That is far more than the "up to 40" games promised.

So, despite the glitches, a thumbs up for the folks in El Segundo.

My son lives in Whitehouse, Ohio which is a suburb of Toledo. Please don't get the sat. police all excited.:)

If they knock on your door, Mikey, refer them to me. Sorry! :)

My son lives in Whitehouse, Ohio which is a suburb of Toledo. Please don't get the sat. police all excited.:)

Haven't the games been available on the 600-range channel number for a long time?

Yes, they have. It isn't new.

Ahh.. I can't watch the twins as all the channels are blacked out as not avlible in my area. I understand when theirs a local feed but nothing at all. No FSN, MLB or local stations..

Ha, I found a way to cheet the system a bit. I went to the mix channel and can veiw the twins game. I have to watch 6 other games but ohwell

Astros at Padres is on in HD from Channel4SD again today.

Astros at Padres is on in HD from Channel4SD again today.

What channel is that?

Astros at Padres is on in HD from Channel4SD again today.

Being a MLB EI subscriber via Comcast, I am so jealous that so many people here are able to watch games in HD.
Props to all of you and poor old me gets to watch the games in SD for
another year. :mad:

It was on 734-1.

What channel is that?

It was on 734-1.

Just missed it, the D* plate is already up.

The game started at 12:37 or so and ended a few minutes after 3.

The Channel4SD picture quality is as good as I have seen from YES, NESN or anyone else. Since they are doing 150 games, it means for NL West fans there almost always will be HD available.

Excellent, finally bought the MLBEI-HD package today. I'll have seen about 10 HD games in the last 3 days, including all 3 of the Yankees games...try doing that on Comcast. :D

Excellent, finally bought the MLBEI-HD package today. I'll have seen about 10 HD games in the last 3 days, including all 3 of the Yankees games...try doing that on Comcast. :D


:mad::mad::mad:
:(:(:(:(:(

I will say that D*'s MLBEI channel listings are somewhat confusing, I often have to try 2 or 3 channels to find the right game.

I have all the MLBEI channels added to a Custom2 guide setup, is there any better way to do it?

:mad::mad::mad:
:(:(:(:(:(

Comcast customer eh? Sorry for your luck, although there is a solution, as long as you have LOS. :)

Does anyone know why there are only 8 games on the schedule for Sunday? According to the blackout restrictions on D* website, only games starting after 5 PM eastern are subject to the blackout on Sunday. It would seem they could show all games except the ESPN Sunday night game. Anyone know?

Comcast customer eh? Sorry for your luck, although there is a solution, as long as you have LOS. :)



Stop talking in code to me.
I'm a NOOB-Have no idea what LOS means???

I am a Comcast customer. This is my 5th year as a customer and 3rd year with MLB EI via Comcast.
Not by choice-Because of where I live, it's my only option. Believe me, I have researched this plenty and Comcast is my only option.
Their prices have climbed each year and in the past few months, the service/reception has been steadily decreasing.
:mad:

Stop talking in code to me.
I'm a NOOB-Have no idea what LOS means???

I am a Comcast customer. This is my 5th year as a customer and 3rd year with MLB EI via Comcast.
Not by choice-Because of where I live, it's my only option. Believe me, I have researched this plenty and Comcast is my only option.
Their prices have climbed each year and in the past few months, the service/reception has been steadily decreasing.
:mad:

Sorry :o

LOS is shorthand for "line of sight". It's what you need to have in order to receive the signals from the satellites DirecTV uses. For example, if you're in a condo/apt that only faces north, or a place to put the dish only faces north, then you're going to be out of luck. You need to have a southern sky exposure.

I use the below site to figure out "look angles". Input any sat for locations 99 degrees west to 119 west to figure for DirecTV.

http://www.emantechnology.com/store/pc/LookAngleResult.asp

What is your zipcode?

I am out of luck. Researched this situation a lot last year and realized that I am stuck with Comcast.

DirecTV has now posted its MLB EI schedule for next week and it seems that far more than half of the scheduled games will be carried in HD -- and a good portion of them will have both feeds.

It seems to me that for the first and second weeks of the season we are getting about 60 games a week in HD.

That false advertising of "up to 40 HD games" has got to stop! :)

DirecTV has now posted its MLB EI schedule for next week and it seems that far more than half of the scheduled games will be carried in HD -- and a good portion of them will have both feeds.

It seems to me that for the first and second weeks of the season we are getting about 60 games a week in HD.

That false advertising of "up to 40 HD games" has got to stop! :)

Definitely looks good, I'm glad I signed back up again. Can't get the Giants/Brewers game today in HD though, CSNBA blackout here.

Tell you what, the Tigers better win a freaking game by April 6th or I'm not signing up past the freeview! ;) ;) Seriously though, this is pathetic.

I will say that D*'s MLBEI channel listings are somewhat confusing, I often have to try 2 or 3 channels to find the right game.

I have all the MLBEI channels added to a Custom2 guide setup, is there any better way to do it?

Couldn't you just watch the game through the HD RSNs?

Couldn't you just watch the game through the HD RSNs?

It's not being broadcast in HD here, SD only as far as I can tell.

Being a MLB EI subscriber via Comcast, I am so jealous that so many people here are able to watch games in HD.
Props to all of you and poor old me gets to watch the games in SD for
another year. :mad:

Hey atleast you guys get ota games. I love watching the Giants/Dodgers series and most of those games will be ota only.

Anyone notice what I would call a "pulsing" effect in the video for MLB EI games that are HD through Directv? It's especially noticeable in large areas of solid color, it can be very distracting on a 62" display, thinking of calling and complaining, but i'm sure they'll tell me to go pound sand

Haven't noticed that pulsing with any of the games I have watched on a 64" display.

The quality has been remarkably better than in the past.

I am stunned at the quality and quantity of MLB in HD. It is far more than I expected -- or DirecTV advertised.

So for this free view, D* unlocked the YES and NESN networks even though I live in Maryland. If I sign up for the package will they still be available or will they go away? On the NBA package they blackout HD games on the sports channels that are not offered as part of the NBA package. I am thinking D* will do the same for baseball. Anyone know how it is supposed to work? I am really only interested in HD games.

WTF!!!!?????!!!! The early games (NYY-TB, BOS-TOR, etc...) are all blacked out?!!??!!
well it only took a couple days for mlb and D* to piss me off, this is f*cking bullspit!!!
The FOX national games dont start for hours.....last year the early sat games werent blacked out (AFAIK)

WTF!!!!?????!!!! The early games (NYY-TB, BOS-TOR, etc...) are all blacked out?!!??!!
well it only took a couple days for mlb and D* to piss me off, this is f*cking bullspit!!!
The FOX national games dont start for hours.....last year the early sat games werent blacked out (AFAIK)

The FOX exclusive rights rule is in effect today.
Sad but true. It's a shame, but those are the rules as AFAIK, this was happening last year as well.

Yes, the Saturday blackout rules are insensible.

The FOX exclusive rights rule is in effect today.
Sad but true. It's a shame, but those are the rules as AFAIK, this was happening last year as well.

On the Indians telecast last night they said there would be no Indians TV today because of the FOX contract. However, they went on to say that this would be the only Indians game affected.:confused:

WTF!!!!?????!!!! The early games (NYY-TB, BOS-TOR, etc...) are all blacked out?!!??!!
well it only took a couple days for mlb and D* to piss me off, this is f*cking bullspit!!!
The FOX national games dont start for hours.....last year the early sat games werent blacked out (AFAIK)

this is complete BS im pissed. i want to spend my sat afternoons watching baseball yet im forced to watch the FOX broadcast. if im gonna spend $229 dollars i want to be able to watch any game that is available. if i would have known this, i wouldnt have purchased MLB EI yesterday:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

if i would have known this, i wouldnt have purchased MLB EI yesterday
Maybe you should have read all of the information available to you before you purchased. DirecTV's website explains all of the blackouts.

Maybe you should have read all of the information available to you before you purchased. DirecTV's website explains all of the blackouts.

thanks for the advice...i still would have purchased, just bitter that im forced to watch braves/mets. tigers/white sox all afternoon

thanks for the advice...i still would have purchased, just bitter that im forced to watch braves/mets. tigers/white sox all afternoon
I do sympathize with you. The MLB blackout rules are a joke. To be positive for a minute, this rule does not apply every Saturday of the season.
Keep your eyes open to the MLB schedule and maybe next time you will know a day or two in advance which games will NOT be available because of
the Fox rules.

The FOX exclusive rights rule is in effect today.
Sad but true. It's a shame, but those are the rules as AFAIK, this was happening last year as well.

Yeah, it sucks. In years past though it was worse because many of the games FOX aired weren't even in HD. Here it was, Saturday in the summer and you couldn't even see a baseball game in HD, used to drive me nuts.

There are 3 games tonight per the DirecTV site, although I'm not much interested in any of the teams myself.

http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/global/contentPageIF.jsp?assetId=3160004

It does suck big time especially early in the season with so many 1:00 games across the country.

Does this apply to the TBS games too on Sunday? God that would suck if so.

4 night games available on a Saturday is putrid.

Can someone link me to these "Fox rules"?

I understand the blackouts (kinda, does anyone really understand MLB rules?) but I don't think I am familiar with this Fox deal in place.

This has been the first chance I have had to sign up for any services with D* since I just picked them up in October, so I was hoping to watch baseball all day today before work and there is not one single game on for me to watch at all until this evening. Not one channel has had an MLB game on that I have seen in my guide.

Can someone link me to these "Fox rules"?
http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/global/contentPage.jsp?assetId=1100045

http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/global/contentPage.jsp?assetId=1100045


WOW, that is a crazy deal, I never knew that before.

ESPN gets all the Sunday night games and FOX gets all the Saturday day games, crazy.

Thanks for the link btw

From someone who's has this package 3 of the last 4 years, I can say that there's more games now than there ever has been before. I think it's a pretty fair-priced package. I don't like the Super Fan fee for HD, but what are you going to do, no other provider can even come close to providing as many HD games as this package does.

As far as the blackout rules, you'll need to talk to MLB about that, DirecTV has no control over it.

No, the fox rules aren't supposed to take effect until mid-May, it says so on mlb's website, even though the early games were blacked out you could still watch them through mlb.tv, part of it is D* being way to overbearing with the blackouts...they are blacking out the f*cking REPLAY of the yankees d-rays game right now...but they are letting the nats-cards replay go through, they need to get their thumb out of their butts over at D*....i almost think mlb is fine with letting the early games be blacked out as long as they can still charge people for them on mlb.tv, I understand the fox blackout of games going on at the same time but half of the early games are about over before the fox games start....

they are blacking out the f*cking REPLAY of the yankees d-rays game right now...

This is standard MLB blackout procedure and has nothing to do with D*. If you are out of market, you will not see live baseball on sportspack channels without EI. Nor will you see replays on out of market channels whether you have EI or not. It has been this way for years.

Anyone living in Yankees territory would not have been blacked out on live or replay.

What about games being blacked out that are Local but have no Local feeds. Happened with the twins game a few days ago FOX NetW and one of the MLB channels were the only 2 I could find both came up as not in avlible. Shouldn't I get the MLB channel atlest. I can understand FSN north or a OTA feed. But why blackout when no channels get it

No, the fox rules aren't supposed to take effect until mid-May, it says so on mlb's website,....

I'd wager that the website dweeb cut and paste the language from 2007 and forgot to update the date. IIRC Fox's Saturday games didn't start at beginning of the season last year.

jdg

This is standard MLB blackout procedure and has nothing to do with D*. If you are out of market, you will not see live baseball on sportspack channels without EI. Nor will you see replays on out of market channels whether you have EI or not. It has been this way for years.

Anyone living in Yankees territory would not have been blacked out on live or replay.
I have EI and sports-pack, and as far as i can tell I have been able to watch other replays no problem (haven't tried a whole bunch), but i'll check more often now, i know i've tuned in to at least a couple of out of market replays since the season started. If you believe that D* never mistakenly blackouts the wrong programming, then you are very naive. Here's a out-of-market replay for yah, I'm watching Eddie Murray's 500th HR game on MASN right now (man does David Wells look thin). I'll check the TB-NYY replay tonight.

My other strawman is the fact that the early Saturday games weren't blacked out on mlb.tv, even though the were blacked out for MLBEI; i'm pretty sure both are supposed to follow the same BO rules....

I was just counting the HD games for the week and there are about 60 and that doesn't include the double feeds of home and away announcers. That would put it closer to 80. Good job D*.

I've noticed that some times the HD feed in the 700's (D*) is a blank screen, but if you find the same game on the appropriate RSN in the 600's it works (at least that was the case for the rockies-braves game tonight), so if the hd feed in the 700's maybe try checking hdsportsguide.com and the 600's, I think sometimes D* is mapping the wrong feed for the HD's in the 700's which is causing the problem

I wonder if this actually works for some people:

“I live just north of Miami and have been getting all Yankee games on YES for years without the EI package. I get YES 24/7 so nothing is blacked out. What I do is since I have DirectTV I call them each spring and tell them I have moved and give them my father's address which happens do be in Connecticut Yankee viewing territory. I also get SNY & NESN full time. Once I say I've moved I get all the programming as if I lived in CT. Only drawback is no local channels. I use an antenna for those. But I get NY CBS, NBC & FOX in the 380s. So, if you have DTV and know someone in the Tri State area just call DTV and say you moved and give them that address and you're in business. Simply pay your bill online.”

I wonder if this actually works for some people:

It should work, is likely not legal and may also be a violation of the agreement w/ D*.

I really don't know what you people are talking about. I get the Mets, Devils, Rangers, Knicks, Yankees and the Islanders all in HD and I don't even have any sports packages.

I'd trade them all to watch the Steelers and Pens. Pirates suck.

I really don't know what you people are talking about. I get the Mets, Devils, Rangers, Knicks, Yankees and the Islanders all in HD and I don't even have any sports packages.

I'd trade them all to watch the Steelers and Pens. Pirates suck.

Um, because you live in those teams' territories. The topic is the EI package for out of market games.

I have EI and sports-pack, and as far as i can tell I have been able to watch other replays no problem (haven't tried a whole bunch), but i'll check more often now, i know i've tuned in to at least a couple of out of market replays since the season started. If you believe that D* never mistakenly blackouts the wrong programming, then you are very naive. Here's a out-of-market replay for yah, I'm watching Eddie Murray's 500th HR game on MASN right now (man does David Wells look thin). I'll check the TB-NYY replay tonight.

My other strawman is the fact that the early Saturday games weren't blacked out on mlb.tv, even though the were blacked out for MLBEI; i'm pretty sure both are supposed to follow the same BO rules....

I am not at all naive. I'm familiar with D* blackout issues which can either leave a game open, or close it, accidentally. I'm also familiar with the MLB blackout rules and they don't include happy times like Eddie Murray's 500th HR game. We are talking about replays of games played the same day or the day before.

Now that the EI free preview is over, are you still able to watch out of market replays (actual ones, not some game from the 80's) on any of the sportspack channels? I will guess, no.

I live in south Florida, so I would assume my "local" market is the Marlins and Rays. DirecTV's blackout finder page tells me that the Braves @ Rockies will air today. Fine.

Then why was my TV telling me, on both channels, last night "channel not purchased"? I checked TBS and the Braves were not there. I checked ESPN, no Braves. They were not rained/snowed out.

I can either follow the Marlins on my RSN (if I'm in the mood for pain) or my true home town team, the Nats, on the package, but it would be nice to follow other NL East teams to keep up with the Joneses. Looks like I'm not permitted to.

This one baffles me. This is the first time I have plunked down cash money for the MLB package, but it will be the last if crap like this continues. This was NOT spelled out in the blackout stipulations, which I did read.

Any constructive input is welcomed. TNX.

I live in south Florida, so I would assume my "local" market is the Marlins and Rays. DirecTV's blackout finder page tells me that the Braves @ Rockies will air today. Fine.

Then why was my TV telling me, on both channels, last night "channel not purchased"? I checked TBS and the Braves were not there. I checked ESPN, no Braves. They were not rained/snowed out.

I can either follow the Marlins on my RSN (if I'm in the mood for pain) or my true home town team, the Nats, on the package, but it would be nice to follow other NL East teams to keep up with the Joneses. Looks like I'm not permitted to.

This one baffles me. This is the first time I have plunked down cash money for the MLB package, but it will be the last if crap like this continues. This was NOT spelled out in the blackout stipulations, which I did read.

Any constructive input is welcomed. TNX.

I don't have the EI package, but if you are getting a "channel not purchased" message, it sounds like your account isn't set up properly with the EI package. When a local game is blacked out on ESPN for example and I have to watch it on the "home broadcast" network, I get a message telling me that the program isn't available in my viewing area - I forget which code. If I try to tune to HBO which I don't subscribe too, I get the channel not purchased message. Can you get any of the other EI games? You can try resetting your box and if that doesn't work, call customer service. With EI, you should basically get just about every game being broadcast except for teams that are blacked out in your local area and you shouldn't be getting a channel not purchased message for a blackout.

last night, 732-1: Reds vs. Brewers was coming up "Channel Not Purchased" yet the SD telecast was fine (and I forgot to check the RSN HD feed in the 600s on D*). I live 30 miles west of Washington DC, so it can't be the blackout rules. Anyone else get the game?

last night, 732-1: Reds vs. Brewers was coming up "Channel Not Purchased" yet the SD telecast was fine (and I forgot to check the RSN HD feed in the 600s on D*). I live 30 miles west of Washington DC, so it can't be the blackout rules. Anyone else get the game?
you need MLB superfan to get it.

I will guess, no.
Your guess is about half correct. Since the free preview ended I can still see some replays. I'll try to post what replays are viewable and what replays are blacked out. Also the discrepency between the early saturday games being blacked out for MLB EI, but available through MLB.tv really burns my toast! :mad:

I called DTV Wednesday night while an out of market game was showing "not available in your area" on one channel while the same game on the other channel showed "channel not purchased".

The front-line guy tried to help me, but clearly had no clue as he suggested I tune in the Marlins @ Nats on MASN which is not part of the MLB package, but he told me it's part of the Sports Pack. As a test I punched my zip code in there last year and it told me that I COULDN'T order MASN since I am in Florida, so how that can be the reason I was blacked out made no sense. He even refreshed my box to no avail.

So he turned me over to tech support where a very sweet young lady fooled around checking this and that, finally concluding that it was a one-time thing that would not recur. She also said that "channel not purchased" is just a glitch and treat it as "unavailable".

Normally, I would expect MLB EI to be blacked out in Florida when the Marlins play, but I would then expect the Marlins game to be available on the RSN down here. Except that we have 2 baseball teams, and Wednesday night they were showing the Tampa Bay _____ Rays, as was MLB. So I had a choice of 3 channels showing the Rays game and zero channels showing the Marlins game.

Last night things worked as I expected.

Sounds like plain old incompetence to me.

It should work, is likely not legal and may also be a violation of the agreement w/ D*.

I figure it is not worth the hassle. I am paying for SuperFan and my dad is paying for MLB Extra Innings so in the end it is not so bad. I figure a sling box would be more expensive than splitting the costs, and the legality of doing what I said earlier may not be worth it in the long run.

Then again I looked at the Yankees' schedule and it turns out about 36% of the games start between 1:05 PM and 4:05 PM so there is already 54 of the remaining 151 games I probably won't be able to watch since I'll be working in the summer. So that leaves 97 games minus the 17 I can get without Extra Innings [FOX, ESPN/ESPN2, TBS] for a total of 80 games which is basically half the season. Then there are blackouts, and who knows if most of those remaining games will be in HD.

If my dad pays for MLB Extra Innings and I pay for SuperFan then $50 divided by 80 games equals about $0.63 per game assuming I get to watch 80 games.

Not too shabby.

he suggested I tune in the Marlins @ Nats on MASN which is not part of the MLB package
If they're showing a game, the channel is opened up for viewing. It most likely wouldn't have worked because of the error, but normally you can view the RSNs in the 600s when games are on.

Where can I go to check what areas are in what teams area for blackouts. I live in Charlotte and was blacked out on the Pittsburgh channels for the Pirates-Reds game tonight, but got the game on 722 as the Reds network. Is Charlotte part of the reds territory? I checked the D* website and entered my zip code and it said the game would be available on 726 as the Pirates broadcast.

Do I have a right to complain?

Where can I go to check what areas are in what teams area for blackouts. I live in Charlotte and was blacked out on the Pittsburgh channels for the Pirates-Reds game tonight, but got the game on 722 as the Reds network. Is Charlotte part of the reds territory? I checked the D* website and entered my zip code and it said the game would be available on 726 as the Pirates broadcast.

Do I have a right to complain?

Charlotte is part of the Reds territory

Henry: Charlotte is "claimed" by the Reds, Braves, Nats and, I believe, the Orioles.

You can check a reasonably accurate blackout map for MLB, showing which teams claim which areas, here:

http://bp1.blogger.com/_wvoLtwni0kc/RhUvZd19-xI/AAAAAAAAHg4/nE8fsbE7hmg/s1600-h/MLBBLACKOUT.jpg

I wonder if this actually works for some people:
CPanther95 suspended my account for a week and erased one of my posts when I simply mentioned the idea of doing this, he also said that it amounts to piracy, which would be a tough sell imho since you lose access to other content by doing this.

BTW, keeping up with my replays through MLB EI/Sports Pack, late Saturday night (West Coast) and heres what I see:
Braves at Nats 8:30 PM-11:30 PM PST on MASN (626) works
Braves at Nats 8:00 PM-11:00 PM PST on Sport South (631) is blacked out (error 727)
Tigers at White Sox 11:00 PM-2:00 AM on CSN Chicago (640) is blacked out (error 727)

Henry: Charlotte is "claimed" by the Reds, Braves, Nats and, I believe, the Orioles.

You can check a reasonably accurate blackout map for MLB, showing which teams claim which areas, here:

http://bp1.blogger.com/_wvoLtwni0kc/RhUvZd19-xI/AAAAAAAAHg4/nE8fsbE7hmg/s1600-h/MLBBLACKOUT.jpg

Looking at that map I cannot believe Columbus, OH is a blackout region for the Pirates. WHY? We get FSN Ohio and STO, but I don't see FSN Pittsburgh (or whatever the Pirates air on) on our cable systems here.

That's a cruddy blackout range. We can't watch the Pirates if we got MLB.TV or MLB:EI, as they tell us to watch it on local TV, yet we can't watch them on local TV so we're forced to get MLB.TV or MLB:EI, and so the cycle begins.

I'm not a Pirates fan, but I do know some, and the blackout rules are terrible! We shouldn't have to skirt the blackouts (such as billing address for a credit card or whatever) to get what we want.

Looking at that map I cannot believe Columbus, OH is a blackout region for the Pirates. WHY? ...
I'm not a Pirates fan, but I do know some, and the blackout rules are terrible! We shouldn't have to skirt the blackouts (such as billing address for a credit card or whatever) to get what we want.

Tell it to Bud Selig and Bob DuPuy. Of course, they will deposit your complaint in the circular file forthwith.

I discovered by that map that I am solely in Marlins territory, which explains why FSFL and both MLB channels showed the Tampa Bay game the other night, yet I had no access to the Marlins @ Nats. Just dumb luck, but I'm not paying yet more money to get the Sports Pack as suggested by the DTV rep. They have extracted all the cash from my pocket that they will ever get. So I will suffer when the blackout rules bite me in the butt, but their chompers won't reach as far as my wallet.

I have the MLB Package. Now that the free preview is over I no longer get the HD feeds. I knew I wouldn't get the HD feeds as I didn't signup for Superfan. I don't need to pay an extra $50 for out of market HD baseball, there are enough HD games between the home team, Fox, and ESPN.Today I tuned to the Reds vs. Phillies game on the SD channel. As soon as it acquired the game it switched from pillared to full screen, but still SD. The format button didn't work and my caller ID stopped working. How can I get the SD signal to stay pillared? I tried native on and off. Tried resetting and that didn't work. Last resort call D*. Followed the technician through all sorts of attempts to get it fixed. Nothing has worked. What I find most frustrating is the use of the format button. Today on channel 726 the format button works, but on all the other MLB SD channels the format button didn't work. Of course 726 was the same as 623 which is my local sports network. The teckie said it was the way the signal was broadcast and I had to live with it. So I have to watch MLB for $160 in the strech mode or give up MLB, doesn't sound right to me.

How can I get the SD signal to stay pillared?
Let me guess, you're using an H20 receiver? If that's the case, and I'm sure it is, then there is nothing you can do. Any channel with interactive content, even if you can't see/use it, gets stretched on the H20. If your TV the ability to unstretch on an HD input, you could do that. Otherwise, you're SOL.

I have the MLB Package. Now that the free preview is over I no longer get the HD feeds. I knew I wouldn't get the HD feeds as I didn't signup for Superfan. I don't need to pay an extra $50 for out of market HD baseball, there are enough HD games between the home team, Fox, and ESPN.Today I tuned to the Reds vs. Phillies game on the SD channel. As soon as it acquired the game it switched from pillared to full screen, but still SD. The format button didn't work and my caller ID stopped working. How can I get the SD signal to stay pillared?


I live in the Philles home market. As of last week, they now broadcast all away games in widescreen SD. A very good SD, in fact. I welcome that over zoomed or pillarboxing. So D* is right, it's broadcast that way.

I live in the Philles home market. As of last week, they now broadcast all away games in widescreen SD. A very good SD, in fact. I welcome that over zoomed or pillarboxing. So D* is right, it's broadcast that way.
No no no no no, you're misunderstanding him. Even to get widescreen SD games, you need to have Superfan. He gets nothing but straight 4:3 SD, and his receiver is disobeying his pillar box setting and stretching it.

You are right I have the H20. Thanks for the info. I wish D* would do something about it.:mad:

You are right I have the H20. Thanks for the info. I wish D* would do something about it.:mad:
The H20 is just a pile of crap in general. The HR20 can show interactive stuff with pillar boxes, but the H20 never has. And I suspect that it never will.

CPanther95 suspended my account for a week and erased one of my posts when I simply mentioned the idea of doing this, he also said that it amounts to piracy, which would be a tough sell imho since you lose access to other content by doing this.

BTW, keeping up with my replays through MLB EI/Sports Pack, late Saturday night (West Coast) and heres what I see:
Braves at Nats 8:30 PM-11:30 PM PST on MASN (626) works
Braves at Nats 8:00 PM-11:00 PM PST on Sport South (631) is blacked out (error 727)
Tigers at White Sox 11:00 PM-2:00 AM on CSN Chicago (640) is blacked out (error 727)

I think the ones that are not blacked out are D* blackout errors in favor of the viewer.

Is D* even using the Phillies Comcast Sportsnet SD and HD feeds this season??? MLB.TV is using an HD widescreen downconverted 1.2 Meg video feed for all Phillies home games from CSN and CW 57.

Are the interactive features working for everyone this season? I am unable to access the in-game boxscores during games. I have Superfan and was able to access these last year.

Just trying to find out if I should call D* or if this is a feature that is no longer available.

Are the interactive features working for everyone this season? I am unable to access the in-game boxscores during games. I have Superfan and was able to access these this year.

Just trying to find out if I should call D* or if this is a feature that is no longer available.

The pop-up for all the interactive crap shows up everytime I tune to one of the SD channels, but I don't think it shows up on the HD channels; I can't stand it though and wish there was a way to deactivate it; fortunately I have sports pack too, so I usually just tune straight to the appropriate RSN in the 600's instead of having to look around for the game in the 700's and deal with the stupid interactive pop-up; I'm sure that by seasons end I'll have all the RSN's in the 600's that show MLB memorized :D

The pop-up for all the interactive crap shows up everytime I tune to one of the SD channels, but I don't think it shows up on the HD channels; I can't stand it though and wish there was a way to deactivate it; fortunately I have sports pack too, so I usually just tune straight to the appropriate RSN in the 600's instead of having to look around for the game in the 700's and deal with the stupid interactive pop-up; I'm sure that by seasons end I'll have all the RSN's in the 600's that show MLB memorized :D

Thanks -- will have to check an SD channel to see. I guess it is a good thing that I haven't even watched a game in SD this year. I enjoy the interactive -- being able to see the box score when I first trun on a game is great. I also enjoy seeing the pitch counts. If I remember right from last season there is a clear button you can press as soon as you trun on a game if you don't want it to pop up. I think it is either red or yellow but I don't remember which one.

Thanks -- will have to check an SD channel to see. I guess it is a good thing that I haven't even watched a game in SD this year. I enjoy the interactive -- being able to see the box score when I first trun on a game is great. I also enjoy seeing the pitch counts. If I remember right from last season there is a clear button you can press as soon as you trun on a game if you don't want it to pop up. I think it is either red or yellow but I don't remember which one.

The clear button is bullspit, i shouldnt have to clear it everytime i change the channel (same thing with NFLST), they should let you clear it with yellow to turn it off for good, or give you some other way to turn it off...like any true nerd i watch baseball with stattracker running on my laptop