MLB Extra Innings

[treebird]

i always took jr for a big free market guy. go figure.

[J.R.]

I am. The government has no business telling MLB who they can and can't deal with.

 

Of course, the lure of pure, virgin HD could lead me to compromise my principles.

[Buford T Justice]

From what I've heard this deal isn't even supposed to take place until the 2009. Anyone else hear that same info? If it is infact true, everyone has 2 years to make the decission to switch providers. As I said in a previous post Cox is carrying EI this season, unless they changed their story from 2 days ago.

[CheeseHead Cubs Fan]

From what I've heard this deal isn't even supposed to take place until the 2009. Anyone else hear that same info? If it is infact true, everyone has 2 years to make the decission to switch providers. As I said in a previous post Cox is carrying EI this season, unless they changed their story from 2 days ago.

 

I don't think this is correct, my understanding is that the deal has been accepted, but has yet to be announced.

 

Regarding 2009, that is the target year for a full baseball channel, much like the NFL Network.

 

And to comment on Cox carrying EI this season, you think they are going to tell you they are not, potentially losing a customer? :0

 

Nail is in the coffin, so to speak!

 

(I hope I am wrong)!

[Soul]

I realize how selfish this is, but if the DirecTV EI package starts offering a bunch more HD games, I'm probably going to buy it and be very, very happy.

 

Since going HD regular resolution looks terrible to me. I find myself watching games I wouldn't have cared about before, even to the point of only "checking in" on Bulls games, Hawk games, etc.

 

DirecTV has recently added a bunch more HD capacity, so I'm thinking this might very well happen.

 

This is the crux of my stance. DirecTV's MLBEI will be much better than what's available now.

 

The problem with this stance is that it doesn't have to be mutually exclusive. You can have DirecTV access and cable access...that's the way its always been. Now it may be better for DirecTV subscribers who have High Def cabablity...but that # is sooo much smaller than the people who were able to get it before that its a net loss.

 

I think of it as turning an entire stadium into luxury suites...no regluar seating available for anyone. You can't argue that the suites are "nicer" to sit in...they are, and they get better service and have more features...but you can argue quite effectively that the arrangement is NOT better for the guy who always had season tickets in the upper deck and doesn't have any way to upgrade to the suite.

 

EI was already an exclusive package, even on Cable. What we're talking about here is more akin to 2 groups of luxury suite owners, one of whom will now have to park in a different parking lot and walk a little further to get to the gates. And in return, they'll get a better service in the form of more HD games.

 

Big deal. Sounds like a fair trade to me.

 

As far as the # of HD subscribers being small, that is true. But the number is growing.....and will continue to do so. I seriously doubt a company like DirecTV is going to make decisions based on a static view of today's reality. They're going to look to the future-----and the future is HD.

[Soul]

Another thing I don't understand: why are so many of you continuing to suffer with cable? Seriously----if you're a sports fan, DirecTV is way better and has been for many, many years. And it's cheaper.

 

Latest stats I have seen say less than 10% of the people in the US can NOT get DirecTV due to blockage. Even some of those could get it by making a few yard adjustments, etc. The numbers are very small.

[moorecg]

Another thing I don't understand: why are so many of you continuing to suffer with cable? Seriously----if you're a sports fan, DirecTV is way better and has been for many, many years. And it's cheaper.

 

Latest stats I have seen say less than 10% of the people in the US can NOT get DirecTV due to blockage. Even some of those could get it by making a few yard adjustments, etc. The numbers are very small.

 

I'm one of those 10%...I even had them come out and set it up at the beggining of last football season but there was too much blockage that the signal never held...it'd lock up every 15-20 min...I tried it for a week and then had them come take it out as I couldn't see living with it for a 2 year commitment if I couldn't even watch a 30 min program without pixilation problems... I also have my high speed internet and phone through my cable company making a switch would be basically impossible.

[goonys evil twin]

EI was already an exclusive package, even on Cable. What we're talking about here is more akin to 2 groups of luxury suite owners, one of whom will now have to park in a different parking lot and walk a little further to get to the gates. And in return, they'll get a better service in the form of more HD games.

 

How is this comparable? It's more like a season ticket holder being told he can't have season tickets anymore, even if he's willing to pay for them.

[CheeseHead Cubs Fan]

EI was already an exclusive package, even on Cable. What we're talking about here is more akin to 2 groups of luxury suite owners, one of whom will now have to park in a different parking lot and walk a little further to get to the gates. And in return, they'll get a better service in the form of more HD games.

 

How is this comparable? It's more like a season ticket holder being told he can't have season tickets anymore, even if he's willing to pay for them.

 

A perfect analogy, well said!

[BigbadB]

Another thing I don't understand: why are so many of you continuing to suffer with cable? Seriously----if you're a sports fan, DirecTV is way better and has been for many, many years. And it's cheaper.

 

Latest stats I have seen say less than 10% of the people in the US can NOT get DirecTV due to blockage. Even some of those could get it by making a few yard adjustments, etc. The numbers are very small.

 

How exactly am I suffering? I have DVR. I have digital cable and digital phone. I have the entire cable tv package, which includes a ridiculous amount of premium movie channels. How is that suffering?

[BigbadB]

Latest stats I have seen say less than 10% of the people in the US can NOT get DirecTV due to blockage. Even some of those could get it by making a few yard adjustments, etc. The numbers are very small.

 

Less than 10% is simply an eloquent way to say that MILLIONS of people still can't get DirecTV.

 

10%. What is that? 30 million people? Something like that?

 

Oh yeah, the numbers are very small. Heck, you can probably get 30 million people in a baseball stadium. :roll:

[Garwilly]

Latest stats I have seen say less than 10% of the people in the US can NOT get DirecTV due to blockage. Even some of those could get it by making a few yard adjustments, etc. The numbers are very small.

 

Less than 10% is simply an eloquent way to say that MILLIONS of people still can't get DirecTV.

 

10%. What is that? 30 million people? Something like that?

 

Oh yeah, the numbers are very small. Heck, you can probably get 30 million people in a baseball stadium. :roll:

 

30 million is a large raw number, when taken by iteself.

 

But is small is relation to those who can get it.

 

Here's a nice visual...

 

Those who can get it:

 

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

 

Those who can't"

 

XXX

[Soul]

Another thing I don't understand: why are so many of you continuing to suffer with cable? Seriously----if you're a sports fan, DirecTV is way better and has been for many, many years. And it's cheaper.

 

Latest stats I have seen say less than 10% of the people in the US can NOT get DirecTV due to blockage. Even some of those could get it by making a few yard adjustments, etc. The numbers are very small.

 

How exactly am I suffering? I have DVR. I have digital cable and digital phone. I have the entire cable tv package, which includes a ridiculous amount of premium movie channels. How is that suffering?

 

Sometimes one doesn't know how much he suffers until the suffering ends.

[Soul]

Latest stats I have seen say less than 10% of the people in the US can NOT get DirecTV due to blockage. Even some of those could get it by making a few yard adjustments, etc. The numbers are very small.

 

Less than 10% is simply an eloquent way to say that MILLIONS of people still can't get DirecTV.

 

10%. What is that? 30 million people? Something like that?

 

Oh yeah, the numbers are very small. Heck, you can probably get 30 million people in a baseball stadium. :roll:

 

30 million is a large raw number, when taken by iteself.

 

But is small is relation to those who can get it.

 

Here's a nice visual...

 

Those who can get it:

 

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

 

Those who can't"

 

XXX

 

I've been on many cable providers in my life. Then I switched to DirecTV. The sports and extras they offer just blows cable out of the water, and that's without the new EI exclusive. Here in Madison, I'm getting Milwaukee, Minneapolis, and Chicago sports stations as part of my BASIC package.

 

Cable subscribers here get Milwaukee. That's it. And no alternate channels.

 

There's really no comparison. Cable providers in LA and Chicago when I lived there were no better. Cable just sucks period.

[rynefan]

I've been offline for a whlie and jumped on this thread, but I need some clarification. First of all, let me say that I live in the Chicago suburbs, have Comcast and need my Cubs baseball to survive! All right, IF Direct TV does take over, does that mean if I kept Comcast, all I'd get is the WGN games? I wouldn't get the ones that are on Comcast SportsNet? As was stated, GN has lost more and more games to Comcast all the time, so that would stink. And I really can't see me switching to Direct TV. I know people that have it and it goes out a lot.

 

Sometimes, the more advanced things get, the more I wish for the old way.... when ALL the games were on WGN and I had 13 channels, no cable. Got the Cubs and the livin' was good. Now it's big biz and the networks and cable companies/dish companies are involved, fans get lost in the shuffle. Darn it all!

 

Anyway, if anyone can answer my question above, I'd appreciate it. I just want to know as a Comcast subscriber in Chicao, what can I expect?

 

Thanks.

[Soul]

No, no, no.

 

You're in the Chicago market. You still get all your Cubs games. And White Sox.

[BigbadB]

I don't believe you would lose those Comcast games. MLB EI is more of an out of market package that allows you to view games that are airing locally to their own markets.

 

However, there are black out issues that I'm not familiar with, mainly because I don't live where you live.

[goonys evil twin]

I have doubts about the 10% number. That might be the number who can't get it technically, but it probably doesn't include all the people who can't get it for other reasons, like homeowners associations. There are also renters who theoretically could get it (no site line issues, suitable place for install), but have a landlord that won't allow a dish to be installed. The fact is the dishes are ugly.

 

I'm a directv subscriber. I've had it at my last few places. But when moving, being able to have directv was a problem. Most places made it impossible. And with all the construction going on, there's no guarantee that in the next couple years I'll still be able to get it at my current place.

 

I think the directv fanatics on this site are sounding ridiculous in the way they are insulting people who have cable and basically insinuating they are dumb for staying with cable. Directv has major flaws. They've had a disastrous rollout of their new hd/dvr box. The cards you need in your receiver regularly burn out and have to be replaced. It's a nuisance. They have the same problems as anybody else with subcontracted technicians. I think the weather related issues are a bit overblown, although I guess that depends largely on location. I do think directv offers a whole lot more than cable, and has its advantages. But it is by no means the glorious product some people are pretending it is.

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

Extra Innings will not affect local market games. That's part of the reason MLB isn't worried about this deal. It only affects the "superfan" as far as they're concerned.

[BigbadB]

Another thing I don't understand: why are so many of you continuing to suffer with cable? Seriously----if you're a sports fan, DirecTV is way better and has been for many, many years. And it's cheaper.

 

Latest stats I have seen say less than 10% of the people in the US can NOT get DirecTV due to blockage. Even some of those could get it by making a few yard adjustments, etc. The numbers are very small.

 

How exactly am I suffering? I have DVR. I have digital cable and digital phone. I have the entire cable tv package, which includes a ridiculous amount of premium movie channels. How is that suffering?

 

Sometimes one doesn't know how much he suffers until the suffering ends.

 

What exactly are you referring to when you talk about suffering? I'm assuming you are referring to HD. Aren't all cable providers switching more and more to HD? Won't they all be required to go fully HD by a certain date? If that's the case, what's the difference in HD between cable and dish?

 

I don't own a HD tv yet, therefore there is nothing to suffer for yet. I have 7 tv's plugged in throughout my house, and I don't see the point of buying just 1 HD tv if I watch games on different tv's. Therefore, when I do switch to HD, I will be buying multiple tv's, and the longer I wait, the cheaper those tv's get.

[rynefan]

I'm not kidding. If I lost my Cub games I don't know what I'd do! As it is, it's hard up here to keep track of what channel they're on. Last year I had local access to EVERY game, I think. A few years back, though, there were some on a local station WCIU that I didn't get with my cable company and had no way to get through them. It's been great with Comcast SportsNet taking over those.

 

I had EI the year before last, got it for a great price pre-season, like $90 or something, but at $120 last year or whatever it was, we let it go. But we do have XM Radio, and that has the contract with MLB, right? Each year we entertain the notion of getting EI back, because we have a house full of baseball fans.

 

Does EI have postgame? From what I recall in 2005 it cut out right when the game was over. I like the post-game.

[goonys evil twin]

And I really can't see me switching to Direct TV. I know people that have it and it goes out a lot.

 

If installed properly, it shouldn't. I know for some it does. But ever since I had mine professionally installed, I've had very few problems. My former roomate got cable at his new place and said that has more outages than directv.

[BigbadB]

Extra Innings will not affect local market games. That's part of the reason MLB isn't worried about this deal. It only affects the "superfan" as far as they're concerned.

 

Is that 100% accurate, though, Vance?

 

DirecTV subscribers with MLB EI in San Diego will not get the Padres games. It's blacked out here on MLB EI. The only way to get Padres games in San Diego is through the cable company.

 

Now, the Padres are different than most other teams, as they broadcast on a cable owned channel, Cox Cable. Most bars in San Diego are not able to broadcast the Padres games because they are DirecTV subscribers. It really hurts their business.

 

Being fair, most bars cannot get regular cable service. I've heard the pricing to run cable to "businesses", and it's not cheap. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 20K just to run the lines.

[rynefan]

The outages are definitely a place by place issue. I have Comcast and I don't think it's gone out in two years, knock on wood. My mom as a dish through sbc and it's a nightmare. Goes out if it gets windy, rainy, snowy, etc., and in Chicago, that happens a lot.

 

The thing witih DirecTV is that you have to look at the total offerings and yoru total home needs. I think DirecTV is great, but I like my Comcast Internet and Comcast Cable works for us. Never compared cost but I should. Comcast isn't cheap.

[BigbadB]

I'm not kidding. If I lost my Cub games I don't know what I'd do! As it is, it's hard up here to keep track of what channel they're on. Last year I had local access to EVERY game, I think. A few years back, though, there were some on a local station WCIU that I didn't get with my cable company and had no way to get through them. It's been great with Comcast SportsNet taking over those.

 

I had EI the year before last, got it for a great price pre-season, like $90 or something, but at $120 last year or whatever it was, we let it go. But we do have XM Radio, and that has the contract with MLB, right? Each year we entertain the notion of getting EI back, because we have a house full of baseball fans.

 

Does EI have postgame? From what I recall in 2005 it cut out right when the game was over. I like the post-game.

 

You'll have to ask Chicagoans whether they get black out games or not. If Comcast has the rights to most Cub games, I'm not sure how that fits in with DirecTV. I'm guessing they'll be blacked out locally, but I don't know for sure.

 

EI does not feature any post game. The games usually cut off faster than it takes to make the last out of a ball game.