Directv Sunday Ticket Adds $99 HD Football Games to Price !!

[Matt Heebner]

I am not sure how I missed this in AVS Forum...but Directv has announced that in order to receive the HD football games on the Sunday ticket, you will have to  pony up an additional $99 on top of a already price increased $219 Sunday Ticket.

Is Directv on crack


I have been really getting discouraged with Directv, and this...this  is the straw that broke the camels back. I have been a ST subscriber for years... but if they think I am going to pay ANOTHER $100 for the games...not only have they lost a ST sub, but a Directv customer as well. TWC is starting to look very good...and Dish Network also.

I am sooo frustrated right now I cant even get my thoughts together... :mad:  :mad:  :mad:  :mad:

Matt

[Scott]

Direct TV just realizes that it can get the money.  It has the exclusive to Sunday ticket and had to pay a lot more for the rights recently.   And it knows the early HD adapters will pony up the extra cash to make up for any lost subscribers.

I'd be more upset, but I gave up my Sunday ticket about 3-4 years ago when I realized I personally couldn't watch all those games, but really only had time for the GB game.  

My question is when will Direct TV add more HD channels period.....I'm letting my TWC brethren watch a good chunk of the NBA playoffs in HD on TNT, while I sit with my blurred SD picture.

This board used to be alive with new announcements of channels, more HD programming, etc.   It seems the last six-months nothing has happened with either TWC or Direct TV (or at least nothing publicly announced)

[qawsed]

Thanks to Directv's $99 sunday ticket addition, I took the time to review my entire satellite bill.  To make a long story short, I went to the TWC store in Mayfair and got a deal for digipic 1000 with HDDVR, and my combined tv/roadrunner bill will be $30/month lower, at least for the next 16 months.  I hated to do it since I've had multiple bad experiences with TWC before, and I had the standard 2 hour installation complete with foul-ups, but it's done.  The SD picture is about the same, but my HD picture is greatly improved over D*.

Not telling anyone what to do - but from my point of view, the price of D* has gone up and the quality has gone down to the point where TWC is ahead.  So there I went.

[Matt Heebner]

My question is when will Direct TV add more HD channels period

Thats the problem !!! Directv is putting up new sats and have them operational by fall. Supposedly they are gonna be able to handle tons of HD, but what new channels have been announced ? NONE except LIL HD ...BIG FREAKIN DEAL...and not even in Milwaukee until what...about 2007 Where is the TNT-HD, where is the ESPN2-HD, where are the VOOM exclusives THAT ARE NOW ON DISH ?? AARRRGGGHHHH !!!!

I want more HD channels, I WANT a reasonably priced HD DVR, and I don't want to get raped for previously included HD channels on the packages I buy.

And no...I don't feel better now  :mad:

Matt

[Gregg Lengling]

also remember the Directv sats are going to use MPEG4 encoding....this means new receivers.....

[sp44again]

also remember the Directv sats are going to use MPEG4 encoding....this means new receivers.....

Big deal. You think D* is going to screw over everybody and make them buy new boxes at full price? I'll pay $50 for a new DVR like I did for my current one.

[Matt Heebner]

Don't be so sure.  I would have never thought that D* would be bending me over for HD Sunday Ticket games at over $300 for the season either...especially when they gave it to us for no charge last year. That's a 70% increase in price for apprx. 4  games a Sunday. And you think that what they've done in the past will hold true now !!??

Before this BS, I would've agreed with you about the upgrades...now I don't think they are at all interested in retaining their HD subscriber base.

Matt

[sp44again]

So you don't think D* might change their mind with the uproar this has caused? I'm keeping mine til I know for sure.

[Matt Heebner]

No. Remember this is Rupert Murdoch that now owns Directv. They are going to try and re-coup a tiny portion of the billions it has just spent putting up new satellites, and buying the exclusive rights to the Sunday Ticket from the NFL.
I think this might set a dangerous precedent for HDTV. Remember..only the HD subscribers are going to be affected. :rolleyes:

Matt

[mhz40]

Direct TV just realizes that it can get the money.  It has the exclusive to Sunday ticket and had to pay a lot more for the rights recently.   And it knows the early HD adapters will pony up the extra cash to make up for any lost subscribers.

What a bummer, nearly $20 a week for 7 hours of HD football.
Jsut remember, DirectTV BID for the rights... they weren't forced into it.
In terms of no new HD content (TW and elsewhere), I think the industry as a whole is catching its collective breath and trying to figure out the next steps in adding content.  It would be nice to get the Sinclar stuff on cable, but most of the other programming (IMO) does not warrant the bandwidth it takes to provide it.  Yes, ESPN & TNT are good examples... chewing up space 24x7 and providing true HD content only a fraction of the time.

[gparris]

What you mean to say, mhz40 (being in the position you are in) is that TWC is not planning on anymore HD channels to be added this year?

 Maybe Time Warner's very-own Cinemax HD or maybe Starz HD (to justify the $10 price more recently raised from $8.95/month), would be at least worthwhile.
Universal HD would be a nice addition to the HD package, Cox Cable has it.
 
I know that Sinclair wants money, so why can't TWC just make it part of the HD package for those who don't do antenna (and want to record it on their HD DVRs?)

[smack]

The post regarding this at AVS is a sticky at the top.

in scanning through the 900+ posts on this it looks like everyone including myself is a little upset by this.

I did see that some of the people are calling and d* is waiving the $99.00 fee if you agree to stay with them for another year.

smack

I will not pay the extra $99 myself, and I have been a D* and ST subscriber for 7 years.

[Matt Heebner]

But is still doesn't change the fact that they are "sticking it" to the HD subscriber. I've been with D* for 8-9 years. I've done Sunday Ticket for like 6 years, but I am expected to now pony up more money for the something that was included (and advertised) last year for free !!!?

This is rotten...the whole deal is rotten, and I don't like it. They can take their "credit" and "stick it". And like I said before....this is setting a dangerous precedent for HD. If they want to raise the price of ST...fine. I can take a price increase or leave it. If they want to just offer the HD games for $99..I am even fine with that. I would actually even like that and subscribe to that...and cut out the standard games !!! But it's the fact that they are only charging the HD subscribers this increase to see the HD games...UGH it just kills me.


It's like subscribing to HBO. Right now if you subscribe to HBO, I do believe that on D*, E*, and TWC you get all the HBO's and HBO-HD for the cost of the subscription. NOw imagine if all the providers said: "HBO_HD is gonna cost you an extra $10.00/mo just to see the channel in HD. Regular sub's aren't gonna have to pay, but if you want to see HBO in HD...you have to pay the extra fee.

Makes you wonder if the LIL HD rollout by D* is gonna cost an extra fee. I'll bet it does.

Matt

[gparris]

Never thought of it that way, but it makes sense under the new pricing scenario and for the future... ouch!
-Gotta pay for those new sats, somehow.
I understand even a few bucks, maybe, like if TWC offers me the SBG channels in HD for only 50 cents more - what SBG is asking per sub per month- still cheaper than an antenna.
However,  TWC holds firm on the no-adder for HD philosophy, so I doubt they will ever do what D* is attempting.

[Scott]

Maybe I'm getting taken to the cleaners (and you guys can help me out if I am), but I see on my bill each month with Direct TV a $10.99 charge for the HD channels.  

That charge should be enough for DirectTV.  They don't need to tack on another $99 for the HD football stuff.  

I'm also struggling with paying for the HD package, as other than ESPN, I now watch most of my HD from the various network shows that are in HD OTA.

When will Direct TV offer HD locals in this market with the MPEG4?  I know some of you guys are really plugged in here.   I see the HD Tivo price came down, but I'm still scared at that number.