Did anyone else who subscribes to Direct Kick through Comcast have neither game available to them this past Saturday night? Neither Chi-NY on Team 6 or DC-FCD on Team 7 came in. All I had was a black screen. The games were listed as being on according to the guide on Team 8 and 9. And as of last night, Team 6 and 7 are still completely blank while the list of games for this weekend is displayed on Team 8 and 9. I called Comcast to have them troubleshoot and their only solution was to have me unplug my cable box, wait 30 seconds, and replug it in. Surprisingly, this didn't work. They say the only other option is to have a technician come out. Which means taking time off of work to fit in to their 4-hour windows of when a technician might come by....most likely to tell me that the box is fine. I seriously doubt the problem is with my box since every other channel is working fine. I think the problem has got to be with Comcast or In Demand, especially since half the Team channels appear to be working, just not the ones that have any games on them anytime soon. Has anyone ever tried to contact In Demand's customer service, and are they just as clueless as Comcast's? Every year I struggle with Comcast just to get the package ordered, and it usually takes multiple phone calls to finally get the subscription to work.
Long, bad history with Comcast and Direct Kick. I'm 99% sure that your issue is that nobody put the updated codes for the month of Septmeber in the system. Almost every time I had an issue, that's what it was. I haven't been with Comcast for 4 years, but I doubt anything has chanced. Try sports@indemand.com. I haven't used it for 4 years, but I hadd good luck with it when I did.
Did you ever resolve your issue with Comcast? I am having the exact same problem...two of the channels don't work (Team 6 and 7), while two of them do (Team 8 and 9). The problem is, both of the playoff games scheduled for this weekend are on the blacked out channels (Team 6 and 7). I would love to find out what the solution to your (our) problem is. FYI I am in northern Virginia...and have had NO luck with the Comcast support staff. I have a technician coming out to the house Saturday morning. One thing I think is funny about this...you're most likely a CHI fan while I'm a DCU fan...at the end of the day we're both soccer fans!!
Yes, after much frustration it was magically fixed a day before the next weekend's games. I'm trying to remember the exact sequence of events. Several calls and emails to Comcast, who was at least looking into the problem. I think eventually they assigned a specific ticket to my problem and I even had a rep from the main offices tracking the issue. They gave me a special number to reach them by, different from the main Comcast support number, but unfortunately I don't think I have that number any more, or else I'd give it to you. I had a technician scheduled to come out on a Friday with hopes they could resolve the issue before Saturday. So I took off work Friday morning, and as I'm sitting around waiting for the technician, I decided to check the channels one last time and they were back up again. I called the special number and let them know, they were surprised it had been fixed before the tech came, so I don't think they even knew what had happened. Just to show you how great Comcast's normal support is, I called to let them know I no longer needed the tech, but I came home from work to find a message that the tech had come any way, no one bothered to tell him the appt. was cancelled. So I'm sorry to say I really don't know the exact solution, except to be persistent with Comcast. This is actually the 2nd time that an issue has resolved itself just hours before a tech was coming. The first time I had no channels at all. Maybe they'll give you that special number. I also tried emailing inDemand, but they never responded. You may have noticed that they don't even have the playoff schedule and channel assignments up on their website. Good luck in getting it fixed before tomorrow. As soccer fans, we all know how frustrating the Direct Kick experience has been. Hopefully you still get ESPN2 for the only 1st round series that really matters. You're correct with your assumptions about where my allegiences lie. I'm not too comfortable with only a 1-0 lead going into leg 2, especially since your two big guns didn't play much last night. If it helps, according to www.zap2it.com, the 2 non ESPN2 and FSC games next weekend (Hou-Dal and KC-Chv) will be on Team 9 due to the NBA package taking over 6 and 7.
After talking with various Comcast people and even having a tech. come by the house the day of the game, nothing ever got fixed (I thought the tech. might be able to escalate the issue; you and I know the problem wasn't on my end). I think the problem was that they either blacked out my market by accident or there was some type of conflict with the NBA package, which shares channels with Direct Kick. I ended up missing a total of three playoff games and they gave me a $20 credit on my next bill. I haven't called to ask for anything else because I am tired of dealing with Comcast. The good news is that both games from this weekend worked and the rest of the playoffs are on national TV. At any rate, thanks for your advice and good luck against the Revs Thursday night.
Sorry to hear the problem was never solved. That's Comcast for you. I'm looking to move soon and I've pledged that as soon as I do, I'm getting rid of cable and moving on to a dish. Not having an answer to an issue like this is not the type of service one would expect for nearly $100 a month (and that's just my regular bill, let alone the charge for Direct Kick.) You're probably right on your diagnosis of the accidental blackout, or an issue with the NBA package. I was half-expecting to tune in for the games on Team9 last weekend and get basketball instead. Thanks for the wishes against NE. From your mouth to Blanco's feet, I hope. Enjoy the remaining games and best of luck next season, both with United and Comcast.
I had a similar problem with Comcast Atlanta a couple of years back that inolved many calls to CSRs, many visits from techs, a couple completely missed appointments from techs, more visits, more.... you get the point. The problem was never totally fixed, but I did get them to knock a pretty good chunk off my bill while it was "being worked on" (several months). The "solution" started with a very polite, very fact-based email addressed to everyone whose name I could find on various business info websites, including the CEO (John Roberts at the time, dunno if he's still there). They all use the same format for at least one of their emails, so once you get a name, say John Roberts, CEO, you just do roberts.john@comcast.net (or whatever the format is). I finished my email with something along the lines of "I certainly hope we can solve this problem, as I'd like to remain a Comcast customer and not have to find alternatives for my television, internet and phone needs." Someone from his office in Philly emailed me and then called me within a couple of days, and was able to -- essentially -- give me a $15 per month rebate until the problem got solved. Not a perfect solution, but it made my problem a bit more palatable. I switched providers several months later.