I have TWC internet (but not cable) and I have been very pleased with the resolution of MLS Live on my laptop. It is usually a little pixelatedd when the game first loads, but it soon jumps up to 720p. Full screen on my 22" monitor looks sweet from 2 feet away.
The resolution was watchable for me. I was using my iphone and airplay to my TV. I've done this before with HBO Go, and HBO Go's resolution was better. I had one rebuffering case, which I never experienced before with HBO Go. One thing I did notice is the link to the feed wasn't available until right after kickoff on the MLS Match Day App, versus being up and going well before kickoff over the web interface.
This year is my first year with MLS Live as opposed to Direct Kick. I watched the FCD game on UDN because DirecTV carries it in HD, but I watched the San Jose-Seattle game afterward on MLS Live with a laptop plugged into my TV. The picture quality was 720p, even when I had March Madness Live going at the same time.
Since I have been to the home games so far this season I haven't been able to find out if DK works if you are not in a TWC served area. I live in the Park Cities and can now happily confirm that I am not blacked out for the Revs game. Up until game time the message on the channel 472-1 was that the game was blacked out but at 3 sharp the NE feed popped on so all is good on my side.
Not surprising. We've been hearing that for certain media issues, FCD has some sort of contractual attachment to the entire state that predates you.
LOL Yeah, I get it ... considering how I've been screwed repeatedly by Dish Network, I don't lose sleep over finding more "dubious" broadcasts via the internet. Having a computer hooked up to a 40" tv has its advantages. That said, I would happily pay for good service.
I watched this one on live.mlssoccer and was happy with the experience. Picture and sound quality would shift now and then but the feed never choked up or cut off. Later i tested the internet feed on my older computer that I take on the road. Once I shut down all other programs the feed runs fine. Planning ahead for the nights when I'll have to catch a game in my hotel room.
So i was on the road this weekend and missed a broadcast of the LA game on live.mlssoccer. Of course the game was blacked out in all of Texas for those who don't have TWC - i don't have it, never have never will. But then I saw a rebroadcast of the LA feed scheduled on my DirecTV tonight at 8pm. What do ya know, even a rebroadcast 2 days after the game is blacked out. This deal with TWC absolutely sucks. Thanks FCD, punish your biggest fans.
Umm. It was on NBCSN national feed and not on DK, TWC or MLSLive (I think/dn check). Agree that they did some crappage on most local fans on a season-wide basis.
Blacked out live though it was, it was archived and available on MLS Live within a couple of hours. I watched it that way.
I was originally very upset about the outlay of cash to get MLS Live, so that I could watch FCD on my TV (through Roku), but I have started to change my tune. I love MLS Live. The archived games, condensed matches, and highlights are very nice for catching up on the other teams in MLS. Also, I can watch them on my iPhone also, if I am waiting somewhere. I have also been very pleased with the streaming video quality. My one gripe would be that if you start a game while it is ongoing and try to watch from the beginning, the feed is not as stable, and stops to load every now and then, so, I either turn it off and wait for archive, or just eat missing however many minutes I have missed and go to the live feed.
The difference between FCD's money grab deal that alienated a ton of fans and RSL's view of television broadcasts: (taken from the article linked here: http://prosoccertalk.nbcsports.com/...eam-reveals-some-tasty-tidbits-in-reddit-ama/ )
My understanding was the TWC deal was just for a year. It will be interesting to see if they continue it after this season. With TWC getting into less than 25% of DFW households up until the bad streaks on the field, this was the #1 question asked of us at 3rdDegree. We were told at the onset there was going to be additional pre/post game & midweek programming that would be exclusive to TWC and would possibly be posted later to the FCD website… But I don't have TWC so I don't know if this content exists, and in a recent passing conversation with FCD's Digital Content guy, Daniel Robinson, it didn't seem that if it does exist it will ever be shown at fcdallas.com (to be fair to him he may not have understood my question)… can anyone confirm if there is any such content being shown on TWC?
What else would TWC be able to show on their sports network? Its not like they are completely booked up in terms of live sports content. My guess is TWC needs content to fill segements just as much as FCD needs somebody to air their matches live. The Rangers are locked up by FSN in the early stages of a 20 year deal. Not sure on the Mavs or the Stars, but a regional sports network needs to be able to air local sports if it has any hope of being picked up by anyone else.
I can confirm there is NO pre/post game content. I'm not sure about mid-week content, I saw something once, but I can easily say I'm not checking that channel often for anything at all, just move over during away FCD matches. This is getting worse by the way, TWC has now dropped CBS (freaking NFL football for craps sake) and Showtime/TMC. I'm leaving at the end of the season, maybe at the start of the NFL season. First time I can't watch a regular season Cowboys game I'm gone (already missed the DAL/OAK game since CBS is gone and NFL network was blacked out to DFW).
LOL, Time Warner. What a joke. Thank the Gods for my DirecTV and local bars that let me suffer through FCD away games.
So this weekend was even worse. The match is on KTXA 21 (a CBS affiliate) and also not be broadcast on the TWC sports channel. Since TWC has CBS pulled for the moment, me, a TWC subscriber couldn't watch the match, even though TWC has an exclusive deal with FCD. Un-real (oh, and I had to watch the Cowboys game on the Spanish station).
I've pretty much given up on watching FCD. First it was SH and his "non-beautiful" game, than TWC ruins most chances I have of watching FCD play (other than the long drive to Frisco). Even when I did catch an FCD game, I was wistfully admiring the relatively coherent passing game of the opposing team while wincing at FCD's own efforts at possession/attack...