check the MLS forum. It usually shows up here. Shootout schedules are generally considered league related content, and necessarily Business and Media stuff. Debates and discussions about the Shootout itself, though, are fair game.
OK: I'll bite, then. I haven't seen the Shootout schedule on MLSnet nor on DTV's site. Does anyone have any information as to whether DTV will be screwing us subscribers (like they did two years ago) by only showing those games that are on RSNs (i.e. no wild feeds)? Also, does anyone know how the games on HDNet (and, for that matter, FSW) will be handled on the Shootout? For example, will the games on HDNet also be broadcast on the SO (I'm not even going to touch whether or not they'll be on DTV)? Thanks, experts. =NLK=
The HDNet schedule and any non-HD broadcasts of the same games are independent. Example: next week's HDNet game San Jose @ Colorado is also being shown (tape-delayed) on Fox Sports Bay Area with a different broadcast team, different production equipment, etc. So the HDNet schedule should not have any impact on the MLS Shootout schedule -- if a game is not scheduled to be part of the Shootout package, but is on the HDNet schedule, it won't automatically show up on the Shootout package.
Oh, OK, thanks. That's one less thing to worry about (i.e. HDNet, which is nice for soccer, won't be subtracting games from the general SO pool). =NLK=
I specifically asked about the Shootout during the HDnet press conference and the reply was that there are no plans to make HDnet games available during the shootout. To be honest, there are only a handfull that aren't also being broadcast by some other outlet.
Saturday schedule is up on Directv: Crew at Ny ch.794 7:30est DC at KC ch.795 8:00 est SJ at Rapids ch.796 tape delay 10:00 est Fire-NE game will be on Sunday at 7:00 est on Ch.794 With the SJ-Rapids game being shown on tape delay it leads me to believe that there will probably be no wild feeds this year on Directv. On past years even when a game is on delay locally the Shootout package would pick up the live feed. I hope that I am wrong about the wild feeds and we get all the games like last year but I have my suspicions. Also Directv is advertising games on Directv channels 794-796. That is only 3 channels and some nights a full schedule would need 4 channels which is another clue that wild feeds may not be part of the package. We will find out next week when KC plays SJ on Metro Sports out of KC. Hopefully Directv will not return to Shootout Lite that they gave us in 2001. Last year Directv ruled as they carried every game. Only time will tell. Anyone with Dish have this weeks Schedule? Is the SJ-Rapids game on delay?
On digital cable, the Sj game will be on delay Saturday, but the Fire game Sunday won't (according to MLS). Strange, but at least they are on.
As a Wizards fan, a return to the "shootout lite" would suck doubly so for me. But your math is wrong. With one game every Saturday on espn2, and another on FSW, that leaves only 3 games max for the shootout. I've always wondered how they pick which feed to put on the shootout when both teams are broadcasting, but you'll notice that you only get one viewable feed per game (unless you're home market is the feed they didn't pick). The Wizards have one game on HDnet that currently has no other local or national broadcast scheduled. Too bad they're not downsampling those handful of HDnet games to NTSC as a wild-feed for the shootout. If Time Warner cable adds HDnet, I may just have to bite the bullet this summer.
A number of FSW are also broadcast locally and will be on the Shootout. In fact, most are. I think it's 16 HDnet games not broadcast elsewhere, but a bunch are Rapids games and I have no clue as to their plans for local TV.
Whoa, that is weird. Who is broadcasting the Sunday game? Did DTV just get it wrong? I, too, got a sinking feeling when I saw "Channels 794-796" on the DTV guide. But if in fact there can only be three games not on ESPN2/FSW then we don't have any new information. As said above, we'll just have to wait and see. =NLK= (prepared to go to CablevisionLI if they ever get their act together).
Huh. Did not know that. The latest I hear is that all FSW will be also carried somewhere on a local station as well. And only about a half-dozen or so games are covered nowhere, but they may get picked up by someone. And the HDNet exclusivity covers about a dozen games, but that seems to be the price to pay when you hook up with them.
The Sunday game is FSNE and will be on the Shootout. It just isn't on guides yet, I am told, because the decision to broadcast came down a short time ago. We'll see on Sunday. I trust who's telling me that, but I don't know if I trust iNDemand.
What I'm saying is that DirecTV doesn't need to provide a shootout channel for the games available on FSW. Whether DISH or iNDemand opts to open up more regional coverage is up to them. My experience from DirecTV is that when a game is available on the shootout, the RSN broadcast (where applicable) is also unblocked, but only the broadcast that's also on the shootout channels. For instance there were games involving DC/NE/MetroStars where both teams playing were broadcasting. One of the two feeds was on the Shootout, and that matching RSN feed was unblocked, BUT the other team's feed was still blacked out. I suspect that DirecTV is planning on making the FSW feed available, and any non-local RSN feed of the same game will be blocked, and no Shootout channel will be needed. The big "IF" is what happens to the 1) wild feed games that DirecTV showed last year, and 2) the raw live feeds of tape delay games (mainly LA) that DirecTV showed last year. Given the fact that only 13 of 30 Wizard games are being broadcast by FSW, espn2, and "mainline" RSNs, I'm very concerned. Here's what the remote Wizard fans has to worry about: 1 game on espn2 (tape delayed at that) 4 games on FSW (and maybe wild feeds/HDnet) 3 games on FSW & main RSNs 5 games on main RSNs 13 of 30. That's all I'm guaranteed by DirecTV Other games 5 games with no broadcast plans 5 games only on HDnet (wanna send me a couple grand?) 1 game on MetroSports (KC RSN) 2 games on MetroSports and local channels 1 game on MetroSports and HDnet 2 games on local channels 1 game on local channel and HDnet So between HDnet only and non-broadcasts, even DISH and iNDemand subscribers can only get 20 Wizard games. Talk about being screwed. Note: The 5 games with no broad cast are 2 SJ@KC, KC@SJ, Colo@KC, KC@Dallas. San Jose and Colorado have yet to announce broadcast packages involving wild-feeds. After last season's "enhanced" in-stadium feed for the SJ@Columbus playoff game on the Shootout, it was mentioned that MLS was considering filling in the gaps of coverage for the Shootout. Anyone hear anything about that lately?
FWIW, Dish will be showing the FSW match both on FSW (of course) and also as a Shootout offering (at least it says so on the on-screen guide).
I'm slow, so bear with me. Is this because FSW is included in the same package that the RSNs are? SJ has two wild feed games late in the season, October games involving the Rapids and Galaxy. I'm trying to get Colorado info. The whole KC situation is pretty bad. You have every right to gripe loudly. June 11, DC at Colorado June 18, San Jose at LA June 28, KC at San Jose July 30, Columbus at LA August 13, San Jose at Dallas August 16, KC at Dallas They are now listed on the MLS schedule as ENG. I have a feeling some of the local deals are still being hammered out. Hopefully all this confusion is an effort to get every game televised somewhere. If you find someone with that few grand to help out you with HD, send them my way too. My question about that is since they are only shooting in HD, there must be an ENG feed to highlights. I know that runs into the costs of sending the ENG feed to the Shootout, etc., but hopefully it's something they consider.
FYI on the HDNet stuff -- I got my DirecTV HD-capable receiver yesterday. I have not yet received my triple-LNB dish so I'm not getting HDNet yet, but the receiver can also get HD over-the-air channels (although the only one I am getting right now is the NBC feed from San Jose, the channels from SF don't come in well enough so I will need to get a new antenna or something). The receiver can send HD output to a regular old TV or VCR, it is letterboxed. So the total cost to see things on HDNet is under $1K -- the receiver (Samsung SIR-TS160) cost a little under $600, and the triple LNB dish should be under $100 assuming I win the eBay auction I'm looking at today. Still a big chunk of change, but not a few grand as reported here. I'm still looking at dropping $2-3K on the new TV though.
I know that doesn't help you, but....... Andy: Perhaps putting fewer Wizards games on television is an insidious plot to get people who want to see more Wizards action to buy tickets so they can break the MLS record.
Re: I know that doesn't help you, but....... But that doesn't help the away crowd. And the one espn2 game is a home game that is tape delayed, I guess so folks can go to the game, then go home and watch themselves on TV.
Ouch. Are the receivers really that much? Is there such a thing as an HD VCR? I assume your Samsung still connects to a phone jack for PPV (Shootout) authorization.
Re: Re: I know that doesn't help you, but....... That's why I was joking. And that's why the title of the post was "I know that doesn't help you, but....." Geez, you go away for three months and people's sarcasm detectors go completely on the fritz.
Yes, it's called DVHS. It uses MPEG2 compression (just like DVD), and a high bitrate Dolby Digital 5.1 audio stream. Some prerecorded films are available in this format. Sources say that the degradation of the tape causes sound and video dropouts after a while. It's clearly not the long term answer to archival recording or to prerecorded video sales for high definition content. Will have to wait for a standard on HD-DVD for that. A JVC HM-DH30000 DVHS Recorder/Player will set you back around $550 (via Amazon.com). Prerecorded DVHS tapes cost about $30 and up, and I have got no idea how much blanks cost, nor where you could even buy them. Edit: Amazon is selling blank DVHS tapes for $30.