Versus Removed Sept 1 from DirecTV

[jrcorwin]

The problem (or for some, the positive aspect) with DirecTV and it's HD offerings, is that they are too sports focused. They have most RSNs and spend a ton of money for the exclusive rights to Sunday Ticket, yet they only carry 3 or 4 of the 26 HBO/MAX HD channels. FIOS, on the other hand, has all the HBO/MAX channels in HD and everything in HD offered by Showtime/TMC. They have all the Starz except Starz West (for some odd reason) in HD. FIOS is a no-brainer if you are a movie lover. If you take out the sports package with DirecTV and the movie channels with FIOS, they have much in common as far as HD channels. They both have the Viacom HD channels and both are missing the Rainbow and Comcast HD offerings. If you love sports, go D*. If you love movies, go FIOS. DirecTV could easily ease the frustration by offering HBO2, HBO Family, Mormax, etc. in HD (as announced). But they don't take it serious or they would follow through.

Honestly, if you love movies you will skip everything other than Showtime and HDNet Movies. All the others give you the crop and zoom jobs with degraded PQ.

[lefatman]

My wife and I live all alone,
in a little grass shack we call our own.
She likes coffee, I like tea,
and together we live happily !


There is no way any of us is going to change what is going on between these 2 parties. Can't we just all get along ? This topic has long outlived its importance.
Let's move on and all start ranting about why we don't have ESPNUHD.

[skottey]

Honestly, if you love movies you will skip everything other than Showtime and HDNet Movies. All the others give you the crop and zoom jobs with degraded PQ.

The HD versions of the premiums are 16x9 or better. Yes, OAR is preferred, but filling the screen is catering to the general public, not the connoisseur. HBO/MAX admittedly do this a lot. But this is not as bad as 4:3 pan and scan by any means and makes the viewing acceptable. For me, if I enjoy a movie enough I buy the DVD, or in the last few year the HD-DVD or most recently bluray. I watch the movie channels to find hidden gems, watch movies I don't think I'd like enough to buy, and watch comedies for laughs. Good action flicks like Rambo, Terminator, Matrix, etc. I would buy anyway and not rely on premium channels (Ronin looked darn good on MGM HD btw and that was a hidden gem of a movie).

What I hate is the commercial laced channels that edit the movies for time or content to make the advertisers happy. No thanks... I never watch movies on basic cable channels that have commercials and edit.

Edit: All the HBO/MAX HD channels require 8Mbps and that is why many providers (probably DirecTV) don't carry them. FIOS has them all and they all look good most of the time.

[TomCat4680]

What I hate is the commercial laced channels that edit the movies for time or content to make the advertisers happy. No thanks... I never watch movies on basic cable channels that have commercials and edit.

+1, I love premiums and hate basic cable channels.

Isn't this the "give me back Versus" thread though.

[skottey]

+1, I love premiums and hate basic cable channels.

Isn't this the "give me back Versus" thread though.

Yeah, it is. We want Versus back. Not much else to say about that though.