DirecTV Sports Pack?

[obeythelaw]

Hello.
I used to have Dish Network for a long time. With any Dish Network Package you got, free of charge with that package (say, for example America's Top 100), the regional sports network for your area. In my case, it was MSG and Fox Sports New York. When I got DirecTV, I was told that in order to get these channels I have to subscribe to the Sports Pack. Is this true? I was talking to someone else and they said that it is not true and that I can get those channels without the Sports Pack. How about Fox Sports World? Can you only get that with the Sports Pack? I've been paying for the Sports Pack since I got DirecTV but now wonder if I really need to. I DO NOT watch any of the other Fox Sports channels in teh Sports Pack.

 

[ljp416jmp]

Obey,

If you are the in the NY metro area, you'll receive YES, MSG and FSNY without having the sports pack.

 

[obeythelaw]

Okay. thanks. I'm assuming that if I want Fox Sports World, then I would need the Sports Pack as that is not included in any package.
DirecTV doesn't really explain that on their website. :-(

 

[cbearnm]

Not sure if this helps, but I hope so.
If you are looking for Fox Sports World (613) specifically, then yes, you would need to subscribe to the Sports Networks package.
Since you say that you don't watch any of the Fox Sports Network, it's not important, but you would receive your 'local' Fox Sports channel as part of the base package.
PS; during football season, I get the Sports Network package just for Fox-Pittsburgh just for more Steelers coverage, then drop it after the season. (Yes, I enjoy pain)

 

[jdiehl]

PS; during football season, I get the Sports Network package just for Fox-Pittsburgh just for more Steelers coverage, then drop it after the season. (Yes, I enjoy pain)

I just got DirecTV hooked up yesterday and took advantage of the 4 for free deal with my Sunday Ticket sub. So, I have all of the premium stations, including this sports pack.

I flipped to Fox Sports Midwest last night to watch my beloved Cardinals play the Expos (I just moved from STL to Tampa in June) and the screen was black with some ordering info or something on it. Shouldn't I be able to view out of the local (Tampa) area sports on all of these Fox Sports channels across the country? Maybe it's just due to the fact that my receiver hadn't dialed up DirecTV yet through the phone jack (I think it makes it's first call at night?)

Anyway, some insight on this would be helpful. If I can watch all of the Fox Sports Midwest Cardinals and Blues games, I'll be keeping this Sports Pack for sure. Too cool (if it works).

 

[Curtis0620]

No, you must subscribe to MLBEI to get those games.

 

[jdiehl]

No, you must subscribe to MLBEI to get those games.

Even if they are airing on Fox Sports Midwest? If you can't get those games, what's the point of having 20 Fox Sports channels then? I don't need to see "Best Damn Sports Show" or "I, Max" from 20 different markets since they're all the same

 

[Mr Tony]

Any pro games outside of you local area will be blacked out

The sports pack is good for college games (college football, basketball) and other things like fishing or pro wrestling

 

[trafter]

College football games will be blacked out, too. You would need the ESPN GameDay package to see out of town games. I know from bitter experience.

 

[old rat]

its a bad, bad, deal...

Right now, to pay 12, 11, 10, or 8 bucks a month, to see 27 channels ( who's gonna count them) of the same thing, over, and over again, is a RIP OFF. If you would see the other teams, LIKE ADVERTISED, it would be fine. But its the most falsely advertised thing about Directv. In fact its just about an out and out LIE! Call them and tell them so. I will to and I invite others to JOIN US. Make the sports channels worth their money and not bait and switch. And don't promote them like , you WILL SEE ALL THESE GAMES, because YOU DON'T.

 

[Mr Tony]

College football games will be blacked out, too. You would need the ESPN GameDay package to see out of town games. I know from bitter experience.

not all of them..there is a fair share of them that arent blacked out (unless Direct does it differently than Dish)

 

[Mr Tony]

Right now, to pay 12, 11, 10, or 8 bucks a month, to see 27 channels ( who's gonna count them) of the same thing, over, and over again, is a RIP OFF. If you would see the other teams, LIKE ADVERTISED, it would be fine. But its the most falsely advertised thing about Directv. In fact its just about an out and out LIE! Call them and tell them so. I will to and I invite others to JOIN US. Make the sports channels worth their money and not bait and switch. And don't promote them like , you WILL SEE ALL THESE GAMES, because YOU DON'T.

Its not Direct or Dish who makes the blackout rules.....its MLB

Each sport has its own blackout rules.

So Direct & Dish arent lying...they have to follow the rules

from the DirectTv site

If a regional sports network that DIRECTV carries has the local rights to broadcast a game, customers within the region can receive that game through any DIRECTV® TOTAL CHOICE® or SPORTS Pack subscription, which includes customers' local regional sports network(s). Customers outside of the region will receive that game through the appropriate out-of-market pro sports subscription.

 

[old rat]

however their advertizing is something totally different..

But Directv "shows" baseball, football, soccer, and other sports in its advertizing of these channels. It more than IMPLIES THAT YOU WILL GET THESE GAMES BY BUYING THEIR SPORTS PACK. Its Directv's ripoff. However, they only fool you once and then you drop it. but in all Truth, its a LIE, LIE LIE!!!!!!

 

[Mr Tony]

college baseball
college football
some MLS games...otherwise college soccer or int'l soccer

If you read the site, it says "blackout rules apply"

I have had the sports pack for 4 years..I knew what it was when I bought it, and have no problems with it.

 

[jdiehl]

Ah, okay. Thanks for the clarification guys.

I'm getting it for free now with my 4 free months from signing up and getting Sunday Ticket, but when I call to drop down my subscription to the regular Total Choice, I'll be sure to let the CSR know that their "sports pack" is deceptively advertised.

 

[SliderNMFD]

I haven't really had time to watch TV yet, but I am a NY transplant and orderd the SportsPak so I could get YES to watch my Yankees. To tell the truth, even after having it for a month, I still haven't tuned into a YES to see if I can see a Yankees game even though I am outside the broadcast area. If this is the case, then I'm probably not going to get the Devils games either and I will just drop the sports package all together.

 

[ckudrna]

You will not be able to see a Yankees game on YES unless you purchase the MLB package.

This is not rocket science, if you want the MLB games, you pay for the MLB Package, that is the only way to do it.

You will notice that all games on the MLB pckage are either FSN or CSN games. Games broadcast on local stations (like WGN for the all powerful Cubs or channel 3 for the worst team in baseball) are not broadcast on the package. WGN superstation usually carries all games that are not on FSN Chicago, but WCIU sometimes carries these games, so they are not available.

It is MLB who charges a certain amount for rights to broadcast these games in certain markets, and it is not cheap. They are not dumb., they know people will pay for it (Me a few years in a row through Directv and COX).

If you want the devils games, buy the NHL package. You cannot get around paying for the packages by just paying for the FSN channels and not the sports packs.

I happily tuned in to watch the Cards blow a game to one of the worst teams in baseball, the expos, and then last night almost drop another one to the Expos.

 

[SliderNMFD]

Sorry if I'm not as smart as you are in figuring this out. I've lived in the same area all my life with the same cable company and followed the same teams, so I never had to change anything. Now that I am not in the area, I am trying to learn about why things are blackedout and what I can do about it.

Sometimes being a nice and helping someone without a condesending tone will go a lot farther.

 

[Mr Tony]

Every area of the country is "claimed" by a sports team. As an Example, Duluth, MN is "claimed" by the following teams
MN Twins & Milwaukee Brewers
MN Wild
MN Timberwolves

The above teams I can watch on my local Regional Sports network

If I want to see a different team, say the Colorado Avalanche, I can not get the sports pack and expect to see them. I would need NHL Center Ice.

The out of market sports packages (MLB Extra Innings, NBA League Pass & NHL Center Ice) allow someone to watch either their favorite team or is a sports junkie. NBA & NHL did the package right...all out of market games are on the package. MLB has a half-ars way of doing it. The only games they carry are the ones on the Regional Sports Networks. If a team has a game on a OTA station (say the Twins are on KSTC 45 in Mpls), it isn't on EI (I know this is a bad example because the FSN feed IS on EI). NHL and NBA have the games that are on a Over the Air telecast, or in the case of Canadian teams, the CBC, TSN or Rogers Sportsnet.

 

[jdiehl]

Sorry if I'm not as smart as you are in figuring this out. I've lived in the same area all my life with the same cable company and followed the same teams, so I never had to change anything. Now that I am not in the area, I am trying to learn about why things are blackedout and what I can do about it.

Sometimes being a nice and helping someone without a condesending tone will go a lot farther.

Yeah, no joke. ckudrna, it's not rocket science, but a fair question for sure. No need to get with the attitude or get condesending about it like Slider said.

I'm in a similar situation after living in St. Louis all of my life and then recently moving to Tampa. On the DirecTV website itself says:

With our SPORTS Pack premium service, you'll get all the sports action of 20 regional sports networks.

I assume that I'll get to see any games on Fox Sports Midwest or any other Fox Sports channel for that matter. It is deceptive, very much so... one would assume that "sports action" actually includes live pro sports, not talk shows and pregame fluff. I'm also assuming that if you're a baseball freak and actually want to watch each and every game for MLB (even the ones that aren't on Fox Sports, which are many) then you go with the full MLB Extra Innings subscription... at least that's the way I saw it. I'm not paying for it either way, but now I know how it works (or doesn't for that matter). Seriously though, they need to rename the "sports" package:

"Fox Sports Networks (sans actual major pro sports)."

And then rename the MLB Extra Innings:

"Everything that we're keeping you from seeing on our Sports Package".