I am a DirecTV subscriber. I feel your pain.
As I understand it, you should be writing to DirecTV NOT to me about this carriage of the network issue.
Here is information from NHL.com. Please email or call DirecTV NOT me. Thank you.
I also understand that your local cable company may have some good offers regarding NHL games and season ticket passes. Don’t hesitate to call your local cable company, too, to find out what to do to watch the games.
I want to help BUT I don’t own DirecTV or the cable MSO or VERSUS. Please communicate directly with them as I have. Thank you.
How can any company have such bad customer service. I just say on the phone for 30 min
Valuable information and excellent design you got here! I would like to thank you for sharing your thoughts and time into the stuff you post!! Thumbs up
Ted,
Besides the frustration of not being able to see the first two Caps road games because I have DirecTV, I am disturbed by the league taking sides on the issue rather than working with the parties to resolve it. And I can’t help but think the league is taking that position because the company that owns Versus also happens to own an NHL team. I appreciate that this is awkward for you since that same company also owns the regional sports network that carries the Caps games. The situation is just rife with conflicts (and, I suspect, antitrust implications) that more sensitive management by the league would do well to address and minimize, if not eliminate.
This has become the NHL’s problem.
Ted, you are an owner in a league that has a contract to broadcast on Versus. You have several things to say to Versus (or its parent, Comcast) that would carry vastly more weight coming from you than would random bitch-and-moan customer letters coming from the hoi polloi. Perhaps you and your fellow owners believe this should be handled by the league. Are you saying you have no way to influence the NHL to get involved in this? Of course you do!
Here are the main points the NHL should make with its current broadcast partner, Versus:
1) By getting into this dispute with DirecTV, Versus may be in breach of its NHL contract by allowing the dispute to limit the NHL’s access to the entire US market. 2) The NHL would not consider renewing with Versus if this is the kind of commitment to full US market access they are going to show. 3) The NHL should be willing to and offer to arbitrate a fair settlement between these parties.
DirecTV has a lot of nerve claiming “we are just looking out for our poor customers because we don’t want to raise your fees.” They have jacked up the price of NFL Sunday Ticket to $400 a year vs the $179-189 you pay for MLB or NHL packages! After 9 years, I finally had to cancel the NFL this season because I could no longer afford it.
I have to side with Brian L on this one, Ted. Why is DirecTV being called out as the bad guy? I can only imagine that it’s because Comcast owns Versus, NHL Center Ice, and the Philadelphia Flyers.
I know you don’t have significant (if any) ownership of Comcast and their minions, but you ARE an NHL franchisee, and your fans are taking the hit here.
At the rate things are going, I’ll be in a smoky sports bar tomorrow night, hoping that they have cable.
Hi Ted,
Thanks for the message, despite the content, because I was about to write you to try and do something about this. I must say, Ted, you are an owner, and an influential one. You know marketing, customer satisfaction, building a base, and those things that are required to make a product successful. I believe you–not me–are in a better position to bring some influence to this debacle. If you call Gary Bettman and TELL him to do something, he will pay more attention to you than to me. To be honest, I am not so sure you do feel my pain. And I am sorry to say that since I respect you so much for so many things. Help a brother out, Ted.
With lots of love for you and the Caps,
Paul R
What I don’t understand is how the league can partner up with Verizon to be a primary sponsor for many events, including the Winter Classic and the All Star game, as well as be an Arena Sponsor, but don’t offer the NHL network, not even in standard definition on it’s regular sports tier. ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Classic, Comcast Sportsnet, NFL Network, Versus and Fox Soccer Channel are all available at no extra charge, yet now I have to subscribe to the Extreme HD package to get the NHL network in regular definition on Fios.
That sucks out loud, and I have communicated this to the NHL when we get the NHL fan faceoff surveys, and Verizon, but so far I might as well have told it to the wall
I agree with Chris’s comments above. As a loyal Caps fan who is unable to attend every game in person, I have done my full part to patronize the organization by switching to the only service the NHL has a package deal with (DirecTV Center Ice). Now that still isn’t good enough to be able to watch two of my team’s first three games. It is the NHL – which includes you Ted – who should be applying the pressure on the two business parties to solve the issue and not abandon their loyal fans. But, since email is a poor conveyor of tone, I do want to emphasize my gratitude for your efforts in bringing the team so far along – don’t stop now!
Ted & Other Readers –
I’m a Caps fan and recently moved to Charlotte, NC. I have DirecTV. It looks like most of the Caps games are on Versus and some on CSN. If I get NHL Center Ice will I be able to see all or most of the games (including ones that would have been on Versus)? I don’t want to pay for it and find out I only get like 20% of the games.
Yeah, you can see that DirecTV appears to be more detailed an upfront that Versus is being unfair. The NHL is not taking the right approach for what I’d like to see. The NHL should be demanding Versus to charge no more to DirecTV than they charge to a Comcast distributor.
I agree with Jonas,and while you’re at it,can you buy the Redskins and fix them also…THIS IS THE YEAR…GO CAPS.
Actually it sounds like Comcast is the one being completely unreasonable. This is how DirecTV describes the problem:
http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/global/article.jsp?assetId=P6220002
What exactly is going on? is DirectTV not carrying VS at all? That’s what.. like around 50% of the game?
I complain about comcast a lot bu thank god I don’t have any problems getting games with them.
Ted,
I believe that the NHL as a whole should be putting great pressure on their partners to serve the general interest. As an owner, I would say the same for you as your consumers are being harmed. The nhl.com webpage is a start but as a fan this is the #1 issue for me for this year and the future.
Ted,
I was wondering where you stood on this. I suppose you have plenty of other viewing options. Do you really feel this is all on DirecTV – or should VERUS/Comcast make some concession? I have emailed DIRECTV to complain. One thing I haven’s seen Versus/Comcast do is defend itself on the per subscriber fee. It would be nice for them to make public what they are charging Comcast, Dish Network and Verizon Fios to carry Versus. Seems there could be some antitrust implications here if Versus/Comcast is trying to use this to take subscribers from DIRECTV…but I’m no lawyer. Go CAPS!!!
NFL Sunday Ticket, exclusive to DIRECTV, trumps everything else in the sports world, and Comcast needs to cut a deal to get Versus back on there. If they think sports fans are going to bail, they are on crack.
Ted,
Why can’t you just buy one of either:
A) DirecTV
B) Versus
and simply solve the problem for Caps fans. Is that really asking too much?
Ted,
I’ve been stewing about this DirecTV and Versus issue for a while and finally took your advice. I sent them an e-mail explaining that the NHL Center Ice package is the only way I get to see most Capitals games out here in Oregon (used to live in VA) and after paying the extra money for Center Ice I still miss the season’s first game. I downgraded my service to remove the Vs. tier as it was one of the few channels at that level I would watch. Suppose all I get in response will be the same, “they’re being unreasonable” page I was directed to before I could submit the question. If only the local cable company was worth a damn. Charter’s customer service has a reputation for being horrible, and according to my dad, that’s being nice. Thanks for letting me vent on your blog.
Regards,
Frustrated in Oregon
P.S.: I will be watching some low quality internet feed!
I feel bad that people are giving you flack of DirectTV’s decision. Good Luck with handling the calls.
While you’re at it, could you do me a favor and talk to my power company? My bills have been going through the roof. Good luck with that one too
I’d imagine you have other issues that to deal with our utility problems.
I sent you an email not about solving the carriage issue, but to ask that the organization help with the current problem that is the first game being on Versus. It is a big deal to me to miss any game, let alone the first game. Could there be a viewing party at Kettler or some organized event to help mitigate the problem? My bet is that most bars will have DirecTv because of teh NFL ticket. There do not seem to be any options.