40#1Fan 0 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 For the last couple of days, DirecTV satellite television subscribers have been seeing a crawl if they've watched any Versus network programming telling them that as of Aug. 31, DirecTV will no longer carry Versus. For college football and NHL fans who get their television through DirecTV, this could be bad news. Five Pacific 10 Conference games (as yet undetermined) as well as an assortment of Big 12 and Mountain West games, and an NHL package of 54 games could become unavailable to DirecTV subscribers just when those seasons start. The first Pac-10 game on the Versus schedule will be Sept. 26. According to Versus, it is now seen in 75 million homes. Besides college football and the NHL, Versus is the home of the Tour de France, IRL auto racing and cage fighting. Robert Mercer, director of public relations for DirecTV, said: "Versus' overall ratings are poor and have not increased nearly enough to justify what we're paying them, let alone the significant increase they"re asking for." http://www.fannation.com/truth_and_rumors/...ork?eref=fromSI Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NeverForgetMac25 483 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 Dammit! This is what I get for switching to DirecTV a year ago. What a waste. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JayUp88 1 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 Charter cable did this my 4th year up at Central and we called in to complain. They said they had never gotten so many complaints about a station and got it put back on the network. Mind you they started running the crawl about canceling it during round one of the playoffs. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
digitaljohn88 4 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 I don't get VS on basic cable, and my most-used way to see those games was mooching off people with DirecTV. I'd rather have s***ty coverage on an available network. BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SouthernWingsFan 854 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 Wow. Even though I have Charter Commnications and can find places to watch stuff on VS that carry the Dish Network, this does not make me a happy camper b/c some places I like to go have DirectTV. Add to that that this is a double whammy for me as I love hockey obviously and the college I went to plays its sports in the Mountain West Conference. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CUJO#31 0 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 That's what happens when you suck, people don't want to watch. The NHL won't last on this crap network. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PROBIE4PREZ 58 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 I had dish network two years ago and I had to upgrade my package to get Vs. So I switch to DirecTV and all is fine .. until I heard this news ... On Dish Network I had to pay a extra $5 a month just to get FSN-D (before I upgraded)! The packages offered by Dish Network are atrocious and even though DirecTV is dropping Vs , id stick with directv .. as for Vs ..suck my left ball for trying to raise your price .. s***ty programming + a successful NHL season doesnt give you a right to profit from it.. ESPN! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GMRwings1983 8,794 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 This blows, since this was my ONLY means of watching hockey. Don't know what I'll do now. It's all Bettman's fault. Can't the 30 owners get together and stab him like Julius Caesar? Remove the f**k already. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bring Back The Bruise Bros 1,029 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 This blows, since this was my ONLY means of watching hockey. Don't know what I'll do now. It's all Bettman's fault. Can't the 30 owners get together and stab him like Julius Caesar? Remove the f**k already. couldnt have said it better myself Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GMRwings1983 8,794 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 How many more embarassments is this league going to suffer when it comes to popularity? First it gets dumped off ESPN for that poker s*** and now the league can't even stay on Versus, Direct TV. Maybe the Lifetime network can adopt the NHL and we can watch the games that way. Pathetic league with s***ty marketing and bad leadership. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
titanium2 867 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 It's all Bettman's fault. Can't the 30 owners get together and stab him like Julius Caesar? Remove the f**k already. Haha... Et tu, Shanahan? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dan Bylsma 27 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 i don't think anything is certain yet. I've been following this on another forum.I'm a cyclist and a big Tour De France fan. Here's a letter that a forum member got from DirectV concerning this..... Dear Mr Thanks for writing. We recognize you as a valued and loyal customer and we want you to know we appreciate it. Our agreement with Versus expires on August 31, 2009. We are working hard to reach an agreement to keep Versus on the air. If we are unable to reach an agreement and must take Versus off the air, we will communicate with you via on-air slides or messaging. We understand how important Versus is to you. It's equally important to us to keep your monthly fees low, so we're doing everything we can to avoid paying exorbitant programming fees. We feel that the terms Versus is asking for from us do not reflect the market or what they are asking of other distributors. If we are unable to reach an agreement by August 31, we will continue to negotiate with Versus, however, it's unlikely that we'll be able to keep Versus on the air during negotiations. In the meantime, you'll still be able to watch college football on Big Ten Network, the MTN., ESPN, ESPNU, ESPN GamePlan, local channels and your Regional Sports Network (RSN). NHL games are available on NHL Network, NHL Center Ice, and your RSN. MMA is available on HDNet and Spike TV, IRL on ABC, and Professional Bull Riding on ESPN2. Thanks again for writing and stay tuned to directv.com for the latest news and information Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GMRwings1983 8,794 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 i don't think anything is certain yet. I've been following this on another forum.I'm a cyclist and a big Tour De France fan. Here's a letter that a forum member got from DirectV concerning this..... Dear Mr Thanks for writing. We recognize you as a valued and loyal customer and we want you to know we appreciate it. Our agreement with Versus expires on August 31, 2009. We are working hard to reach an agreement to keep Versus on the air. If we are unable to reach an agreement and must take Versus off the air, we will communicate with you via on-air slides or messaging. We understand how important Versus is to you. It's equally important to us to keep your monthly fees low, so we're doing everything we can to avoid paying exorbitant programming fees. We feel that the terms Versus is asking for from us do not reflect the market or what they are asking of other distributors. If we are unable to reach an agreement by August 31, we will continue to negotiate with Versus, however, it's unlikely that we'll be able to keep Versus on the air during negotiations. In the meantime, you'll still be able to watch college football on Big Ten Network, the MTN., ESPN, ESPNU, ESPN GamePlan, local channels and your Regional Sports Network (RSN). NHL games are available on NHL Network, NHL Center Ice, and your RSN. MMA is available on HDNet and Spike TV, IRL on ABC, and Professional Bull Riding on ESPN2. Thanks again for writing and stay tuned to directv.com for the latest news and information The NHL network doesn't cover the playoffs so that doesn't mean s***. Also, many Wings fans live outside Detroit (we're not the Pens ), so this does prevent many of us from watching games, especially playoff games. Online streaming is always available, but hardly reliable. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lancz 0 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 Maybe the Lifetime network can adopt the NHL and we can watch the games that way. :rotflmao: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
redwing711 0 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 This happened with Dish about 4 years ago. They let contract negotiations drag on until 1 week before the playoffs and that was when I switched to DirecTV. I can handle missing a few regular season games, but if I end up missing playoff games because the NHL contracted with this stupid channel I'm really going to be pissed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bring Back The Bruise Bros 1,029 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 How many more embarassments is this league going to suffer when it comes to popularity? First it gets dumped off ESPN for that poker s*** and now the league can't even stay on Versus, Direct TV. Maybe the Lifetime network can adopt the NHL and we can watch the games that way. Pathetic league with s***ty marketing and bad leadership. with some of the little girly posters on this site,the Lifetime network would be convenient for them.They could watch their chick flicks and soaps immediately following the game. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Electrophile 3,554 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 (edited) with some of the little girly posters on this site,the Lifetime network would be convenient for them.They could watch their chick flicks and soaps immediately following the game. Ahh, nothing like the sweet smell of broad-brush generalizing and stereotyping in the afternoon. Almost as good as the smell of fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies. I am curious though as to what a "little girly poster" is. When I think of a "little girly poster", this is what I see: Maybe that's what you had in mind? Edited August 24, 2009 by Electrophile Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jollymania 162 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 i was thinking of swtching, now im not Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
octopusonice 0 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 The only way around this would be to have cable and Direct TV at your home--not cheap. I wish there was a way to get the channel a la carte, without having to buy a package. I thought some games were available online. Maybe this is the only alternative or would you be able to get it on NHL Center Ice? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thedisappearer 291 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 DAMMIT. Wings games that are on Vs had not better have Center Ice feed blacked out or I will kill someone. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NeverForgetMac25 483 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 The only way around this would be to have cable and Direct TV at your home--not cheap. I wish there was a way to get the channel a la carte, without having to buy a package. I thought some games were available online. Maybe this is the only alternative or would you be able to get it on NHL Center Ice? I can't imagine we would. I've had Center Ice the past 4 years, the first 3 years with Time Warner and last season with DirecTV. Neither showed games on CenterIce when Versus had them. They own exclusive rights to the games they show. Basically, we're f***ed! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bring Back The Bruise Bros 1,029 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 [/b] I can't imagine we would. I had Center Ice the past 4 years, the first 3 years with Time Warner and last season with DirecTV. Neither showed games on CenterIce when Versus had them. They own exclusive rights to the games they show. Basically, we're f***ed! Yeah,me too.this is my 5th year w Center Ice,3 with Dish and 1 with Time Warner..they dnt air the Versus games Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AtomicPunk 296 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 Give me CBC in hi-def. Now. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GMRwings1983 8,794 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 Well look on the bright side, guys. We'll always be able to watch hockey on NBC. Like once every 4 weeks starting in January. Is the NHL capable of doing anything right when it comes to increasing its popularity? I mean, this league couldn't sell ice to people dying of thirst in the desert. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hockeytown0001 7,652 Report post Posted August 24, 2009 Well, thank God for Comcast, I guess. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites