WTF Mavs fans..... - Dallas-Mavs.com Forums

bogey · 11-16-2003, 12:50 PM

I have League Pass. I bought it for the express purpose of catching Mavericks road games. Last night, the Mavs @ Memphis road game was blacked out?!?!?!?!

The NBA has a rule that allows for the blackout of games. The purpose is to inspire more local attendance at the game. However, blacking out a game in Memphis F'ing Tennessee makes no sense. Can someone please explain the logic behind that? I called Time Warner cable to ask and tehy politely inform me that all San Antonio and Dallas games will be blacked out. WTF? How can I possibly live in 2 blackout zones? Another bullshit NBA glitch? I thought that all regions were divided up to allow only one team to control regional broadcast rights.

Anyone have a clue? I tried calling Sports In Demand but they only had a voice system. I am calling Time Warner Monday morning.

Rhylan · 11-16-2003, 03:37 PM

That's crazy, man. League Pass oughta be League Pass, in my opinion. You oughta receive every game they carry - you're paying a premium for that service.

The idea that TV broadcasts somehow threaten attendance is archaic, to begin with. I mean, do you guys remember the days when the Cowboys were just starting to get good again, in the Jimmy Johnson era, and if a game at Texas Stadium was in danger of being blacked out, Kroger or some gro sto would buy up the remaining tickets? We're talking 400, 500 tickets here. What idiot set of suits sitting around a table actually thinks that $50 x 500 + overpriced cold beer > hundreds of thousands of lost viewers?

Of course, League Pass and the NBA in general has a much smaller audience.. but the concept is just bad. What's the deal, are you expected to drive into a game from Waco? Puhleaase [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

LRB · 11-16-2003, 03:41 PM

Easy explanation: David Stern = World Class Dumbass

MavKikiNYC · 11-16-2003, 04:07 PM

Thanks for that ringing endorsement of League Pass.

I believe I know what decision I'll make with that in mind.

I think the NBA is making a big mistake by making their product less visible rather than more.

LRB · 11-16-2003, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by: MavKikiNYC
Thanks for that ringing endorsement of League Pass.

I believe I know what decision I'll make with that in mind.

I think the NBA is making a big mistake by making their product less visible rather than more.

Of course maybe they new the horrible refing job that would be done in the Memphis game and figured that no game was better than letting you see their warts. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-disgusted.gif[/img]

mavs413 · 11-16-2003, 04:55 PM

I dont know about that because I have league pass too and I watched the game last night, and have never had a problem with League Pass.

bogey · 11-16-2003, 05:23 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by: mavs413
I dont know about that because I have league pass too and I watched the game last night, and have never had a problem with League Pass.

Where do you live? If you don't live in a "tweener" area (Like Waco to Dallas and San Antonio) you might not experience the troubles we do. If you live nowhere near an NBA city you may avoid the clusterf*ck that is the BLACKOUT. Time Warner said they would refund me but they arelooking into it. It made no sense to them either.

grndmstr_c · 11-16-2003, 05:40 PM

A quick addition to the discussion. According to information I've found on the web discussing the League Pass the purpose of the blackouts is actually unrelated to game attendance. The reason they do the blackouts is to protect advertising dollars for non-LP broadcasts of the games. That is, if people are watching the game on LP rather than on whichever Fox network (or whatever else) is carrying it, it apparently negatively impacts ad revenues for the normal carrier of the game. Now, that said, it seems only fair that if a game is not being locally or nationally televised (as is often the case with road games), it should not be blacked out, irrespective of whether the local team is involved in that game. Whether or not Time Warner and the NBA adhere to this reasonable standard of fairness is another question. My hunch is that unclear contractual terms and Time Warner stupidity are to blame if games that should be available on LP are blacked out. FWIW, I'm out in SoCal, where both LA teams are considered local, but I have been able to catch their road games on LP.

Bookit · 11-16-2003, 06:45 PM

The game is only blacked out on League pass if the League pass broadcast is the opponent's broadcast(Grizz). You then have to watch the game on UPN 21. If you have Directv you can watch the game clearly with a subscription to the local channels. Rabbit ears might be your only other option if you don't have a sat dish.

The blackout has NOTHING to do with attendence.

bogey · 11-16-2003, 07:17 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by: Bookit
The game is only blacked out on League pass if the League pass broadcast is the opponent's broadcast(Grizz). You then have to watch the game on UPN 21. If you have Directv you can watch the game clearly with a subscription to the local channels. Rabbit ears might be your only other option if you don't have a sat dish.

The blackout has NOTHING to do with attendence.

UPN21 is a dallas station. People outside of Dallas have no option to get it. So why the hell is it blacked out for people who have absolutely NO possibility of picking up a live local feed? Whatever teh reason, it is a dumbass NBA f*ck up.

DirkNash1341 · 11-17-2003, 12:52 AM

What did you order League Pass through??? Do you have Digital Cable? Direct TV?? The League Pass provider up here inBuffalo, NY seems to have disappeared.

bogey · 11-17-2003, 02:15 AM

Time Warner digital cable.....

Just211 · 11-17-2003, 12:05 PM

bogey, i realized the same mistake during their free period, and I was pretty glad i noticed it, because I was going to get it this year. BUT living in WACO, it serves no purpose. every game that isn't on FSW Is a blackout. And I'm in the same boat as you not being able to get UPN21 or KTVT(?) . And as a NBA fan i like to watch other games, but the main reason to pay $ is to watch all MAvs games. And not being able to do that just erases the purpose of League Pass.

Bookit · 11-17-2003, 12:51 PM

Wow, if they black you out and you live outside of Dallas then you need to bitch until somebody fixes it! Thats BS.

bogey · 11-17-2003, 08:54 PM

Well...Time Warner gave me a refund after telling me initially it was a non-refundable service. Since they told me the Mavs games would not be blacked out, I politely pointed out that I would not have purchased it had they not advised me the Mavs would be available. They were fairly cool about the whole deal. Apparently I was not the only upset caller. I am now going to purchase a power antenna which will pick up the Dallas stations. Cheaper than League Pass anyways.

*sigh*

mavsfan4life · 11-17-2003, 11:15 PM

HEY BUDDY! ITS ON FOX SPORTS NET. IF YOU HAVE NBA LEAGUE PASS AND WANNA WATCH A MAVS GAME, YOU GOTTA WATCH IT ON FSN OR W/E ITS SUPPOSED TO BE ON (UPN21, CBS11, TNT, ESPN, ECT.). NBA LEAGUE PASS IS ONLY AND I REPEAT ONLY FOR WATCHIN OTHER TEAMS PLAY INSTEAD OF THE MAVS!

bogey · 11-17-2003, 11:18 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by: mavsfan4life
HEY BUDDY! ITS ON FOX SPORTS NET. IF YOU HAVE NBA LEAGUE PASS AND WANNA WATCH A MAVS GAME, YOU GOTTA WATCH IT ON FSN OR W/E ITS SUPPOSED TO BE ON (UPN21, CBS11, TNT, ESPN, ECT.). NBA LEAGUE PASS IS ONLY AND I REPEAT ONLY FOR WATCHIN OTHER TEAMS PLAY INSTEAD OF THE MAVS!

Hey buddy...how about killing the caps lock! Only if you live in an NBA city. people in the sticks get all League Pass games. If you don't live in Dallas or near its broadcast area you aren't going to be able to get those stations. Try getting UPN21 in Hillsboro, Waco, Tyler, Wichita Falls, etc. You can't. Try getting KTVT11 in those areas. You can't. obviously you misunderstood the intent of the thread.

Rhylan · 11-17-2003, 11:45 PM

Interesting side note.. you can get UPN21 w/ DirecTV local channels package in Hamilton. Apparently Hamilton is in enough of a middle area, peeps there are allowed to choose whether they want the Waco or DFW local channels.

bogey · 11-18-2003, 12:11 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by: Rhylan
Interesting side note.. you can get UPN21 w/ DirecTV local channels package in Hamilton. Apparently Hamilton is in enough of a middle area, peeps there are allowed to choose whether they want the Waco or DFW local channels.

Lucky dogs. The powered antenna is my only hope. Of course...this Mavs fan will do what he has to do to secure the Mavs broadcasts. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]