# NESN launched 3/26



## TredH20 (Jan 9, 2007)

Just thought I'd check with some of the Dish gurus...I think I already know the answer, though.


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## gellis (Feb 6, 2005)

I've been wondering the same thing. Infact, I am considering switching to D* if Dish has no plans to get NESN HD soon. I don't want to go through another Red Sox season without NESN HD.


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## KilgoreTrout XL (Mar 6, 2008)

gellis said:


> I've been wondering the same thing. Infact, I am considering switching to D* if Dish has no plans to get NESN HD soon. I don't want to go through another Red Sox season without NESN HD.


I called Dish Network today to politely complain about the lack of NESN HD, and to tell them that I really hoped it would be available for this season. The woman said "management is currently working out a deal with NESN to provide that channel to you in high definition."

I was surprised that she answered my question. Is this a typical response to any question about a HD channel? In other words, is it stupid for me to get my hopes up over it?

It's a terrible business decision in general, of course. Well, for New England, at least. Most people I know don't even consider Dish Network because of the lack of NESN HD. As for me, I'm in a condo where the whole bldg. is under contract.

I'l just keep my fingers crossed.


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## JackS (Jul 5, 2004)

It has been tough to be a Boston sports fan and a Dish All Everything subscriber. Direct and the cable companies have them all in HD. I just hate to go through the hassle of changing at this time. I like the 622 with the OTA capability, but its been tough to hold on. 

Jack S
Boston


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## KilgoreTrout XL (Mar 6, 2008)

JackS said:


> It has been tough to be a Boston sports fan and a Dish All Everything subscriber. Direct and the cable companies have them all in HD. I just hate to go through the hassle of changing at this time. I like the 622 with the OTA capability, but its been tough to hold on.
> 
> Jack S
> Boston


It's really frustrating as I, and probably a large number of HDTV owners, bought my display primarily so that sports and movies would look fantastic on it. Not getting the Sox is pretty maddening- especially when considering that the only time I do get them in HD is when I have to listen to Joe Buck on Fox.

I have no options other than Dish Network. Well, until FiOS gets buried in my neighborhood, I suppose.

But I'm optimistic that they will offer the channel soon. I think a lot of subscribers are going to be upset come another opening day with Dish being the only major provider in the Boston area without NESN HD. And I've never gotten a customer service person at Dish to say "we're working on getting that channel to you"- they've all previously said simply that "we don't offer that channel in HD."


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## Hound (Mar 20, 2005)

My daughter lives near fenway park. I visited her recently and I could not
find any E* dishes. All I saw were D* dishes. She has comcast with NESN HD and CSNNE HD.


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## bruin95 (Apr 23, 2006)

KilgoreTrout XL said:


> Is this a typical response to any question about a HD channel? In other words, is it stupid for me to get my hopes up over it?


Pretty much.


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## TredH20 (Jan 9, 2007)

Yeah - I would understand the lack of having it if we were a smaller sports media market - like Kansas City or Toronto. Places where they tend to or try to forget they have a baseball team. But c'mon now - Boston, New York, LA - and others - are the hotspots for sports. These should be first and foremost the markets that are taken care of. 

Not being able to watch the reigning WS champions and the NBA team with the best record in the league play in HD is a little ridiculous.


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## bobl (Jan 17, 2004)

I feel your pain Boston fans. Here in the San Francisco Bay Area the situation is the same as we don't get Fox Sports Bay Area in HD either (both Comcast and DirecTV have it). That means no Giants, A's, Warriors or Sharks. It's particularly irritating now that the Warriors actually have an exciting team. I've also stayed with Dish due to my fondness for the 622 but I'm regularly considering switching to DirecTV even though their DVR seems to be sorely lacking (no PIP and no dual live buffers).


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## aaronbud (Nov 3, 2006)

bobl said:


> I feel your pain Boston fans. Here in the San Francisco Bay Area the situation is the same as we don't get Fox Sports Bay Area in HD either (both Comcast and DirecTV have it). That means no Giants, A's, Warriors or Sharks. It's particularly irritating now that the Warriors actually have an exciting team. I've also stayed with Dish due to my fondness for the 622 but I'm regularly considering switching to DirecTV even though their DVR seems to be sorely lacking (no PIP and no dual live buffers).


Amen, Brother! I am in that same boat. I would hate to leave Dish because I love the equipment, have a commitment, etc. But not being able to watch the Warriors (On League Pass for me) or esp. the Giants in HD AGAIN really blows!


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## aaronbud (Nov 3, 2006)

I sent an email last week to [email protected] (again, I send about 4 a year) asking if there was any timetable on FSN Bay Area HD being added. Here is the generic corporate reply.....

Dear Mr. Lewis,

Thank you for your email. We are sorry for any inconvenience. We have plans of adding more national HD and local HD channels but we do not have the list of channels that will be added as of now. We recommend that you always check our website for updates regarding this issue. We thank you for your understanding in this matter.

Your business is greatly appreciated and we thank you for allowing us to be of assistance to you. If you have any further questions or concerns, please refer to www.dishnetwork.com or reply to this email

Gotta love it!


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## yellolab (Mar 11, 2008)

Here's an email exchange with Dish-

Thank you for your e-mail. I do apologize but we’re not yet offering NESN in HD and don’t have specific information if or when this will happen. Just please stay tuned for consumer Charlie Chats that are broadcast monthly on Channel 101 or logon to our website for future programming announcements.
Your business is greatly appreciated and we thank you for allowing us to be of assistance to you. If you have any further questions or concerns, please refer to dishnetwork or reply to this email.
Sincerely,
Mary T.
DISH Network e-Care
Pine Brook
** Please include all previous correspondence when replying. **
-----original message-----
____________________________________________
From: Kevin B]
Sent: Friday, March 07, 2008 7:50 PM
To: CEO
Subject: NESN ND
First, please do not reply with generic email !!! I deserve more as a customer.
I have been a Dish customer for 6 years; my bill is $135/month; please do the math.
I have been very patient with Dish, waiting for NESN HD; I'm sure you're aware Direct TV offers this.
Opening day for the Red Sox is fast approaching, and I need to need if you will have NESN HD by then, or I will feel forced to leave Dish, and make the 18 month committment to Direct TV.
I await your reply, thanks.


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## JackS (Jul 5, 2004)

I see from the summary of the Charlie Chat that there is no mention of NESN or any other RSN being added. I hope it is not because there is no possibility of a suitable contract.


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## TR7Spyder (May 3, 2007)

I got Dish Network last September, after sales rep lied to me that they had HD NESN… Fortunately for me, I realized it right away and got them to remove the 18 month commitment (threatening to use the 3 day right of refusal). I told them that if they do not get NESN by the season opener, I am out.

Well, Dish Notwork, thank you for 6 months of discounted fees and 3 months of free HBO/Cinimax. Looks like it is time to start looking for Direct TV’s best offering.

This is too bad, because I really liked their 722 DVR.

Their lack of Speed isn't helping them ether. But that is another thread .


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## donjoy44 (Jun 7, 2006)

TR7Spyder said:


> I got Dish Network last September, after sales rep lied to me that they had HD NESN&#8230; Fortunately for me, I realized it right away and got them to remove the 18 month commitment (threatening to use the 3 day right of refusal). I told them that if they do not get NESN by the season opener, I am out.
> 
> Well, Dish Notwork, thank you for 6 months of discounted fees and 3 months of free HBO/Cinimax. Looks like it is time to start looking for Direct TV's best offering.
> 
> ...


Hmm watching the race I noticed Rouch racing has a car Dishnetwork Fenway car. They team up this way but cant give us NESN in HD

Also watching an ATT ADVANVCED TV commercial starring "BIG PAPPI", hmmm but ATT Dish doesnt offer NESN IN HD. How dare they use a REDSOX player to promote SD telivision by far not advanced TV


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## gellis (Feb 6, 2005)

I wonder if the issues with the latest satellite launch is going affect any changes of getting NESN HD. I am seriously thinking it's time to go to D*


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## wje (Mar 8, 2006)

AFAIK, Dish's failure to carry NESN has nothing to do with capacity, it's been about a failure to reach acceptable contract terms. I don't remember the details, but I think it was something along the lines of NESN wanting a payment for every E* subscriber, not just the ones that actually got NESN. Yes, it sucks.


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## gellis (Feb 6, 2005)

wje said:


> AFAIK, Dish's failure to carry NESN has nothing to do with capacity, it's been about a failure to reach acceptable contract terms. I don't remember the details, but I think it was something along the lines of NESN wanting a payment for every E* subscriber, not just the ones that actually got NESN. Yes, it sucks.


Actually, that sounds right to me. I remember a while back, NESN was a premium channel on the local cable provider. And then when NESN get the broadcast rights to most of the Red Sox games, they got the cable company to make it part of the standard cable offering. So, I bet they do want revenue from every subscriber. However, it seems that since NESN is just New England, they should only be for those who are subscribers in NE. They already offer it in SD, so it doesn't seem that HD should work much different.


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## Yes616 (Sep 6, 2006)

You folks may soon get your wish..

NESN-HD is now uplinked to channel 5434 (mapped to 434) but unavailable.

It's a start.


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## gellis (Feb 6, 2005)

Yes616 said:


> You folks may soon get your wish..
> 
> NESN-HD is now uplinked to channel 5434 (mapped to 434) but unavailable.
> 
> It's a start.


Forgive me for being a little ignorant.. but does the fact it's uplinked mean Dish is in the process of adding the channel or is this something they do with other channels they eventually end up not carrying?


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## grooves12 (Oct 27, 2005)

gellis said:


> Forgive me for being a little ignorant.. but does the fact it's uplinked mean Dish is in the process of adding the channel or is this something they do with other channels they eventually end up not carrying?


FSN Bay Area has been uplinked for a LOOOOOOONG time with no activation... so until it shows up in your guide and you see a press release, the uplink means nothing.


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## Yes616 (Sep 6, 2006)

gellis said:


> Forgive me for being a little ignorant.. but does the fact it's uplinked mean Dish is in the process of adding the channel or is this something they do with other channels they eventually end up not carrying?


Like I said, it's a start. It is almost the start of getting the channel going meaning testing can be going on while the channel and Dish are doing more seriously negotiating. It does not mean it is coming for sure but it does look better than not being uplinked. It just became uplinked this week.


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## gellis (Feb 6, 2005)

Yes616 said:


> Like I said, it's a start. It is almost the start of getting the channel going meaning testing can be going on while the channel and Dish are doing more seriously negotiating. It does not mean it is coming for sure but it does look better than not being uplinked. It just became uplinked this week.


Thanks for the info!


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## Steve_53 (Jul 6, 2005)

Only 16 days 'till the home opener at Fenway, can we hope?????


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## TredH20 (Jan 9, 2007)

Steve_53 said:


> Only 16 days 'till the home opener at Fenway, can we hope?????


Fingers are crossed...my love for DISH will grow exponentially if this occurs...


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## KilgoreTrout XL (Mar 6, 2008)

Great news & I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Dish must recognize that they need to act with at least _some_ urgency, given the gap in HD content between them and Direct.

Great season opener, BTW.


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## gellis (Feb 6, 2005)

KilgoreTrout XL said:


> Great news & I'll keep my fingers crossed.
> 
> Dish must recognize that they need to act with at least _some_ urgency, given the gap in HD content between them and Direct.
> 
> Great season opener, BTW.


Yes! It was a great opener. The only problem was watching it on NESN SD... I don't know if Dish over compresses it or what but the quality is terrible. Let's hope they hurry up with HD!


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## yellolab (Mar 11, 2008)

Ditto here, ESPN2 was blacked out, so I had to watch it on an awfull NESN-SD picture. Oh well, at least we won !!

RIght now, the only thing stopping me from switching in Directv's OTA tuner(AM21) is not available yet.

I'm hoping Dish offers NESN-HD soon, as I don't WANT to switch..

Kevin


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## gjh3260 (Mar 19, 2006)

my guess is NESN HD will be available tomorrow


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## KilgoreTrout XL (Mar 6, 2008)

According to Scott at Satellite Guys: 

"NESN HD will be made available tomorrow.

Sox won the first game today. 6-5 in 10 innings."

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## yellolab (Mar 11, 2008)

GJH, I really hope that you have the some inside scoop on this !!!!

Kevin


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## roachxp (Jun 29, 2007)

Also the Celtics were in HD on E* yesterday with the CSN NE HD feed in one of the HD alternatives sports channels.


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## TR7Spyder (May 3, 2007)

I hope they do get it VERY soon!



TR7Spyder said:


> I got Dish Network last September, after sales rep lied to me that they had HD NESN&#8230; Fortunately for me, I realized it right away and got them to remove the 18 month commitment (threatening to use the 3 day right of refusal). I told them that if they do not get NESN by the season opener, I am out.


Or so thought... I just called them see if they have any newer information on NESN DH and to confirm that I wasn't under 18 month commitement. They said that there was no news on NESN (typical clueless CSR) and that there is no record of removal of my 18 month commitment! 

I tried covering by a$$ by calling them back after the original agreement to confirm that my commitment was removed, they said: yes it was! Now, 6 month later there is no record of it! :eek2: How convinient...

Now, they outright lied to me TWICE! And it appears that I am stuck with them for another 12 month.

I didn't want to escalate things just yet. I want to first see if they do come through with HD NESN, but if they don't, this is going to be a fight...


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## yellolab (Mar 11, 2008)

Sox lost in SD....sucks !!

Hello NESN-HD, where are you ???

Kevin


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## Steve_53 (Jul 6, 2005)

I'm not sure that having the game available in HD would have had any effect on the final score, but i would have been nice on the eyes


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## yellolab (Mar 11, 2008)

:lol:


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## gellis (Feb 6, 2005)

NESN HD is showing up in the program guide!!!! But the guide says "Big Ten Alt" and the screen just shows "Check Back to see if you favorite team is playing in HD"...


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## kevinsickles (Mar 26, 2008)

The word is the NESN HD feed is a game only feed, Bruins game listed for tomorrow, 7pm
:-(


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## gellis (Feb 6, 2005)

kevinsickles said:


> The word is the NESN HD feed is a game only feed, Bruins game listed for tomorrow, 7pm
> :-(


Oh well... I'll take it. As long as I can watch the games in HD... The rest of NESN programming is nothing special.

Humm... just checked the guide for the next week or so and I don't see any Red Sox games listed in HD. I hope the guide is wrong.


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## TR7Spyder (May 3, 2007)

Seriously, I rarely watch NESN for any other reason than a game!


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## James Long (Apr 17, 2003)

Congrats to NESN devotes ... you now have the same "check back often ..." channel that many of us have had for the past few months ... your version being on channel 5434 (mapped to 434).


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## Hart5150 (Feb 10, 2004)

roachxp said:


> Also the Celtics were in HD on E* yesterday with the CSN NE HD feed in one of the HD alternatives sports channels.


Wish I would of known that, was the suns game on tonight?


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## grooves12 (Oct 27, 2005)

roachxp said:


> Also the Celtics were in HD on E* yesterday with the CSN NE HD feed in one of the HD alternatives sports channels.


Hmmmm.... this is good news for those of us waiting for FSN Bay Area (soon to be CSN Bay Area) as they are under the same ownership as CSN NE.


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## DishTSR3Mentor (Nov 3, 2006)

everyone with a 61.5 orbit in the New England area check out channel 5434... I'm sure you'll be happy.


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## wje (Mar 8, 2006)

Well, I suppose a screen that says 'Check back often to see if your favorite team is playing in HD' is theoretically better than no NESN HD, but it gets boring pretty quickly. It's worse than watching golf.


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## booger (Nov 1, 2005)

wje said:


> Well, I suppose a screen that says 'Check back often to see if your favorite team is playing in HD' is theoretically better than no NESN HD, but it gets boring pretty quickly. It's worse than watching golf.


My Dad had Direct installed yesterday for NESN-HD. We live in South Carolina and the screen was black with a message stating that the game was not available in his area. I thought the channel was on 24-7.


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## DishTSR3Mentor (Nov 3, 2006)

NESNHD is only available when a sporting event is airing. Blackouts do apply.


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## aaronbud (Nov 3, 2006)

grooves12 said:


> Hmmmm.... this is good news for those of us waiting for FSN Bay Area (soon to be CSN Bay Area) as they are under the same ownership as CSN NE.


We can only hope. C'mon Charlie, we want to see the Giants in HD!!


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## booger (Nov 1, 2005)

DishTSR3Mentor said:


> NESNHD is only available when a sporting event is airing. Blackouts do apply.


Thanks for the info. I would think the blackouts would be for those near where a game is aired/played.

Thanks again.


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## James Long (Apr 17, 2003)

booger said:


> Thanks for the info. I would think the blackouts would be for those near where a game is aired/played.


Blackout rules are complicated ... it all comes down to rights. If a channel is blacked out it usually means that someone else has the rights to broadcast the content in your area.

It doesn't mean that the someone else network is actually available in your area. There have been situations in some markets where a local TV station has the rights to the game but the channel is not carried by DISH. Since your Dad has DirecTV we can't blame DISH for messing up the rights. (Although on the first day of install, perhaps DirecTV got it wrong?)

One thing to check is the SD channel and the alt channels. You should not have a blackout on HD if the SD channel is open in your area. If there are multiple games on your RSN the main one may be blacked out but the alternate feed will be available elsewhere in the program guide. (This normally applies to bigger RSNs, such as Fox Sports Midwest, that cover large regions with multiple games.)


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## booger (Nov 1, 2005)

James Long said:


> Blackout rules are complicated ... it all comes down to rights. If a channel is blacked out it usually means that someone else has the rights to broadcast the content in your area.
> 
> It doesn't mean that the someone else network is actually available in your area. There have been situations in some markets where a local TV station has the rights to the game but the channel is not carried by DISH. Since your Dad has DirecTV we can't blame DISH for messing up the rights. (Although on the first day of install, perhaps DirecTV got it wrong?)
> 
> One thing to check is the SD channel and the alt channels. You should not have a blackout on HD if the SD channel is open in your area. If there are multiple games on your RSN the main one may be blacked out but the alternate feed will be available elsewhere in the program guide. (This normally applies to bigger RSNs, such as Fox Sports Midwest, that cover large regions with multiple games.)


Good info. Thanks James.

BTW: They did mess things up. Minus NESN-HD; several packages that he ordered were not on. We had to speak to a CSR to have much of it turned on. NESN-HD was still out.

But the black outs still affect Dish so this is totally relevant to me as well. Thanks for the clarification.

Thanks,


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## elbodude (Jul 13, 2006)

aaronbud said:


> We can only hope. C'mon Charlie, we want to see the Giants in HD!!


We want to see them lose in HD! :lol:


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## grooves12 (Oct 27, 2005)

aaronbud said:


> We can only hope. C'mon Charlie, we want to see the Giants in HD!!


All I really care about is the Sharks... but their Season is nearly over... but maybe we can get a few playoff games in the mix??

Supposedly April 1st, FSN Bay Area will officially change over to CSN Bay Area... but I doubt the moniker change will have anything to do with carriage on Dish as the ownership has been the same for a bit over 6 months.


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## elbodude (Jul 13, 2006)

grooves12 said:


> All I really care about is the Sharks... but their Season is nearly over... but maybe we can get a few playoff games in the mix??
> 
> Supposedly April 1st, FSN Bay Area will officially change over to CSN Bay Area... but I doubt the moniker change will have anything to do with carriage on Dish as the ownership has been the same for a bit over 6 months.


Here's hoping the Sharks play well into June and their last game is a win!


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## aaronbud (Nov 3, 2006)

elbodude said:


> We want to see them lose in HD! :lol:


Yeah but atleast they would look better doing it! haha. Plus adding FSN BAHD (csn hd) might mean Dish will also show the Warriors games in HD on League Pass as well..... (good for us Warrior fans outside Warriors' DMA)


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## Jersey Girl (Oct 11, 2007)

booger said:


> My Dad had Direct installed yesterday for NESN-HD. We live in South Carolina and the screen was black with a message stating that the game was not available in his area. I thought the channel was on 24-7.


What game? The Bruins? Does your dad have the NHL Center Ice package? If not, the game is not available in your area.


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## gellis (Feb 6, 2005)

The Red Sox are playing a regular season game in Oakland tomorrow night at 10 PM. NESN.com indicates this game is in HD. However, the program guide still doesn't show it on the HD channel. 

Anybody able to see it yet in the guide? I also check the game on Wednesday and that isn't showing up either. I thought they said they would be showing live games in HD?


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## wje (Mar 8, 2006)

I haven't found any RedSox games listed, although you are correct, they are showing on NESN sd. I'm getting pretty annoyed. I now suspect E* added this just so they could claim they have NESN HD, even though it doesn't actually carry anything... I've seen only two broadcasts listed so far, neither of which was RedSox.


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## gellis (Feb 6, 2005)

wje said:


> I haven't found any RedSox games listed, although you are correct, they are showing on NESN sd. I'm getting pretty annoyed. I now suspect E* added this just so they could claim they have NESN HD, even though it doesn't actually carry anything... I've seen only two broadcasts listed so far, neither of which was RedSox.


Yup... I keep trying to convince myself the guide is just wrong, but I know I am probably setting myself up for dissapointment.


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## Steve_53 (Jul 6, 2005)

gellis said:


> I thought they said they would be showing live games in HD?


I do hope that "live games" doesn't mean home games only......


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## TredH20 (Jan 9, 2007)

Steve_53 said:


> I do hope that "live games" doesn't mean home games only......


So I am a bit confused right now. The Sox are playing at home tonight and are on NESN SD but the 'Check back soon' screen is on the NESN HD channel. What gives? It can't be blacked out if it's on the SD feed, can it?


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## Steve_53 (Jul 6, 2005)

My guess is that its a bandwidth allocation issue - Dish like was using the bandwidth for a different game. This is, of course, the downside to having a "part-time" (game only) channel, if the bandwidth was always available, no doubt we'd have NESN-HD 24/7.

Is anyone keeping track of a possible correlation between the Sox W/L vs. NESN-HD game broadcast availability?


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## yellolab (Mar 11, 2008)

And isn't there a game tonight? Neither NESN SD or HD is showing on the guide to be broadcasting the game ??

Kevin


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## TredH20 (Jan 9, 2007)

Steve_53 said:


> My guess is that its a bandwidth allocation issue - Dish like was using the bandwidth for a different game. This is, of course, the downside to having a "part-time" (game only) channel, if the bandwidth was always available, no doubt we'd have NESN-HD 24/7.
> 
> Is anyone keeping track of a possible correlation between the Sox W/L vs. NESN-HD game broadcast availability?


I did see the Yankees vs Royals headline on one of the HD Alternate Sports channels - but that was blacked out as well. So am I losing Sox home games in HD because Dish is also playing the Yanks vs. Royals somewhere in the country??? Why do they announce that we have NESN HD when in reality we have NESN HD Lite (When available, if resources permit, conditions do apply). Isn't that a bit of false advertising (_Fans of the 2007 World Champion Boston Red Sox and the Boston Bruins Will Never Miss Their Favorite New England Sports Teams in HD_)? Why can't they get this right? I need to find out how many more months I am locked into my contract...because this is getting ridiculous.


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## billoh (Jul 25, 2007)

yellolab said:


> And isn't there a game tonight? Neither NESN SD or HD is showing on the guide to be broadcasting the game ??
> 
> Kevin


From what I can figure out, and what NESN has been advertising, they're putting the Bruins/Canadiens game on in HD, and the Red Sox on an alternate channel. The guide shows the Tigers/RedSox on at 7:00 PM EDT on channel 448, which is in SD. The Bruins will be in HD on 434 according to the guide.

As far as last night goes, I called and, after about 10 minutes of me explaining to the CSR how part-time RSN HD was supposed to work, he said he issued an engineering complaint. Claimed it would either be fixed or I'd get a call explaining what the problem was. Still waiting!!

From what I've seen, we have gotten all the games in HD since the turn-up except for the preseason game against the Dodgers at the Coliseum (hardest part of my day so far was spelling that right). The Yankees game on Friday is showing in HD on the schedule. Sat. is Fox and Sunday is ESPN.


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## yellolab (Mar 11, 2008)

Awesome Billoh, thanks for the head-ups, I did not notice it! !

Kevin


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