I recently bought a house and have finally gotten DirecTV. My question is about games on TNT and TBS. Do they get blacked out like on cable? I won't be able to get the League Pass this year so I will have to make do with what's left. Can I get FoxSportsSW or do I have to buy the whole Fox Sports package? Any other intersting tidbits about DirecTV or channels that I should know about? Thanks......
The TNT games do not get blacked out. You should be able to get the Season Pass at a prorated rate for the amount of games left in the season. I know they for sure offer that at about the halfway point of the season.
Actually, some TBS and TNT games might be blocked out. It depends on your proximity to an NBA city. For instance, Houston will black out some home games to certain zip codes in the city's radius. This decision is pretty much based on ticket sales for that game. If all the tickets aren't sold, you can count on a blackout. They normally only black out home games, almost never away games. In order to get FSSW, you have to subscribe to the whole sports package. (I guess it's possible that this has changed - I haven't really looked at my bill in about 4 years now.) There will be a half season league pass offered around the All-Star break. As I recall, it costs something like $99 - I haven't seen a commercial for it yet, so that may be wrong. Also, look for a free preview coming up later this month. Playoff games are not included as part of the league pass. Why not? Well, playoff games are broadcast nationally, so you should be able to find them on TNT, TBS and NBC. ------------------ Jen Next round of Nelson vs. Malone: February 24 @ Reunion Arena
I don't know why Warner Cable in Houston blacks out Rockets home games on Turner Sports. I can understand playoff games where the games generate pay per view revenue. When I first got cable, I did not have Fox Sports SW and therefore was not able to watch any home games even if they were broadcast on Turner.
I don't think TNT or TBS games can ever be blacked out on satellite. You're not getting the local feed so the city/team has no control over what you view on TNT on your satellite. It would be different if you were trying to pick up TNT on cable. I've never seen this happen.
DirecTV is gearing up for its mid-season "sale" on NBA League Pass, there's a free preview starting January 21 and after that the rest of the season costs $109 or 4 payments of $27.25. That's for every game televised on the NBA channels and Fox Sports Channels. I don't recall having local games on TNT or TBS blacked out. I have the sports package so I get FSSW also... DirecTV also has a FSSW alternate station on like 644 or 645 and they show Rockets games when 643(FSSW) is having a Dallas or Spur game... Next year I'm getting League Pass from the start, they have an early bird special that allows you to purchase before the season at a slightly reduced rate. DirecTV also offers NBA.comTV, totally cool with 2 scrolling bars on the bottom of the screen with stats and game info and a side bar on the right side of the screen with current league standings and game scores. They also break in with snippets of live games... pretty neat. They also show classic NBA games, way cool. Away games, you'll need an antenna for if you live in Houston. I got a good one for 20 bucks at Radio Shack and get WB39 crystal clear. good luck happy viewin' go rockets!! rockHEAD http://www.directv.com The "special" deal is at - http://www.directv.com/sports/sportspages/0,1072,12,00.html [This message has been edited by rockHEAD (edited January 18, 2000).]
