By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man – @tvanswerman
For the second straight night, Sling TV last night experienced widespread technical snafus, preventing a large number of subscribers from watching shows such as two NBA playoff games on ESPN.
“We regret to inform you that some customers are experiencing issues streaming, signing in, and signing up again this evening. We’re very sorry for this inconvenience. Our teams are working to restore service as quickly as possible,” Sling TV said in a statement on Twitter at 8:26 p.m. ET.
Downdetector.com, which tracks online outages, reported that roughly 1,000 people were complaining on social media about Sling’s technical errors at the height of the problem which was shortly after 8 p.m. ET. (Sling TV has 2.1 million subscribers.) The site last night reported that twice as many people were posting Sling comments so Thursday’s issues may not have affected as many subscribers as they did on Wednesday night.
But that would be cold comfort to subscribers who could not watch their favorite shows, particularly basketball fans who wanted to stream Thursday’s NBA playoff doubleheader on ESPN.
“I was watching the game then all of a sudden it would kick me out to the Home Screen saying another device was viewing that same content. Wtf. Now I tried resetting my password thinking I was hacked. Fml,” tweeted ‘BrandonsTherapist.’
“I like how when I tried to sign up to catch some NBA playoff games, not knowing about the issues, Sling doesn’t work but somehow still managed to charge my card,” wrote ‘Christopher Martin’ on Twitter.
“Get it fixed can’t watch nba playoffs,” added ‘Gabriel Garcia.’
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Sling’s Twitter customer team urged NBA fans to use their Sling user name and password to watch the games on the ESPN app.
“We thank you for your continued patience as our engineers troubleshoot streaming errors. For those who are trying to stream tonight’s NBA Playoff games, we recommend using your Sling credentials to access the ESPN app. We continue to work diligently to restore all service,” the streamer tweeted.
Shortly before midnight, the Sling Twitter customer service team said that the issues had finally been resolved.
“Slingers – we know this evening was frustrating, but we appreciate your continued support and patience. Streaming services have been restored and teams will continue to monitor progress. Thank you,” Sling TV wrote on Twitter.
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But some subscribers were skeptical.
“Please make sure the website is up and running tomorrow morning so we can cancel. Can’t risk missing #NHLPlayoffs due to the standard 8 PM outage. Odds of a three peat tomorrow?” tweeted ‘IBetderivates.’
Have a question about new TV technologies? Send it to The TV Answer Man at swann@tvanswerman.com Please include your first name and hometown in your message.
— Phillip Swann
@tvanswerman
