DIRECTV Now last week sent an e-mail to all subscribers, alerting them that the regional sports channels, MSG and MSG+, would be added to their lineups.
MSG airs games from several professional teams such as The New York Knicks, Buffalo Sabres, New Jersey Devils, New York Rangers and New York Islanders. Consequently, the e-mail excited DIRECTV Now’s sports fans who quickly took to social media sites to express their happiness.
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“Thank you, thank you, thank you for MSG on DIRECTV Now!!! Now I have all the channels I need,” tweeted Patrick McQueeney (@PrincipalPNQ).
CordCuttersNews.com published an article saying it appeared that MSG had been added nationwide on December 21, creating even more excitement for the news.
Problem is, the DIRECTV Now e-mail wasn’t true, or at least, it wasn’t true for most subscribers. As a regional channel, MSG is only available regionally. In this case, residents in New York, New Jersey and parts of Connecticut and Pennsylvania are permitted to watch MSG. The channel does not have the rights to broadcast professional games outside of those areas.
The e-mail should have only been sent to subscribers in MSG’s territories. (Here’s a photo of one of the errant e-mails sent to a California-based subscriber.)
The confusion was compounded when DIRECTV Now inadvertently added MSG to lineups outside of the channel’s regional territories for a short period of time before pulling it so it would only be in the proper MSG markets.
@directvnow how can I get MSG network back in my line up; had if for 10 mins then it was gone. I need MSG network in my life!!” tweeted Steven Grotano (@grotano_steven).
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“@DIRECTVNowHelp I received an email that MSG is now available on my @directvnow account for free, but it’s not showing up in my guide,” added Scott Paskoff (@scottpaskoff). Please advise. I already deleted and re downloaded the APP.”
AT&T, which owns DIRECTV Now, has not issued a comment on the snafu, but @DIRECTVNowHelp, the service’s Twitter customer service page, had this to say to one complaining customer:
“That e-mail (the one to all subscribers saying MSG was being added) that you received was just a notification that MSG was being loaded on our network. We are so sorry for the confusion that this must have caused. We know this is a very hard message to read for it was a very hard message to write and send, because we do not like telling our customers that there is no resolution,” wrote @DIRECTVNowHelp.
For DIRECTV Now, the MSG embarrassment continues a tough week for the live streaming service which has experienced widespread buffering and outages in the primetime hours.
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— Phillip Swann
Get over it, Snowflakes. Everyone knows your not going to get regional sports nets outside of its viewing area.
I received the email yesterday, Dec 28: “We’ve added MSG Networks to your lineup. The best seats in the Garden are right here on DIRECTV NOW. And they’re yours to enjoy at no extra cost. That’s right—we’ve officially added MSG and MSG+ to your channel lineup. Tune in for exclusive live coverage of the New York Knicks, Rangers and Islanders, the New Jersey Devils and the Buffalo Sabres. Plus, WNBA’s New York Liberty, the New York Red Bulls and the Westchester Knicks.”
I am in the Los Angeles viewing area.
I just wish DirectvNow would get their DVR function up and running.