Royals, FSN Midwest/KC, and Iowa

[garn9173]

Well some good news and bad news for Royals fans in Iowa. Good news is that the Royals will be seen in Iowa on FSN Midwest, the bad news is that it's only 45 games.

Yesterday, I spoke to a representative at FSN Midwest and basically satellite users are getting screwed over. I was told that FSN has to give the same deal to satellite as to cable, even though I already have DirecTV channel 648 which will become FSN Kansas City via the sports package and any game that isn't on FSN Midwest will be blacked out on channel 648. Further more, I was told if Mediacom (Iowa's largest cable provider) ever decided to go with the full package of games, then satellite will get the full slate of games as well.

Somehow, I think I was given a bunch of B.S. If satellites have to accept the same deal as the cable companies, then I wouldn't be getting Big 10 Network at all. Personally, I think Mediacom is trying to get a little revenge against FSN for the Big 10 Network and other issues, but that's a topic for another day.

Guess i'll find out Monday if the Royals season opener against Detroit will be made available on MLB EI through FSN Detroit as Iowa won't be receving the game on FSN Midwest. If I get the game, i'll be buying MLB EI to ensure I get all of the Royals games on TV, even if it's the opposing teams feed.

All of this and KC is the closet MLB market to Des Moines. Un freaking believable.

[homeskillet]

And 88 of the 140 FSN KC games are in HD this year... including Opening Day at Detroit and the Yankee's series in KC the following week.

SATELLITE

Dish Network
FSN Midwest HD: channel 368 FSN Kansas City Royals HD telecasts: 418 or 5418

DirecTV
FSN Midwest HD: channel 647-1
FSN Kansas City Royals HD telecasts: TBD (likely 648-1)

DirecTV HD subscribers must have newer quipment to view FSN Midwest HD games on 647-1:
a) Receiver: H20, H21, HR20, or HR21
b) Dish: Ka-Ku (5-LNB)
c) B-Band converter module (a small, rectangular device that connects to the Satellite In port at the back of the receiver)

Customers can check www.directv.com/hdcheck to verify they have proper equipment

Select HD games may be carried on channels 94 or 95, pending capacity availability (new equipment is not necessary to see HD games on 94 and 95)

[PhilAce]

I hope this is not the case for Mid-Missouri. I am waiting for KC in HD.

[AlexP]

I'm going to hazard a guess and say that the game will not be available to you in EI. If you're in Royals territory and D* does not have a deal in place to air the games in your market, then you are going to be SOL.

That being said, the spokesperson from FSN-Midwest either lied to you or is misinformed. If they wanted to do a deal to get the games on D* in Iowa, they would have gotten it done. Those deals are negotiated separately.

[scott72]

Originally Posted by garn9173

Well some good news and bad news for Royals fans in Iowa. Good news is that the Royals will be seen in Iowa on FSN Midwest, the bad news is that it's only 45 games.

Yesterday, I spoke to a representative at FSN Midwest and basically satellite users are getting screwed over. I was told that FSN has to give the same deal to satellite as to cable, even though I already have DirecTV channel 648 which will become FSN Kansas City via the sports package and any game that isn't on FSN Midwest will be blacked out on channel 648. Further more, I was told if Mediacom (Iowa's largest cable provider) ever decided to go with the full package of games, then satellite will get the full slate of games as well.

Somehow, I think I was given a bunch of B.S. If satellites have to accept the same deal as the cable companies, then I wouldn't be getting Big 10 Network at all. Personally, I think Mediacom is trying to get a little revenge against FSN for the Big 10 Network and other issues, but that's a topic for another day.

Guess i'll find out Monday if the Royals season opener against Detroit will be made available on MLB EI through FSN Detroit as Iowa won't be receving the game on FSN Midwest. If I get the game, i'll be buying MLB EI to ensure I get all of the Royals games on TV, even if it's the opposing teams feed.

All of this and KC is the closet MLB market to Des Moines. Un freaking believable.

I don't think you'll get the Royals games on EI even when they're on the road. I ran into this on MLB TV least year with the Brewers. Your in the Royals market so you won't get either home or road games AFAIK. Being you're in their market, they shouldn't be blacked out on the RSN. There has to be one way to get them. They can't be blacked out both ways.

[garn9173]

I had EI last year and if the Royals were on the road, the Royals feed on DirecTV channel 648, which i'm assuming will become FSN Kansas City here in a couple of weeks, was blacked out and I had to watch say NESN or Yes on EI. If the Royals were at the K, I got the Royals feed on channel 648, that is unless they were playing the White Sox or Twins, then the Royals feed would be blacked out on channel 648 and I had to watch the game via Comcast Sports Chicago or FSN North.

[scott72]

Originally Posted by garn9173

I had EI last year and if the Royals were on the road, the Royals feed on DirecTV channel 648, which i'm assuming will become FSN Kansas City here in a couple of weeks, was blacked out and I had to watch say NESN or Yes on EI. If the Royals were at the K, I got the Royals feed on channel 648, that is unless they were playing the White Sox or Twins, then the Royals feed would be blacked out on channel 648 and I had to watch the game via Comcast Sports Chicago or FSN North.

I don't know. Being we're in a zillion markets at once it makes the whole damn mess way too confusing. Shame on MLB for all of this. Looks like some of us are going to be either joyous or extremely p'd off come next week.

[AlexP]

Originally Posted by garn9173

I had EI last year and if the Royals were on the road, the Royals feed on DirecTV channel 648, which i'm assuming will become FSN Kansas City here in a couple of weeks, was blacked out and I had to watch say NESN or Yes on EI. If the Royals were at the K, I got the Royals feed on channel 648, that is unless they were playing the White Sox or Twins, then the Royals feed would be blacked out on channel 648 and I had to watch the game via Comcast Sports Chicago or FSN North.

Ah, now I get it...you are NOT in designated Royals territory. You are in Cubs/White Sox/Twins territory. That explains your blackout pattern. This is good news for you. Thanks to dual feeds on EI, you should get the games on FSN Kansas City except when they play the White Sox, Twins or Cubs.

BTW, my understanding is that FSN-KC will not be a full-time channel on DirecTV. It will be turned on and off for the Royals games like any other RSN Alternate channel.

[garn9173]

No, all of Iowa is claimed by the Royals. Of the 6 MLB teams that claim the Des Moines market, KC is the closet of all of them to Des Moines.

http://www.maurybrown.com/images/MLBTerritories.jpg

[scott72]

Originally Posted by AlexP

Ah, now I get it...you are NOT in designated Royals territory. You are in Cubs/White Sox/Twins territory. That explains your blackout pattern. This is good news for you. Thanks to dual feeds on EI, you should get the games on FSN Kansas City except when they play the White Sox, Twins or Cubs.

BTW, my understanding is that FSN-KC will not be a full-time channel on DirecTV. It will be turned on and off for the Royals games like any other RSN Alternate channel.

He certainly is in their market.

[AlexP]

Right, I should have checked the map first. So let me get this straight...does Iowa have some sort of blackout waiver for Royals games on Extra Innings? How was he able to watch the Royals games on EI via the opposing teams RSN? Wouldn't they be blacked out?

[scott72]

Originally Posted by AlexP

Right, I should have checked the map first. So let me get this straight...does Iowa have some sort of blackout waiver for Royals games on Extra Innings? How was he able to watch the Royals games on EI via the opposing teams RSN? Wouldn't they be blacked out?

You would assume they would be blacked out on EI yes since they're in-market games.

[Shad]

Originally Posted by garn9173

Well some good news and bad news for Royals fans in Iowa. Good news is that the Royals will be seen in Iowa on FSN Midwest, the bad news is that it's only 45 games.

Yesterday, I spoke to a representative at FSN Midwest and basically satellite users are getting screwed over. I was told that FSN has to give the same deal to satellite as to cable, even though I already have DirecTV channel 648 which will become FSN Kansas City via the sports package and any game that isn't on FSN Midwest will be blacked out on channel 648. Further more, I was told if Mediacom (Iowa's largest cable provider) ever decided to go with the full package of games, then satellite will get the full slate of games as well.

Somehow, I think I was given a bunch of B.S. If satellites have to accept the same deal as the cable companies, then I wouldn't be getting Big 10 Network at all. Personally, I think Mediacom is trying to get a little revenge against FSN for the Big 10 Network and other issues, but that's a topic for another day.

Guess i'll find out Monday if the Royals season opener against Detroit will be made available on MLB EI through FSN Detroit as Iowa won't be receving the game on FSN Midwest. If I get the game, i'll be buying MLB EI to ensure I get all of the Royals games on TV, even if it's the opposing teams feed.

All of this and KC is the closet MLB market to Des Moines. Un freaking believable.

What happens if you add the Sports Pack? Since the Royals claim Iowa, you would think the games would be available.

[dwrats_56]

Originally Posted by garn9173

Well some good news and bad news for Royals fans in Iowa. Good news is that the Royals will be seen in Iowa on FSN Midwest, the bad news is that it's only 45 games.

Aren't 45 Royals games enough punishment?????

I mean, we are not talking about the Royals of the 70's and 80's.

[scott72]

Originally Posted by dwrats_56

Aren't 45 Royals games enough punishment?????

I mean, we are not talking about the Royals of the 70's and 80's.

True fans stick with their team through good and bad times. Trust me as a Brewer fan my faith has been tested, but been a huge fan since I was old enough to hear Euchere's voice on the radio.

[AlexP]

I went to the D* ZIP Code lookup site http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/global...ssetId=3290001 and entered Des Moines ZIP code 50301. It shows the local teams as the Cubs, White Sox, Brewers and Cards. Royals and Twins were not on this list (at least not for that particular ZIP). DirecTV apparently does not recognize Des Moines as Royals home territory. That is consistent with the blackout pattern the OP reported above. He gets Royals games as part of EI, but not when they play his "home teams." That is the only way I can explain it, unless there is some kind of special blackout waiver that applies only to the Royals.

It is possible that the map is incorrect. It's at least 3 years old. Then again, it's also possible that the ZIP code lookup is incorrect, as it does not list one of my local teams.

[scott72]

Originally Posted by AlexP

I went to the D* ZIP Code lookup site http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/global...ssetId=3290001 and entered Des Moines ZIP code 50301. It shows the local teams as the Cubs, White Sox, Brewers and Cards. Royals and Twins were not on this list (at least not for that particular ZIP). DirecTV apparently does not recognize Des Moines as Royals home territory. That is consistent with the blackout pattern the OP reported above. He gets Royals games as part of EI, but not when they play his "home teams." That is the only way I can explain it, unless there is some kind of special blackout waiver that applies only to the Royals.

It is possible that the map is incorrect. It's at least 3 years old. Then again, it's also possible that the ZIP code lookup is incorrect, as it does not list one of my local teams.

I wouldn't go by D* info. That's crazy that Des Moines would be in the Brewers local market, but I'm not and I'm a mile from the Wis border. Anyhow here's the MLB coverage map.
http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/...1150742098.jpg

[garn9173]

Originally Posted by AlexP

I went to the D* ZIP Code lookup site http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/global...ssetId=3290001 and entered Des Moines ZIP code 50301. It shows the local teams as the Cubs, White Sox, Brewers and Cards. Royals and Twins were not on this list (at least not for that particular ZIP). DirecTV apparently does not recognize Des Moines as Royals home territory. That is consistent with the blackout pattern the OP reported above. He gets Royals games as part of EI, but not when they play his "home teams." That is the only way I can explain it, unless there is some kind of special blackout waiver that applies only to the Royals.

It is possible that the map is incorrect. It's at least 3 years old. Then again, it's also possible that the ZIP code lookup is incorrect, as it does not list one of my local teams.

From this thread last night:

http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.ph...65#post1520265

It shows what I get when my zip code is used

[lwilli201]

Originally Posted by AlexP

DirecTV apparently does not recognize Des Moines as Royals home territory.

Directv does not have anything to do with it. Each team designates its home territory based on contracts with local TV outlets like local OTA and RSN's, etc.

Each team sends Directv the zip codes it can make a game available in. This list could change from game to game. It is a real mess for Directv to keep straight. They probably have a complete department that does nothing but keep the correct zip codes updated for every team, no matter which league it is.

[dwrats_56]

Originally Posted by scott72

True fans stick with their team through good and bad times. Trust me as a Brewer fan my faith has been tested, but been a huge fan since I was old enough to hear Euchere's voice on the radio.

I agree. I have been a Cardinals fan since I knew what baseball was. I survived the 70's and 90's of Cardinal baseball. And, while living in KC in the mid-70's I became a secondary Royal fan. The problem I have with the Royals over the last decade(plus) is management not spending money on the team and presenting a minor league team.

[AlexP]

Originally Posted by lwilli201

Directv does not have anything to do with it. Each team designates its home territory based on contracts with local TV outlets like local OTA and RSN's, etc.

I know that, but it was my understanding that the Des Moines, Iowa market was Royals territory. It is, at least according to the Iowa posters in this thread and the oft-cited MLB territories map. If you plug Des Moines area ZIP codes into MLB.com it shows the Royals as one of the blackout teams for MLB.TV. However, the OP tells us that DirecTV does not list the Royals as one of the local teams on their website. He also reported being able to get the Royals games on EI last season, which leads me to believe that he is NOT in Royals' territory, at least not according to DirecTV. It appears to me that Royals territory on D* is different than what is depicted on the map and from MLB.TV.

[scott72]

Originally Posted by AlexP

I know that, but it was my understanding that the Des Moines, Iowa market was Royals territory. It is, at least according to the Iowa posters in this thread and the oft-cited MLB territories map. If you plug Des Moines area ZIP codes into MLB.com it shows the Royals as one of the blackout teams for MLB.TV. However, the OP tells us that DirecTV does not list the Royals as one of the local teams on their website. He also reported being able to get the Royals games on EI last season, which leads me to believe that he is NOT in Royals' territory, at least not according to DirecTV. It appears to me that Royals territory on D* is different than what is depicted on the map and from MLB.TV.

You can't go by what D* tells you your going to get based on your zip. They try to tell me I should get Minnesota sports over Wisconsin sports even though the only thing separating me from Wisconsin is a river.

[generalpatton78]

Well this entire situation is just weird. How many of us get FSN midwest and where are you? I'm in southern IL and FSN Midwest has always had "our region" type programing. From Card baseball games, SIU basketball games from time to time, and Sports Center type shows focusing on our local games.

Now as far as teams claiming territory I firmly believe in all STL claims on this map http://www.maurybrown.com/images/MLBTerritories.jpg . The Cards are one of the oldest franchises and has fans from Memphis Tenn all the way into the Rockies where the Colorado Rockies now rain. That said I think the map doesn't claim Colo for STL any longer, but I firmly believe in STL's claim for Iowa. I go to several games a year and run into tons of people from Iowa.

[Dan9]

Originally Posted by scott72

I wouldn't go by D* info. That's crazy that Des Moines would be in the Brewers local market, but I'm not and I'm a mile from the Wis border. Anyhow here's the MLB coverage map.
http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/...1150742098.jpg

I wouldn't trust that either, cause it says I should be getting Royals games according to that map, and I don't.

[scott72]

Originally Posted by generalpatton78

Well this entire situation is just weird. How many of us get FSN midwest and where are you? I'm in southern IL and FSN Midwest has always had "our region" type programing. From Card baseball games, SIU basketball games from time to time, and Sports Center type shows focusing on our local games.

Now as far as teams claiming territory I firmly believe in all STL claims on this map http://www.maurybrown.com/images/MLBTerritories.jpg . The Cards are one of the oldest franchises and has fans from Memphis Tenn all the way into the Rockies where the Colorado Rockies now rain. That said I think the map doesn't claim Colo for STL any longer, but I firmly believe in STL's claim for Iowa. I go to several games a year and run into tons of people from Iowa.

No question Iowa is part of the Cardinals area, but the issue is there are 5 other teams that claim it as well so you don't know what the heck your going to end up with. I've mentioned it a couple times already, what they should be doing is if your in a teams local market, then you SHOULD get the games on the RSN's provided you get those RSN's in your basic package. If not then with the Sports Pack you should get the rest. All out of market games obviously would be blacked unless you have the EI package. Of course this ISN'T how it's all going to work out. I guarantee you there will be a bunch of us on here next Monday angry as hell because for some odd reason our RSN isn't showing our games despite the fact we're in their local market.