Re: Suggest Channels to Add to FiOS TV
ElizabethS
Moderator Emeritus

Just a reminder folks, to keep the conversation on track, and courteous.  Everyone has an opinion and is allowed to express it. But we do ask that you express yourself in a way that does not detract from the topic.

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Re: Suggest Channels to Add to FiOS TV
film111
Specialist - Level 1

@Hellstorm wrote:


Before they waste any more bandwidth on yet another sports channel, I'd rather they concentrate on adding channels I'll actually watch like ... Fox Movie Channel HD, Turner Classic Movies HD 


I'd love to agree with you on these channels except ...TCM-HD still is not showing movies in HD. And there is no such thing as a Fox Movie Channel HD.

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Re: Suggest Channels to Add to FiOS TV
dlbags
Enthusiast - Level 1

Hellstorm,

The difference is all those channels you think should be pushed ahead of FSC have similar channels- in HD already whereas there are no soccer channels in HD. So even were we to examine from a POV which is needed more to use the bandwidth and create a more balanced line-up; one mind you to attract more customers to FIOS, I'd think you'd lose that argument too. In your eyes it is "yet another sports channel" but it's very similar to the channels you want in the respect that it's a specialty channel. Sports have become too dense to have channels dedicated to "sports" aside from ESPN. This is why so many channels have popped up for their respective sports instead of merely more "sports" channels.

Furthermore it seems this forum is for suggesting channels, not for people to detract from those suggestions. People are essentially trying to petition Verizon to carry a channel and you are going out of your way to debunk it. 

So although you may think in your POV you have a dog in the fight, you merely seem to be going out of your way to rain on others parades. I don't think you're being malicious mind you, I just think you aren't taking a step back and seeing it from a certain perspective. What reason is there to form arguments telling others in a forum of this nature that what they are suggesting is bad??? You're making the FSC people defend their wanting of a channel when the resources and effort could be into getting your channels put in with it.

Most of the channels you mentioned are fine and I would like to have them as well, I just think your zero sum approach isn't helping matters.

So what I'm saying is that we can all win if we band together instead of fighting amongst ourselves. they add channels in "batches" not one at a time.

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Re: Suggest Channels to Add to FiOS TV
Hellstorm1
Contributor - Level 1

@film11 wrote:

@Hellstorm wrote:


Before they waste any more bandwidth on yet another sports channel, I'd rather they concentrate on adding channels I'll actually watch like ... Fox Movie Channel HD, Turner Classic Movies HD 


I'd love to agree with you on these channels except ...TCM-HD still is not showing movies in HD. And there is no such thing as a Fox Movie Channel HD.


According to http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1058081, Fox Movie Channel HD is slated for 2010.

According to http://www.satelliteguys.us/dish-network-forum/210264-tcm-hd-looks-fuzzier-than-its-8.html#post21806...

"Here is the final word from the TCM Programming Department in response to my question about their HD Content posted during a "People Behind the Network Forum" held at 15.30 hours, PDT, at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel on Friday afternoon, 23 April, 2010:

TCM currently up-converts all content on the HD feed at this time and will begin to feed actual HD content to the HD feed within the year. Their initial objective was to get the HD feed in place and then, as they can acquire HD prints from the studios; HD prints for the licensed content which they own outright, and HD prints for future programming; begin to feed HD and down-convert for the SD feed.

The reason for the long lead time is that some of the rights to the films are negotiated as far as three years out. While normal programming is done between 5 and 7 months out - they are currently programming general content for September / October 2010 - special circumstances, such as significant dates in history, director or actor's birthdays, or other events can require planning as much as five years in advance.

When the issues of "more graininess" in the HD feed from TCM, as stated by several members of this group, were brought up to the programming department, they indicated that anyone with HD should seriously consider properly calibrating their HD sets because tests run by TCM indicated a significant improvement in the quality of most product up-converted to HD by TCM.

[NOTE: Even the LG digital set in our hotel room was overly bright and the color was too hot. Because they lock down those controls, we had to get an engineer to unlock the set so we could properly adjust it and watch a decent presentation on the set during our stay.]

In later discussions about image quality and movie formats, TCM's programming department was very emphatic that they would never deliberately show a product in any format other than the format in which it was originally released.  They are aggressively running educational spots on NOT stretching non-letterbox content to "fill the screen." In many cases, stretching non-letterbox content will actually cause pixilization and graininess on the viewer's sets because the picture stretch is not compensated by additional data but must fill an additional 60% of the screen with date intended to fill only 40% of the screen when a movie is transmitted in a format that fills only the "old square TV format."

One of the engineers also recommended disabling all auto-compensation controls built into many of todays new digital sets because things like auto-brightness; auto-contrast; motion control; and automatic room lighting compensation will actually make an HD picture look far worse."

Re: Suggest Channels to Add to FiOS TV
film111
Specialist - Level 1

Regarding those links, TCM has said they'd provide HD programming with the year...but as of now, it still has not happened..  (Upconverts are NOT HD.) When they do, it's certainly a channel I'd very much want.  But if other channels ARE providing HD and TCM is not, I'd rather see Verizon add the channel that is offering HD now!  As for Fox, again it would be another channel I'd love to have.  But despite being listed on the AVS link, there has been no announcement from Fox that it is coming or available...much less if they've even signed  agreements with ANY providers.

Right now, I don't know why it's taking so long for TCM to get HD masters, since they already exist for many of the films they show.   HDNet Movies, MGM-HD, and even Cinemax all show classic or older  films in HD.  Yet some of the same films, when shown on TCM,...are not.   I hope it happens with TCM soon, but in the meantime other channels are ready.

Re: Suggest Channels to Add to FiOS TV
Hellstorm1
Contributor - Level 1

@film11 wrote:

Regarding those links, TCM has said they'd provide HD programming with the year...but as of now, it still has not happened..  (Upconverts are NOT HD.) When they do, it's certainly a channel I'd very much want.  But if other channels ARE providing HD and TCM is not, I'd rather see Verizon add the channel that is offering HD now!  As for Fox, again it would be another channel I'd love to have.  But despite being listed on the AVS link, there has been no announcement from Fox that it is coming or available...much less if they've even signed  agreements with ANY providers.

Right now, I don't know why it's taking so long for TCM to get HD masters, since they already exist for many of the films they show.   HDNet Movies, MGM-HD, and even Cinemax all show classic or older  films in HD.  Yet some of the same films, when shown on TCM,...are not.   I hope it happens with TCM soon, but in the meantime other channels are ready.


Perhaps you missed this part.

"The reason for the long lead time is that some of the rights to the films are negotiated as far as three years out. While normal programming is done between 5 and 7 months out - they are currently programming general content for September / October 2010 - special circumstances, such as significant dates in history, director or actor's birthdays, or other events can require planning as much as five years in advance."

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Re: Suggest Channels to Add to FiOS TV
film111
Specialist - Level 1

No, I didn't miss that part.  Point is, it seems channels that don't necessarily specialize in classics 24/7 seem to have found a way (or had the forethought) to show even stuff like CURSE OF THE FACELESS MAN or ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN in HD.  Heck, even the lowly Cinemax just had a bunch of Hitchcock films (including SHADOW OF A DOUBT, SABOTEUR, PSYCHO, THE BIRDS, FRENZY, etc.) in HD.  Yet TCM can''t because of lead-time???  HD is not something that just debuted...it's been around for almost a decade (and longer).  I assume TCM just didn't want to bother or prepare all this time.  Anyway, we both agree that hopefully they will be ready sooner rather than later, as it is Number One on my list of desired HD channels...whenever they start showing HD.  

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Re: Suggest Channels to Add to FiOS TV
tlanmt
Newbie

HALLMARK CHANNEL HD


Dear Kathleen,


Martha Stewart is coming to the Hallmark Channel starting September 13, 2010. Verizon Fios has included "Hallmark Movie HD" but not "Hallmark HD" to its lineup of HD channels. Will you be including the "Hallmark HD" channel soon? All of the Martha Stewart shows are coming to Hallmark ("The Martha Stewart Show","From Martha's Kitchen", "From Martha's Home", "From Martha's Garden" and "Whatever with Alexis and Jennifer". PLEASE add Hallmark HD to Verizon Fios HD Lineup!!!


Thank you!

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Re: Suggest Channels to Add to FiOS TV
jar66su
Enthusiast - Level 2

want to see where your cable fees are going on a channel v channel basis?  

http://mediamemo.allthingsd.com/files/2010/03/cable-sub-fees.png

this has everything to do w/ advertising revenue for a specific channel - namely, how a channel allows advertisers to target a specific demographic (e.g.  espn - males 18-40 with similar consumer interests).  and of course, the # of viewers plays a huge factor in this.

don't like this?  want providers to provide a la carte?  good luck with that.  not going to happen w/ cable's monopolistic "service". 

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Re: Suggest Channels to Add to FiOS TV
cokacola08
Enthusiast - Level 1

Fox Soccer HD.

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