Long Time Fan Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 Do we feel this way? I am tempted, but the truth is that bandwidth is expensive. DCI is limited by the cost of how much material they put up on the web. I would like more, but this is the reality of this niche activity. Unless they can really expand their fan base and get a whole lot of paying customers, they will not have the capacity to put up more recorded versions of the shows. The bandwidth takes a big hit for each show posted in full length. So has DCI done the right thing? Last year they solved this by only posting recordings that were short clips with more shows represented. This year, fewer shows, but full length. In exchange they offer more live shows that only impact bandwidth for the period of the show. I am personally not happy with the tradeoff. I am in the UK and must stay up until 4:00AM if I want to see a live show that is not recorded. Otherwise I will never see the show. Am I getting my 'value for money' as they say in the UK? No. But it is the best I can do. I think for most in the US this is a good trade. The only thing that makes this a poor choice is if they can't fix the access and security issues that have been plaguing some members. BTW, I know that some have been sharing their login info so others can see the material. This is a further drain on bandwidth. Just an observation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceman Posted July 9, 2007 Author Share Posted July 9, 2007 (edited) Not to pick on you, but I'm going to. :P I think that the Platinum plan is possibly the greatest $90 I will spend this year. It was clearly stated that the EnCorps videos would be posted after the Annapolis, San Antonio, and Semifinals shows. I knew that before I paid my 90 bucks. And I was just as excited about it then as I am now. Do you realized that 12 years ago people had to PAY to call a 900 number to get scores. (That, or wait for the magazine to arrive) Or that you had to wait a few months until the CDs came out to even hear the shows you had heard about? Now, for less than $100, I can watch 8 shows live on my computer, can listen to every Finals show ever recorded on demand, I can build my own mid-season CD, AND, this year, I get to watch COMPLETE PERFORMANCES ONLINE after the Annapolis, San Antionio, and Semifinal shows?!?! I would probably pay $250 for that. I see this as one of the greatest examples of tailoring a product for the fans in the history of media. If that is something you feel the need to complain about, well, I can't help you. Thanks for the cookie-cutter response about historical developments.... :-) Clearly you don't understand what I'm complaining about. It isn't the price, it isn't the service, it is the fact that it would be very easy for DCI to post more clips to the on demand feature, since they are taping them and posting clips on their website for free. Because it would not incur them any cost, and since it is relatively simple to do so, it would be great for viewers to be able to see the progress of the corps. We are half way through the season and the latest coverage is nearly a month old! Edited July 9, 2007 by iceman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeN Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 Thanks for the cookie-cutter response, but clearly you don't understand what I'm complaining about. It isn't the price, it isn't the service, it is the fact that it would be very easy for DCI to post more clips to the on demand feature, since they are taping them and posting clips on their website for free. Because it would not incur them any cost, and since it is relatively simple to do so, it would be great for viewers to be able to see the progress of the corps. We are half way through the season and the latest coverage is nearly a month old! I concur. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orange Roughy Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 it is the fact that it would be very easy for DCI to post more clips to the on demand feature, since they are taping them and posting clips on their website for free. Because it would not incur them any cost, and since it is relatively simple to do so, it would be great for viewers to be able to see the progress of the corps. Sorry, but this made me laugh out loud. "Since they are taping them and posting clips on their website for free"? "Because it would not incur them any cost"? I think you need to read up on how the internets works before posting stuff like this. Read the post above yours for an explanation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceman Posted July 9, 2007 Author Share Posted July 9, 2007 (edited) I'll admit... I don't know the cost of bandwith... however, if they want the platinum service to take off membership wise, they may want to invest in more bandwith. Actually, 30% more to cover all of their events. I'm not insisting that I think this service should entitle us to coverage of every show, just the once a week DCI event. But if you feel feel that this 30% increase is not something DCI can afford (and apparently enough to make you LOL), than I guess this must be the case. I suspect (notice I used the word suspect), that this could be afforded by DCI, especially from the fees we are paying. Please enlighten us bandwith idiots about the exact costs :-) Edited July 9, 2007 by iceman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sddolfan Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 (edited) I guess my biggest problem is that this year we are paying a lot more, for what seems like a lot less. Last season I felt like I could feel the progress and follow the shows leading up to the Championships, so that when I got to see the corps live, I knew what to look forward to and where to look for it. Last year, we had archived performances for the following shows prior to the Championships: 06/18 - Lisle 07/08 - Indy 07/15 - Battle Creek 07/29 - Atlanta 08/04 & 08/05 - Allentown This year, all we have is: 06/16 - Annapolis 07/21 - San Antonio Like many other people in the music industry, I work on Saturday nights. Therefore, the "live only" feeds are of no use to me....and I doubt I would plunk down the $90 in the future. Edited July 9, 2007 by sddolfan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casaba Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 (edited) on the day of the Kalamazoo show AT&T cut the lines in my area and had no internet at showtime. I just can't help myself but as an employee I gotta tell ya, we don't typically go out and cut lines...we repair lines that others cut.....but I could be wrong, it might be part of the DCI conspiracy..did you notice the black helicopters? :P Edited July 9, 2007 by Casaba Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orange Roughy Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 I'll admit... I don't know the cost of bandwith... however, if they want the platinum service to take off membership wise, they may want to invest in more bandwith. Actually, 30% more to cover all of their events. I'm not insisting that I think this service should entitle us to coverage of every show, just the once a week DCI event. But if you feel feel that this 30% increase is not something DCI can afford (and apparently enough to make you LOL), than I guess this must be the case. I suspect (notice I used the word suspect), that this could be afforded by DCI, especially from the fees we are paying.Please enlighten us bandwith idiots about the exact costs :-) See, the internet is a series of tubes... :P I contacted the guy at DCI last year to inquire about the sound quality from streaming their archived shows. He told me that the cost of adding bandwidth was the reason they could not offer the streaming at a higher quality. One can only assume that this is the same reasoning applied to the quantity of video available. I don't know the exact numbers of the current bandwidth costs, but I do know that it is the main part of the equation when DCI is making these decisions. The guy did tell me that they will be evaluating this year to year, and if they can make the cost structure work, they will add bandwidth to expand both video and audio features. So, the more we (the fans) can prove that this is a product that we want and are willing to pay for, the more they will expand the service. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CUDAKITE Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 Not to pick on you, but I'm going to. :P I think that the Platinum plan is possibly the greatest $90 I will spend this year. It was clearly stated that the EnCorps videos would be posted after the Annapolis, San Antonio, and Semifinals shows. I knew that before I paid my 90 bucks. And I was just as excited about it then as I am now. Do you realized that 12 years ago people had to PAY to call a 900 number to get scores. (That, or wait for the magazine to arrive) Or that you had to wait a few months until the CDs came out to even hear the shows you had heard about? Now, for less than $100, I can watch 8 shows live on my computer, can listen to every Finals show ever recorded on demand, I can build my own mid-season CD, AND, this year, I get to watch COMPLETE PERFORMANCES ONLINE after the Annapolis, San Antionio, and Semifinal shows?!?! I would probably pay $250 for that. I see this as one of the greatest examples of tailoring a product for the fans in the history of media. If that is something you feel the need to complain about, well, I can't help you. Couldn't agree more. They let you know exactly what you were getting before you signed up. It is an exellent deal. However, I too would like to see every show that was broadcast live be availble on demand latter. since this is DCI's first stab at this program prehaps it would only take POLITE feedback from Platinum members to perswade DCI to make this change for next season. All is all I'm very happy that this program is avalible. Thank you DCI. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Brace Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 I'm sorry...I thought Michael Boo was a draft pick and DCI got him in the first round. My bad. Darn these eyes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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