Platinum Members Speak Out

[Ben]

I would be very surprised if ESPN owned the rights to finals. They don't show it live and last year showed VERY little of the corps performances. Less than half of the 2 hour show was the corps performing. I personally was very disappointed in the ESPN broadcast. Oh for the days when PBS showed the entire top 12 :)

As for the OP...I think sending the finals feed to Platinum members would be a great idea...or at least give us the placements LIVE and the winning corps encore.

it would be cool, but it wouldn't happen. there's a reason the webcast is for semis, not finals and that's because of the finals dvds. how many regulars just order the finals dvds every year whether they were there or not? how much sales would dci lose if they allowed some to view the finals via webcast and then risk the chance of them not buying the dvds?

[wxologist]

it would be cool, but it wouldn't happen. there's a reason the webcast is for semis, not finals and that's because of the finals dvds. how many regulars just order the finals dvds every year whether they were there or not? how much sales would dci lose if they allowed some to view the finals via webcast and then risk the chance of them not buying the dvds?

I don't think it would be too much because:

quality of DVDs >>> quality of the stream

But I could be wrong...

[GmenBari78]

I wonder how much DCI management (Acheson etc) know about these difficulties, or if the webcast team are even telling them about it. Has anyone tried to contact DCI management directly and let them know about our difficulties with the webcasts?

We all talk about "they know" because DCP is public, but are they really reading these threads here? All these DCI guys are on the road right now, in Pasadena. I doubt they have time to be paying attention to what they may perceive as a minor problem.

The live webcast is a great idea, but they are not supporting it technically at the level it needs. DCI needs to back off from doing this live, and post the videos online afterward, like they used to a couple years ago. They just don't have the manpower and money to do it right.

I've been watching the videos and webcasts ever since DCI started them a few years ago. My impression is that every single year, we have been guinea pigs for their webcast team to try the next latest, greatest idea. Sometimes its been successful, but every year has had its bad moments.

For terms of service, I think DCI needs to upfront acknowledge in a terms of service written agreement that you check a box to agree, that this technology may not work, and that as a Platinum member you are entitled to either a refund equivalent to the PPV cost for that event if it does not work for you, or the equivalent amount credit in your account for download of APDs/VPDs.

[Ben]

I don't think it would be too much because:

quality of DVDs >>> quality of the stream

But I could be wrong...

wouldn't be that much, but it would add to the loss of revenue due to refunds from the webcasts.

[SNModdison]

I wonder how much DCI management (Acheson etc) know about these difficulties, or if the webcast team are even telling them about it. Has anyone tried to contact DCI management directly and let them know about our difficulties with the webcasts?

We all talk about "they know" because DCP is public, but are they really reading these threads here? All these DCI guys are on the road right now, in Pasadena. I doubt they have time to be paying attention to what they may perceive as a minor problem.

The live webcast is a great idea, but they are not supporting it technically at the level it needs. DCI needs to back off from doing this live, and post the videos online afterward, like they used to a couple years ago. They just don't have the manpower and money to do it right.

I've been watching the videos and webcasts ever since DCI started them a few years ago. My impression is that every single year, we have been guinea pigs for their webcast team to try the next latest, greatest idea. Sometimes its been successful, but every year has had its bad moments.

For terms of service, I think DCI needs to upfront acknowledge in a terms of service written agreement that you check a box to agree, that this technology may not work, and that as a Platinum member you are entitled to either a refund equivalent to the PPV cost for that event if it does not work for you, or the equivalent amount credit in your account for download of APDs/VPDs.

This is a great idea. DCI should acknowledge that there were huge problems with Saturday's webcast, and should offer SOMETHING. Nothing huge...as we don't want to bankrupt DCI over ONE show. All of the other shows (with the exception of Annapolis, where everyone got to watch for free) have been great! We've had numerous "get togethers" this year to watch the webcasts. I am grateful that DCI has this service, and hope that it continues to grow, and the service gets better.

For platinum members, there should be around a $30 refund for the Annapolis and Stanford shows. AND...if they aren't already...have the Div 2/3 added to the Encorps...as a lot of us can't watch the webcast while we're at work.

Nate

[dbrddr]

I think having 2/3 added to the Encorps would be a wonderful gesture.

[wxologist]

wouldn't be that much, but it would add to the loss of revenue due to refunds from the webcasts.

Very true...I def still buy the DVDs regardless.

[Danpod]

As for the OP...I think sending the finals feed to Platinum members would be a great idea...or at least give us the placements LIVE and the winning corps encore.

i was just thinking about that yesterday! How cool would it be if we could see Finals placements, awards, and the encore LIVE on Saturday night??

[wxologist]

i was just thinking about that yesterday! How cool would it be if we could see Finals placements, awards, and the encore LIVE on Saturday night??

The site would crash in about 2 minutes and nobody would see it. I would actually bet on this.

[Peel Paint]

I understand why those who are not going to Pasadena are wishin' and hopin' that something from Pasadena will be webcast as a makeup, but doing that wouldn't be seen as a makeup for the Platinum members who are in Pasadena.

And as suggested above, DCI likely hasn't responded to all the issues and emails because they're too busy getting set up in Pasadena. That was true Saturday, and it's still true today. The last week of the season is always a very difficult time to reach DCI and get problems resolved.

I've taken out annual subscriptions to Season Pass/Fan Network since it started, but I'm not going to renew any more until I'm convinced that the problems have been resolved. It's just too aggravating. I really only did it to support DCI in this venture and so I could watch webcasts live. I rarely took advantage of the other services it offered and they don't mean much to me. If I see next summer, reading DCP threads, that it seems to be working well for most viewers, I'll consider trying it again, but not until then. I think they need a new Webcast team. I'm sure these folks work their fingers to the bone trying to get it to go, but at some point, it's a put-up-or-shut-up-and-move-on-to-something-else situation. I think we've reached that point. You need a team that is skilled and proactive in anticipating and preventing the glitches that keep occurring.