NFLST Game Mix

[jeff125va]

Is there any particular reason that the St. Louis - Seattle game was not on the Game Mix yesterday during the 1:00 ET games, instead of the logos for the Chargers-Chiefs coming up at 4:05? There were seven games going on, and they had 6 games, the Chargers-Chiefs thing, and the Red Zone channel.

[irish316]

Game was a blackout and NFLST does not show blackout games on Game Mix per NFL rules.

[jeff125va]

By a blackout, do you mean that it was blacked out in the home market because the game did not sell out? I was not aware that these games were blacked out on Game Mix. I know that the games that are on my local channel, but blacked out on the NFLST channel, are still shown on the game mix. I just can't click on that game and go straight to it, since it takes me to the 7xx-1 channel.

Is this just so they can broadcast just one version of the Game Mix channel, including to the city where the game is blacked out?

[Justin23]

By a blackout, do you mean that it was blacked out in the home market because the game did not sell out? I was not aware that these games were blacked out on Game Mix. I know that the games that are on my local channel, but blacked out on the NFLST channel, are still shown on the game mix. I just can't click on that game and go straight to it, since it takes me to the 7xx-1 channel.

Is this just so they can broadcast just one version of the Game Mix channel, including to the city where the game is blacked out?

Correct. The games that are shown on your local channel will still show up in the Game Mix, but not the ones that are blacked out because the game did not sell out. Just as you pointed out, it is so the Game Mix feed is a national feed, not tailored to one area of the country.

J

[jeff125va]

Ok, thanks. It had never occurred to me that I'd be affected by a game that was blacked out in some other part of the country, so it seemed pretty ludicrous that they had it this way. I know it was definitely not a high profile game, but certainly better than a picture of the Chargers' and Chiefs' helmets.

[bonscott87]

Is this just so they can broadcast just one version of the Game Mix channel, including to the city where the game is blacked out?

Correct. The GameMix channels is created at DirecTV and sent out to everyone. If a game is blacked out due to non-sellout then it can't be shown on GameMix since they can't show that game in the local market where it is blacked out.

Red Zone Channel will still show the game though so you can at least catch the scores and stuff.

[tonyd79]

Seems it would make more sense to have a logo for the blacked out game so those not blacked out could select it to watch it from the game mix channel, though. With a note saying it is blacked out on the game mix channel. Hmm, maybe an audio explanation when you select it. Better use of real estate than a game that has not started yet.

[sdk009]

The mix channel usually runs a note as a part of the bottom scroll noting due to NFL policy locally blacked out games can't be shown on it.

[jeff125va]

The mix channel usually runs a note as a part of the bottom scroll noting due to NFL policy locally blacked out games can't be shown on it.
Guess I'm usually too pre-occupied trying to watch 6 or 7 games at once to have noticed that.

[kikkenit2]

Guess I'm usually too pre-occupied trying to watch 6 or 7 games at once to have noticed that.I get the impression you think you couldn't watch the game at all. It was on 713-1 or whatever. You just can't get there from the game mix. Use the guide.

[Shades228]

As few have already noted this year the blackouts are extending now completely to the HD feeds. Before they were not and so mix channels were not impacted as well. Given the penetration that they have for HD locals, compared to last year, I'm guessing that it's no longer an option for them to not follow complete blackout rules in all markets.

The game mix can be argued per area but I'm not sure the ability to black out one screen on the mix channel exists to be removed just in the blackout market.

[kikkenit2]

As few have already noted this year the blackouts are extending now completely to the HD feeds. Before they were not and so mix channels were not impacted as well. Given the penetration that they have for HD locals, compared to last year, I'm guessing that it's no longer an option for them to not follow complete blackout rules in all markets.

The game mix can be argued per area but I'm not sure the ability to black out one screen on the mix channel exists to be removed just in the blackout market.Now i'm really confused. Are you saying when the raiders are blacked out in oakland or the rams in st louis and on the game mix that it is also blacked out on sunday ticket/superfan in los angeles? This is not true. I get zero games blacked out on the hd channels. The games being broadcast locally are usually shown only on that local channel 2 and 11 but everybody has that channel. I recorded and viewed parts of every game this year. And last year. If you live near the rams then you were blacked out no matter what.

[VARTV]

It would have been way cool if DirecTV dropped the 4pm game slide (Chargers) and the Red Zone Channel from the Mix channel at 1pm and enlarge the 6 games that were. I do a lot of Mic channel watching...

[bonscott87]

Now i'm really confused. Are you saying when the raiders are blacked out in oakland or the rams in st louis and on the game mix that it is also blacked out on sunday ticket/superfan in los angeles? This is not true. I get zero games blacked out on the hd channels. The games being broadcast locally are usually shown only on that local channel 2 and 11 but everybody has that channel. I recorded and viewed parts of every game this year. And last year. If you live near the rams then you were blacked out no matter what.

Shades is a bit confused on the issue in the thread.

The issue at hand in this thread has nothing to do with games being blacked out on Sunday Ticket if the local station carries it.

The blackout in question is the decades old "the game did not sell out and thus is blacked out in the teams home market(s) for X number of miles from the stadium and will not be available on any TV station, period, in those local markets".

So when Oakland and St. Louis or Detroit or Jacksonville don't sell out the home game, it can't be show on local TV (or via Sunday Ticket or on cable or on Fios, etc.) in those markets. THUS those games also cannot be shown on the Game Mix since it would be providing the whole game (even if just in a postage stamp sized box) to people in those home markets. There is only one GameMix channel, it's not specific per market. Thus instead of blacking out the GameMix channel itself they don't show the games under local non-sellout blackouts. The game itself is still available on the Sunday Ticket channel or local station outside the local markets of said non-sellout game.

Everyone got it now? ;)

Red Zone Channel is not under local non-sellout blackout restrictions and thus highlights and drives are still shown for these games.

[jeff125va]

I get the impression you think you couldn't watch the game at all. It was on 713-1 or whatever. You just can't get there from the game mix. Use the guide.
Thanks, but I knew I could get to the game on the other channel. I didn't have quite enough interest in it (other than Justin Forsett's 130 yard, 2 TD performance) to switch to it, but even without that I still would have taken it over the helmet logos. I just never realized that blackouts affected the Game Mix channel. I guess it's happened before but there was probably a full slate of games and whichever one wasn't sold out was probably the game that didn't make the "top 8" for the same reason it didn't sell out. I remember a Redskins game that was left off earlier this season, and I knew that that wasn't due to a non-sellout.

It would have been way cool if DirecTV dropped the 4pm game slide (Chargers) and the Red Zone Channel from the Mix channel at 1pm and enlarge the 6 games that were. I do a lot of Mic channel watching...
I've been wishing for a while that they'd have a different layout like that for the late games when there are often only 4 or fewer. The ultimate setup would be where even during the 1:00 games, you could choose whichever 4 or 6 you wanted, with the individual screens enlarged.