Crying foul on CableVision
A warning to anyone planning to watch any of the World Cup matches on a CableVision box: don’t trust their electronic programme guide (EPG) to tell you what time the matches start.
I turned channel 7 on at 1pm this afternoon, looking forward to watching Germany and Sweden in the first second-round match, only to discover it was the start of the second half, not the first. Mad as hell (especially when I saw that I’d missed two goals), I double-checked the EPG. But sure enough: according to CableVision, the match was on between 1pm and 3pm, when it fact it had started an hour earlier.
That’ll teach me not to double-check the match times with a more reliable source of information.
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Why didn't you check on your World Cup Wallchart?? Don't tell me you haven't got one in the office and one at home to keep the scores on ............... or am I just a sad case??
Posted by Simon on 24.06.06 at 14:24
I made the same mistake. Fucking annoying.
Also, could not hear a word that Nick Jones' guest commentator said.
Posted by JJ on 24.06.06 at 14:25
Why do they bother with the analysis of the game, let the professionals do it and pull in the BBC post match chat! And what is that logo they are using - is it the world cup frisbee?
Posted by Simon on 24.06.06 at 14:31
"Also, could not hear a word that Nick Jones' guest commentator said."
He said "Definately, definately..." Pretty much that's all. :)
Not his fault though....Nick is good at talking but didn't really give the guy a chance.
Posted by ace on 24.06.06 at 14:40
Nick can certainly talk, and don't get me wrong, I like the guy, but what does he actually say?
Posted by Simon on 24.06.06 at 14:44
Ambiance - that's what he says - over and over and over!
Posted by kate on 24.06.06 at 17:02
Come on!
If it were England playing u would have known exactly what time the match started.
But bad tech/sloppyness nontheless.
Posted by Alan on 25.06.06 at 15:37
I don’t even know why I bother... it’s been going on for so long. On the WOW EPG they are still on Atlantic Standard Time so 9 is 10... or is it the other way around?! Although I enjoy & very much appreciate watching the World Cup on local tv... and shooting live tv on the shady side of the field can often produce a fuzzy picture. So I can’t really fault them there. But as far as ZBM-ZFB TV local production -- in general -- is concerned I feel their commitment to quality and professionalism is, shall we say, somewhat lacking. And their corporate culture seems to stifle creativity... witness the catchy names of locally produced tv programmes. Particularly annoying of late is their amateurish lack of attention to the audio feed of most of the tv programmes and commercials they air. I always seem to turn up the sound -- or turn down the sound, as the case may be -- just a few seconds before they do! Then it blasts my ears off as it blows the speakers out of my tv! At the other extreme... how about about the famous “two minutes of silence” ZBM TV slips into many of their most watched programmes. Is this some kind of new subliminal advertising -- two minutes of black screen dead air? Click. Wouldn’t it be more prudent to sell this air time and fill it with a couple of local commercials? Or does no one know how to sell at the BBC any more. What! has Leola retired? Oh we’ve got a good bitch goin’ this evening! Then we’ve got to put up with all their stale old high-rotation US PSA announcements... or does the LDS church have a pile of money to invest in local tv advertising? I particularly liked the one about the old guy at the family reunion who used to be a volunteer band leader... I just didn’t get the Caribbean accents of the sisters. Or how about the cool UN-style AIDS PSA that’s been airing for about five years! And Ed Mcmahon knocking on everyone’s doors. What else...? Oh yeah,. the atrocious and degrading shot of the Supreme Court back door & parking lot ZBM TV NEWS uses over and over and over every time they report on a court case there. Get real, shoot some decent new footage for cripes sake! Oh, and who could forget my favourite, the wonderful “walking feet” filler video? In my opinion that’s all pure laziness on the part of ZBM TV’s production and news staff. And it has been going on for way too long. Bermuda deserves better. Get out there and take some fresh video for a change! It is generally accepted practice in television news nowadays to shoot new video for every news story. Jebus guys... it’s tv, not freakin' radio
Posted by justamysticman on 25.06.06 at 23:12
Having just returned from Toronto, where I could watch all of the matches. I was horrified to see the picture quality in Bermuda. I wasn't even watching HDTV in Toronto, but the picture was sharp and crisp. ZBM's picture by comparison was like watching it through the bottom of my empty beer glass.
Posted by Chris on 26.06.06 at 10:49
"I was horrified to see the picture quality in Bermuda."
The worst bit is that the games are also on ESPN, but that gets blacked-out. The first game of the tournament (Germany game) was on ZBM and ESPN2. The ZBM feed was one blur playing another blur. The ESPN2 feed was perfectly clear. For the second game Cablevision realized people were tuning into ESPN2 and blacked out the feed.
Posted by H Reardon on 26.06.06 at 14:40
Reardon - I'll take a crappy ZBM picture with knowledgeable coverage over clueless American ESPN commentators every time.
Posted by observor on 26.06.06 at 14:47
Reardon - I'll take a crappy ZBM picture with knowledgeable coverage over clueless American ESPN commentators every time.
Posted by observor on 26.06.06 at 14:47
That's probably why you have crappy coverage on ZBM. Anyways, why so nasty?
Posted by silencedogood on 26.06.06 at 16:48
(clueless American ESPN commentators every time)
Oh, I agree our sports commentators are an irritating pain in the butt! (I generally turn the volume off and turn on some music or something) But to be fair, as far as soccer is concerned, may I remind you all of one thing;
"GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLL~" :)
Posted by YankeeKayaker on 29.06.06 at 12:36