New Channels always generate a lot of discussion so this thread is for discussing new channels in 2012.
You're welcome to speculate and discuss new channels coming to Shaw Direct in 2012 but PLEASE unless it's been confirmed by an official press release, be clear about what is speculation and what is fact.
A post saying "a CSR said it was coming" is NOT official, however, it does put it in the "highly" likely category.
If its posted on the CRTC site that its been approved by the CRTC but Shaw Direct has not said anything, I would consider that in the "not very likely at this time" category.
IMHO, news stations are a waste of HD bandwidth these days. I don't need to see the razor stubble or blemishes on the faces of those talking heads to hear and dismiss their blather. Most site feeds of real news, the few that still are obtained, are usually in SD anyway.
Shaw Direct's HD channel coverage certainly makes little sense from a consumer's point of view. Two HBO feeds, where one is simply a three hour time shift, adds little value. Meanwhile, other Astral HD feeds, like MPIX, that provide additional content are missing. I suspect that's an internal, political decision rather than anything based on logic.
Because the eastern feed usually repeats popular new shows 3 hours later anyway. (Example: Real Time With Bill Maher at 10PM and 1AM Fridays and it's the same for almost all other new HBO series.) There is no need for two feeds in the first place. They can just repeat the 3 hour prime time slot after 3 hours like many other national stations do. Even PBS does this. HBO Canada already repeats every new show 5 times a week so it's not like people in the west will miss anything.
the problem with dropping SD feeds of channels available in HD is the arctic Market. There is a pretty large population of Shaw Direct account holders in Nunavut , NWT and Northern Yukon that are outside of the F2 footprint for a standard 75E. Not everyone can afford the 2 1.2 meter dishes that are required for f2 reception in the North.
I know sat companies make a lot of money in rural areas, but I can't wrap my head around how this could be true. The combined population of those territories is a small fraction of a percent of the national population.
This frees up a couple of SD channels now. Do you think Shaw Direct would be nice enough to add 2 new channels to replace them? Like Comedy Gold and NASA TV would be my picks.
Maybe Shaw should also eliminate History W, and other channels that they own which currently have two of feeds. Programming is usually only two hours difference. Also why is it that they need to have Peachtree TV on two channels (Advance 161, 270 I believe). Hopefully Shaw D could add a couple of channels for the fall prior to the launch of the new satellite.
Does anyone know by removing tropolis and Show Case West what kind of channel space that could open up for Shaw Direct (band width)?
The doubling up of Peachtree, TLN and Action and the multiple Shaw Direct channels doesn't take any extra bandwidth. It's just mapped that way. However, the removal of the 2 western feeds this weekend does free up 2 standard definition spaces or maybe 1/2 of a high def channel. I'm starting to think now they will be used for Sunday Ticket and not any new channels.
Last night (Aug 27) we still had TVTropolisW and ShowcaseW. It must only be Bell who terminated these channels. Cogeco is also still carrying them.
The link that Saskbill has posted is to a Bell forum. Bell has cut these channels. I found this out on Friday or Saturday
They were cut by Shaw Direct too, trust me you don't have them. You'll notice that while TvTrop and Showcase West are physically still active, they are actually just mirrors of the East feed...as in the west feed channel is just a duplicate of the East.
for those that are wondering why Showcase West and TVTropolis West are still active; it's because Shaw Broadcast has a dual feed of the east feeds setup for brief period to allow cable headends to make the siwtch to the correct feed.
I bet they leave the old west channels as is on Shaw Direct as well. Deleting them just points out that something has been removed where as many people won't know the difference if it isn't pointed out to them. There are already numerous double appearances of channels on Shaw D, most notably the eastern US Network group that was deleted a couple of years ago now but the old channels just show the other US Eastern Network group.
I think in this particular case; the west feeds will eventually disappear once the dual feed period is over. The dual feed usually runs for about 15-30 days.
You're right. The channels are active, but they are the same as the eastern feeds. As for Cogeco, I didn't do a good check. I was at someone else's house.
Well, they got rid of those two west coast feeds, and replaced them with... Cricket. International Cricket Council. WTF?!?!?! With all the channels that they still don't offer, this is what we're given. Shaw has lost their collective minds.
I don't see any issue with this. With the prevalence of PVR use and the ad nauseum repeats, there is little reason to run timeshift feeds. Bandwidth is too valuable to waste on extra repeats of NCIS and Friends.
Citytv HD Toronto is now showing on channel 304 (advanced lineup, don't know the classic #). Also ShowcaseW and TVtropolisW have now been removed from the guide.
If there is no NHL season this year remove the NHL PACKAGE AND MAKE ROOM FOR MORE HD CHANNELS. The new satellite should be up and running by next season,
Status
Not open for further replies.
You have insufficient privileges to reply here.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Canadian TV, Computing and Home Theatre Forums
1.7M posts
114.9K members
Since 2001
A forum community dedicated to Canadian TV, computing and home theatre owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about home audio/video, displays, troubleshooting, styles, projects, DIY’s, product reviews, accessories, classifieds, and more!