Don't worry, I have a video capture card, and I use Sony Vegas for my editing. I do a lot of video editing for fun. So I have the proper equipment / software.

I think I'll do one re-enacting the NFL Playoff debacle of 2007, when Global couldn't pass through FOX's feed properly from Chicago. The picture was pixelated beyond belief. The snowy effect will come in handy for that. I'll also throw some stupid virtual Canadian Tire ads behind the upright when they are going for a field goal - how distracting was that back then.

We should send it to the CRTC on a DVD. And mail it out to Global, CTV and A as well. That would be priceless.

Haha yeah I would love nothing more than to send that to CRTC and the broadcasters.. oh the look on that old man Ivan Fecan's face would be priceless!

But anyway... god I hate waiting 3 hours to watch my shows... tonight Family Guy is on at 9 PM here (AST), but I'm waiting until 12 AM to watch them on the timeshifted FOX channel. I don't even have HDTV, but I'm waiting simply for the principle and to ensure my shows are aired uninterrupted in their original broadcast form.

Well, I'm serious, I'll work on the Global piece over the next week or so. I'll try recording some Global commercials this week, and then record the NFL FOX pregame next week, and then parts of the game at 1:00, and I'll make it look like Global hijacked it.
Once we both have our videos complete (you with the A Channel one you're working on, and the CTV one you already made), we can put it on a DVD and mail it out.
It'll open their eyes as to how bad things really are at times hopefully.

So I've captured some video from Global, including promos of their newscasts and other American shows, and of course, the same old Canadian commercials that they show non-stop, so I can use them in my video. Tomorrow, I'll capture the NFL on FOX pregame directly, and then the start of the 1:00 game (which may be hijacked by CTV though). But I'll get that footage and then start editing everything.
How is your video coming along CIS?

Great to hear your progress on the Global video, hope to see that one soon. Mine's pretty much done, I just need to get to a WiFi connection to upload it. I am unfortunately still stuck in the 20th century with dial-up... we can't even get high speed internet here yet... supposed to come soon though... I was supposed to be at Halifax this weekend I was going to take my laptop and upload it while there, but there's a huge snowstorm going on in the Maritimes now, actually the power just recently stopped flickering long enough for me to come online. Anyway, I'll post updates here.

Happy TVing,

CIS

Well, it's certainly an ironic twist, but when I added my video to YouTube, it was "rejected based on a copyright claim from NBC Universal". So, I added it to TinyPic... great little site, doesn't even require an account to add a video.

So, check it out here!

http://tinypic.com/player.php?v=2ivnz9s&s=4

CIS

Wow, not only is the simsub completely botched, but the audio and video from the substituted signal on A are total crap.

Thanks for that CrazyInSane.

Welcome to Cuba, er, Canada, eh! Great post CrazyInsane!

CIS your video captures all the annoying features of simsubs - bad timing, missed content, inferior picture and audio quality, opaque bugs that block text, etc. Good job!

The CTV opaque bugs are particularly annoying and pathetic because we KNOW that they are trying and failing to hide the real source of the broadcast, when they could be honest and respect their viewers a little by just adding a second transparent bug like Global.

(Not that Global gets a pass, what with their awful advertising and promos overlaid on running programs that is really intrusive and often blocks out text, like subtitles in Heroes.)

Nice job CIS!

I am almost done my video - describing all the annoyances with simsubbing and trying to watch the NFL in Canada (both when Global interrupted and now that CTV does).

I just need to capture the opening of "60 Minutes" tonight to make one more point in my video, and I'll put it altogether tonight and upload it to the same site you did.

Then we should really collaborate and burn these clips to DVD and send them out to the CRTC, CTV, Global, and A (maybe even Rogers, BellTV) so they can really see how bad it is.

Well, here it is, what Canadians have to put up with when trying to watch the NFL thanks to simsubbing:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhYbU97Y4p0

Classof83

I watched your youtube video and was not surprised at all by what took place during the football games.Simsubbing is absolutely the worst thing that was ever created by the ruthless CRTC mafia. This is why I am going to the
US again in Feburary 2009 to a motel down there to watch the Super Bowl
as I have done now for the last several years where I am completely safe from the clutches of the CRTC and their simsub monster.

I can't believe you go over to escape simsubs during the SuperBowl. Sounds like a good idea though! You should tell the CRTC that they're driving you out of your own country!!!

Great video Classof83! We don't get simsubs around here for the NFL games, but I can only imagine how painful they must be to experience.

The CTV opaque bugs are particularly annoying and pathetic because we KNOW that they are trying and failing to hide the real source of the broadcast, when they could be honest and respect their viewers a little by just adding a second transparent bug like Global.
I agree completely... whenever Global does a simsub of a broadcast where the original US bug is already in the bottom right corner, they at least respect that fact and place their own logo in the top left corner. CTV, however, completely botches shows like The View (ABC) and Jay Leno (NBC) by placing ugly, opaque bugs of CTV and "A" over the original US logos. To me this is blatant censorship... it would be fine on only the CTV signal, but not the ABC one!

This is why I am going to the
US again in Feburary 2009 to a motel down there to watch the Super Bowl
I see you live in New Brunswick, so you must have access to Eastlink, no? If you do, they offer timeshifted channels that are NOT affected by simsubbing, even during the Superbowl. I would recommend subscribing to Eastlink before making that trip down.

When it comes to live sporting events, simsubs are the worst, especially when the ending is cut off because it runs over the originally scheduled length. There's nothing worse than missing the end of a close game, or even missing the post game interviews and wrap ups because another Canadian channel cuts in. I've seen this all too much with football and basketball over the years. Yet, the CRTC calls everything "a minor inconvenience" when you write to them and complain.

So CIS, should I burn our 3 clips we have to DVD and send them out? I'll gladly do it to show just how bad things are.

To be truly honest,I have never even heard of Eastlink.

Been going to the US now since 2005 to watch the Super Bowl.However though,
besides the football I have access to US television for the whole weekend which means no simsubbing of any kind!!!! So great getting to watch ESPN and many more American channels that you are unable to get in this country.

The only down part of the trip is when I go into electronics stores and see DirecTv or
Dish Network satellite displays and know that I am unable to,under the threat of
criminal prosecution in Canada if I do so, to subscribe to either one of those
satellite services.

I love the video. :)

If you were going to make another or improve it, i would add:

The virtual ads on the field. There were times when it covered up the first down lines. Seeing as youve done CT already, Pizza Pizza would be the obvious choise.

The cut away early (youve dont he come back late, so you need this one). This one happens the most, and almost always on a change of possession play (fg, punt, etc) in which there is a flag the commentators dont notice. The US station will set up for a commercial break, but then the commentators notice the flag and start to explain it. Too bad says the canadian overlords, they will break away and you miss the explanation.

Cityvs great wisdom in showing a scroll near the 6pm mark to inform their loyal customers that CP24 is showing news. Has interfered with statistical data on the screen.

Repeating of same commercials over and over and over. With CTV its "Amazing Race", with Citytv its "We have a new number". If you watch, you know what im talking about. :) Also total lack of HD commercials.

So CIS, should I burn our 3 clips we have to DVD and send them out? I'll gladly do it to show just how bad things are.
Yes, absolutely, I'm all for it. We really need to let the CRTC know how bad these things can get. I don't know if we should send my original clip of The Today Show though, because they might just say "well CTV doesn't air the Today Show, so what are you trying to say?"... since "A" actually does air Jay Leno, this video alone might have more effect.

Well, I believe CTV did use to air the Today Show back in the day for a bit if I'm not mistaken (sometimes in the 90's???). But I see Canada AM has been shown since 1972 according to wikipedia, so maybe I'm thinking of something else. But I like your original video too, so I would like to use it.

I know you can download the videos using realplayer and other software, but perhaps you can send me the original files, as they won't be compressed like they are once they are uploaded. I can certainly burn my original clip to DVD and it will be much clearer than it is on youtube (and the pixelation portion that I tried to convey will stand out much more than it does now since everything is kind of pixelated on youtube).

I would also like to write up a letter stating not only how bad simsubbing is and the annoyances it causes, which the DVD with the clips would show, but also how it was created so Canadian networks could come up with more original Canadian shows from the money that is generated, and not continue to hide behind this rule and continue to make money and then do things like outbid the CBC for the rights to the HNIC theme song, or invest in other channels like TSN or the plethora of speciality channels CTV and Global continue to buy. So there's two basic points that I have problems with.

Maybe we should also send in copies of Noaa2000's hotels receipts during the Superbowl and convey to them that they're actually driving citizens out of Canada because of simsubbing!!!

I can send you the original files, but as I've said earlier I don't have broadband access, so I'd only be able to send them when I can bring my laptop to a Wifi location or otherwise. Where and how should I send the files to you?

I agree with most of your statements and suggestions here. Maybe you can also suggest to the CRTC that they restrict simsub timeframes to allow perhaps only 2 hours of primetime hijacking (I call it hijacking, period) during US primetime hours. I suggest this only because we know the CRTC isn't just gonna throw simsubbing out the window. This would at least stop Global and CTV from being complete slaves to the US network schedules and leaving Canadian audiences feeling that their networks are utterly useless (which they are, these networks basically get permission to show the new episodes of US programs BEFORE the original US network—so Canadians could actually see them first—but are so greedy that they simply simulcast instead to rake in the money).

(Canadian networks) make money then do things like outbid the CBC for the rights to the HNIC theme song, or invest in other channels like TSN or the plethora of speciality channels CTV and Global continue to buy. So there's two basic points that I have problems with.
Yes, this is a great point. These greedy and coward networks continue to say that simsubbing is required or they will go bankrupt, but obviously they have enough money to waste on bidding for the Hockey theme and creating crappy copies of US channels that we could otherwise get imported into Canada in their original form. What about before simsubbing? They didn't go bankrupt then!

Let's face it, Canada (apart from Quebec) doesn't have much of an independent culture. Simsubbing is making this even worse, and the least we should expect from Canadian networks is to air CANADIAN SHOWS! The least, people! We can't continue to accept their excuses of "oh, you'd watch the American shows anyway"... is that what other non-US networks say?? NO! They make their own shows and help maintain an independent culture for their country! Enough of this crap. How do they expect aspiring Canadian stars to stay in this country when it's simply America's little clone!? And why don't these networks air British or Australian series? Like the original "The Office"? Did they forget that Australia and Britain are just as foreign as the US? It's so pathetic. Let's just join the freaking union already. Oh say can you see, by the dawn's early light....