Does it make sense to "officially" move

[FostersBeerGuy]

TiVo and DirecTV gurus, I would appreciate your input on my current situation.

I am a 10 year D* subscriber and multiple HR10-250 owner who is relocating from Los Angeles to Portland, OR. I currently receive the west coast HD networks from D* on channels 81-89, since in LA these are my local channels. I cannot receive any of the networks OTA in LA, but I hope to be able to receive all of them in Portland. Obviously, I can't be confident about OTA reception until I give it a try up there. I subscribe to most of the sports packages and have a total of 6 receivers (all HR10-250s and T-60s) connected to phone lines.

I would like to continue receiving the MPEG-2 west coast HD feeds from D* after moving, however it seems extremely likely that if I use the "movers connection" a CSR will know enough to turn off these feeds. It is worth enough to me that I would pay out of pocket for my own installation in Portland, rather than get the free one from D*. I also want to postpone at all costs having to upgrade to the new non-TiVo HD DVR, which I would need for the pending HD locals in Portland.

A few questions:

As long as I continued to pay my bill online, is there any real chance that D* would ever catch on? And if they did, would they actually care? My $2000 a year spends the same for them no matter which state it's mailed from.

If my units dial in from a phone number nowhere near the address D* has on file, are they clever enough to figure this out and red flag me?

And if I disconnect all the units from phone lines, will this prevent me from subscribing to the sports packages, which all seem to claim that you must have a phone line connected? This would be a deal breaker.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

[Mark Lopez]

I know someone who moved from the Los Angeles area to TX about a year ago. They pay the bill on line and changed the billing address to TX. They did their own install in TX and now continue to receive the West coast HD feeds, the LA locals, and the San Antonio OTA HD channels. They are pretty sure DirecTV isn't going to go out of their way to do any checking as long as the $$ keep rolling in. They have ordered PPV and keep the phone lines plugged in without any problems. If you have any other questions, I can relay them to those folks. ;)

[joetoronto]

you have absolutely nothing to worry about, FostersBeerGuy.

you don't need phone lines anyway, just order PPV's online. besides, when you order online, all receivers in your house are activated for the PPV. ;)

the only time i plugged in any of my receivers was when i got my HR10-250 recently, and that was only once, to get the software from tivo.

i've never had any receivers hooked up to a phone line otherwise. :)

[dishrich]

As long as I continued to pay my bill online, is there any real chance that D* would ever catch on? And if they did, would they actually care? My $2000 a year spends the same for them no matter which state it's mailed from.

Probably not, but the only problem you might have is what if the person who buys your place in LA, decides to get D* themselves. If your physical address on your account is the same, it might throw some red flags up in D* computer, having 2 account at the same, exact, physical address. You might want to consider using another "physical" address in LA that nobody else might use.

That is one reason when I "moved", I made sure to use an address that would NEVER have an actual D* customer using it. I have (physically) moved twice & since all I had to do each time was go on-line & change my billing address, I didn't have to go through any muss or fuss, particulary with loosing my NY HD distant nets, since D* will NO longer offer them w/Chicago locals. (if you move your physical address, it WILL change your network qualifications)

If my units dial in from a phone number nowhere near the address D* has on file, are they clever enough to figure this out and red flag me?

Nope, as long they all dial in from the SAME line, it doesn't make any difference.

And if I disconnect all the units from phone lines, will this prevent me from subscribing to the sports packages, which all seem to claim that you must have a phone line connected? .

Nope, they'll still work just fine.

[beaster]

(if you move your physical address, it WILL change your network qualifications)



This wasn't my experience. I had the same question as the OP. I decided to roll the dice and use the Mover's Connection. I didn't change states, but I did change towns. In my old house I had pre-SHERVA waivers for all four of the LA network HD feeds. I did a completely above-board move via D*'s Mover's Connection, and still have the LA HD feeds over 4 months later, even after registering a brand new HDTivo about 2 months ago. So apparently nothing in their system caught the discrepency. Now, this may be because I had actual waivers in the old house, as opposed to being a real LA local customer. But nonetheless, I'm not complaining. :) The irony of it is that, in my new house, I get beautiful OTA HD as well.

-Sean

[TyroneShoes]

The secret is that they DON"T care. Only the local net affils care. If DTV can sell you distant nets, they will gladly take your money. They have to comply with the rules, but if you bend them they are not motivated to CSI that out. Instead, they are motivated to look the other way, because that is in their best interests, and not selling you something you want to pay for is not. They would only come down on you if the FCC came down on them, and that would take a concerted effort of local stations wielding the power of the NAB lobby for that to happen. A few rule-benders are small fish, and so "moving" is pretty much under the radar.

[HiDefGator]

Probably not, but the only problem you might have is what if the person who buys your place in LA, decides to get D* themselves. If your physical address on your account is the same, it might throw some red flags up in D* computer, having 2 account at the same, exact, physical address. You might want to consider using another "physical" address in LA that nobody else might use.



I know of three family members all using the same physical address in a large north eastern city for their DirecTv service. We get all 4 major networks in HD as a result. D* has never once called about why three different accounts are all using the same physical address. And the house at that address even has its own DTV service making 4 accounts that all appear to be using the same address.

[dishrich]

I know of three family members all using the same physical address in a large north eastern city for their DirecTv service.

Did any of these customers put "suffixes" on those same addresses, like maybe an apt#, suite#, etc? If so, then that would be a reason why nobody's had any problems.
But oh well, if you all are getting by with it, then cool beans... :D

[tucsonbill]

The secret is that they DON"T care.Not even a secret. They don't care and won't care till it becomes a legal liability again -- which it won't for a few folks who are fudging their eligibilty due to an address change.

[HiDefGator]

Did any of these customers put "suffixes" on those same addresses, like maybe an apt#, suite#, etc? If so, then that would be a reason why nobody's had any problems.
But oh well, if you all are getting by with it, then cool beans... :D

No suffixes. As long as you have a valid account number and pay your bill, they don't care where you live.

[FostersBeerGuy]

Everyone, thanks for the excellent information...it's just what I needed. I'm going to skip the Mover's Connection "offer" and I'll report back I encounter any problems. Having lived in LA for 5 years, at this point I don't think I can ever give up the live car chases that pre-empt the news a couple nights each week. :)

[TyroneShoes]

There is one consideration, in that spot beams are just that...spots. For example, if you physically move from Memphis to Albuquerque, you will have a hard time picking up the Memphis locals, but would be eligible for NM locals, which you could also receive. If you "unofficially" move, you will only be eligible for the Albuquerque locals, which means you will get neither Memphis or Albuquerque LIL if you are physically still in TN. Only if you are moving to or from LA or NY (which are carried CONUS) will "unofficial" moving work for LIL.

[dishrich]

Hey FBG, something that we forgot to mention. (in case you didn't already know this)
Be aware that your RSN (Fox regional sports network) that you get on your subscription is ALSO tied to your physical address. So, since you will be keeping your LA addy, you'll be getting Fox West 1 & 2, & NOT whatever RSN you would normally get in Portland. (I think Portland is Fox Northwest territory, but someone can correct me on that if not)

But, maybe for you, this is actually a good thing... ;) :)

[slapshot]

Hey FBG, something that we forgot to mention. (in case you didn't already know this)
Be aware that your RSN (Fox regional sports network) that you get on your subscription is ALSO tied to your physical address. So, since you will be keeping your LA addy, you'll be getting Fox West 1 & 2, & NOT whatever RSN you would normally get in Portland. (I think Portland is Fox Northwest territory, but someone can correct me on that if not)

But, maybe for you, this is actually a good thing... ;) :)

A little outdated but still very useful. ;)
http://www.maplenet.net/~trowbridge/rsnteams.htm

[dishrich]

Oops, I should have posted this too: (thx for reminding me ss) :)

http://www.directvsports.com/asp/active/RSN_Info.asp