DirecTV R-15 DVR: Are “Showcases” ADWARE? Write or Call DirecTV!

[larrys]

This is about the DirecTV R-15 DVR (their 2-tuner DVR). If you have one (or are considering switching to DirecTV and would get a DVR), this concerns you.

DirecTV will occasionally download via the phone line software updates to the DVR. It is after all, just a computer, but with a very limited user interface. These updates are usually bug fixes (of which there are many) and are usually a good thing.

On their last software update DirecTV activated a new feature called, “Showcases.” This is where they download to your DVR in the middle of the night shows that they’d like for you to watch. The first one was an 8 minute long introduction to the R-15 DVR. Others include shows with popular bands and NFL highlight shows. If you check your R-15 and you have a software revision of 0x104B or 0x10D3 (MENU -> Settings -> Info & Test) then you have this problem.

HOW SHOWCASES WORK:

You view the shows you’ve recorded by viewing the MyVOD list. There are two ways to view this:

• Press MENU on your remote to get the Quick Menu and then select, MyVOD. The Quick Menu is a much faster way of finding and viewing the shows you’ve recorded.
• Press List on your remote to display the Playlist which has two tabs on top: MyVOD and Showcase.
  
  Prior to this last update, the Showcase tab in the Playlist was always empty. Now, they’re actually downloading shows that appear there.

THE PROBLEM:

The problem is that these Showcase shows are listed in the MyVOD listing in the Quick Menu. So, if you use the Quick Menu to get to the programs you’ve chosen to record, you now also have to wade through an ever growing list of shows that DirecTV is downloading to your DVR just to see the shows that you’re actually interested in viewing. And, the Showcase shows are not neatly listed at the top or bottom, they’re in the middle! So far, they’ve all been grouped together but I don’t think it’ll stay that way.

Please keep in mind:

• You can’t delete these Showcase shows
• You can’t disable this feature
• You can’t block that channel (channel 1010)

And yes, there are ads in these shows so it’s obvious that DirecTV is thinking of this as a new revenue stream. The more people who watch them, the more they can charge for the ads! This is why (again, in my opinion) they won’t let us delete the shows or disable this feature. They want us to see these shows listed and to view them (and the ads in them).

In my opinion, that last software update included ADWARE! They’re downloading ads to my DVR. Why do I call it “adware?” Adware, loosely speaking, is software that some user innocently downloads under the pretext of getting something useful (like bug fixes for your defective/malfunctioning R-15) that installs malicious software that displays ads/tracks your web surfing/etc without the user's advanced consent or knowledge. In this case, DirecTV is displaying the listing of these unwanted shows (which is a source of advertising revenue for DirecTV). I didn’t want them in the first place and I’m unable to remove them!

In my opinion, DirecTV needs to do one of two things to fix this issue:

• Give us the ability to turn Showcases off
• Instead of lumping the Showcase listings in with the MyVOD listings from the Quick Menu, simply have one additional selection, “Showcases” from the top level Quick Menu! Then, a user can choose to see their MyVOD listings or the Showcase lists. After all, they separate the listings in the Playlist screen. Why not do the same in the Quick Menu?

The good news about this is that these programs do not take up any of the disk space on the DVR allocated for the recording of our shows. They have a partition on the disk reserved for their exclusive use.

And, to be fair to DirecTV, there are lots of people out there that are thrilled with this new feature. They watch these programs and enjoy them.

All I’m asking is to keep the Showcase listings separate or allow me the ability to disable them from being recorded. They could even leave the default action to have it enabled!

PLEASE CALL, WRITE or E-MAIL:

If you have DirecTV or are thinking of switching to them (weather you have the R-15 or not), please call or write. If you don’t have DirecTV service or the R-15, let them know that this BUG would cause you to have second thoughts about switching to their service or equipment.

Phone number: 1-800-531-5000

Or, you can e-mail them directly from their web site here:

http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/customer/howToReachUs.jsp

If you’d like to take this a step higher than the normal Customer Service Representative, you can write or call The Office of the President. He won’t personally reply, but there’s a separate department that responds to mail and calls to that office. They are actually more responsive. I sent a letter to them on a Tues. I got a return phone call from them that Thurs (yes, two days later)!

Chase Carey
President and Chief Executive Officer
DirecTV
P.O. Box 6550
Greenwood Village, CO 80155-6550
1-888-237-8327

TIPS:

If you choose to call or write, here are a few tips (most of you probably already know these anyway):

• Be polite but firm.
• Don’t yell or call the person names or be rude to them in any way. They’re basically there (for this call or letter) to pass it on to the engineering department.
• Be explicit about what you’re asking for and why you feel this bug fix/enhancement is needed.
• Think about how you’ll word this before writing or calling so that you can clearly articulate your request to them.
• Thank them for taking the time to listen to your request and for passing it on. Yes, it’s their job but they are people and their time is valuable like yours. Treat them like you would like to be treated.
• Be positive about the service that DirecTV provides in general (show that you’re likely to remain a customer). “Great picture and channel selection and a real value for my money except for this DVR!”

In my opinion, the R-15 has the potential to be a really great DVR, once the bugs have been fixed. It seems obvious that in their rush to get it out the door (and to start making money from it) they released it a good year and a half too early! They didn’t take the time to make sure that it actually worked as advertised.

Thanks!
Larry.

[tim.s]

Great, now we need pop-up blockers for our TV.

Makes me glad I have Tivo powered DVRs (branded for DirectTV)...at least until they die or DirectTV stops supporting them

[larrys]

Originally posted by tim.s
Great, now we need pop-up blockers for our TV.

Makes me glad I have Tivo powered DVRs (branded for DirectTV)...at least until they die or DirectTV stops supporting them

How about giving them a call or e-mailing via the above link telling them that you had been considering upgrading (although we both know it would be a downgrade) to a newer unit but that this would be a deal breaker.

The more who tell them they don't like that "Showcases" feature, the more likely they are to fix it!

Thanks!
Larry.