Superstations

A

Anteater

New member
I called Bell today to add the Superstations package ($5 per month for the CW and TBS/Peachtree TV) and they said that it is no longer available because "the owners of the superstations don't want them to be sold without the movies package". He then offered the SuperChannel pack for $16 per month...

I know this was always an iffy thing for reps to add but I called a few years ago and had it added to my account in about 5 seconds, removed it this summer and now I want it back but I'm not interested in paying $16/month for the movies.
 
It would seem to me that you got a CSR who was confused. It is listed as its own package on the Bell website, although if you get Superchannel, TMN or Movie Cenral it is included... http://www.bell.ca/shopping/PrsShpTv_Programming.page?pack=5
 
I don't think that is correct, from what I know the only way you can get the superstations is if you subscribe to the movie packages althought I believe WSBK is getting moved to the family 1 theme.
 
You can also subscribe to WGN in Sports 1 or New Sports 1, and WGN-DT in HD Sports.
 
Superstations are no longer available as of sometime in 2008 or early 2009.

Once up a time, they were available to customers who were removing a premium movies package. This was the only time an agent could offer the superstations on their own. Adding them in any other situation would have been an error on the agent's part. There's your grey area.

The ability to add the Superstations has been removed, and it is no longer possible for an agent or supervisor to re-add them. It's a licensing thing. It could even be a CRTC thing. People who had the Superstations can keep them, but once removed, you cannot get them back.

And yes, I think WSBK is moving.
 
I can't see how it is a CRTC thing considering Rogers does offer the stations in its own package.
 
It is not listed as its own package. It says "Included with The Movie Network, Movie Central or Super Channel."
 
the only time i watch ntv is when the young and the restless played at 11 am. and 1h30 ealier than cbs. same thing for days of our lives. other wise i don't watch it.
 
I think Astral probably threatened them (as many people subscribe to TMN just to get the superstations), and they sheepishly complied.
 
I believe the CRTC rules which limit which channels can be aired in Canada come into play and the reason, at the time these channels were bundled in such a way as that you have to pay for the 'premium' movie channels and you could get the extra US stations as an add-on. I too had the Superstations by themselves but now have the movie channels again.
This may well have been Astral complaining to the CRTC and the bureaocrats complying!
 
That is not something new... I worked at Express Vu until September 2007. Even then, rule was you can not sell the Superstation if the client doesn't suscribe to Movie East or Movie Central (the movie package was 19$ if you had less than 6 themes or 16$-the superstations were 5$) or Super
 
Yes NTV is Lame. Ever watch A Little Good News (I think it is NTV.ca of the guide) or scenes form Newfoundland at 4:00 AM in the morning, (old video from 15-20 years ago that they keep replaying) that they play to meet Cancon regulations. I was dismayed when I learned 10 year ago that EV and SC were going to carry it, what would people in the rest of the country think.
 
It's a Bell thing. Bell keeps looking for ways to make customers to buy more programming. To do this, they bundle popular stations with unpopular stations and create dependencies. CRTC regulations state that the US Superstations can be bundled with either Family channel or one of the premium movie services (TMN, MC or SC.) Any extra packaging or dependencies is done by the ISPs themselves. With Shaw Direct, all you need is Family Channel to get the US Superstations.
 
Thanks for the info, but we're talking two different things. When I said it's a licensing or CRTC thing, I meant that you can no longer have those Superstations on their own.

You've confirmed that Bell has a choice between two options, and Bell chose the more profitable of the two options. Good to know, nonetheless.
 
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