Can anyone answer this question about Mega March Madness?

[bjornolf]

I have ordered Mega March Madness several times now, and I get hosed by them every time. The only games I REALLY care about are the Duke ones. I'll watch one or two others, but Duke is WHY I order it. I get so frustrated though, because the Duke games are always blacked out because my local CBS always shows them. The problem is that any time Duke gets any kind of lead, they go to another game. However, they don't release the Duke game on the pay-per-view when the local station goes away. I'd be better off if my local CBS DIDN'T schedule the Duke games.

Mega March Madness ads say that you should order it so you never miss a minute of the action. My posterior. I miss half or more of most Duke games. Hasn't been a problem the last few seasons, but before that, it was KILLING me. With as good as Duke is this year, it COULD become a problem again this year.

I have no problem with them blacking out a game when it's on the local network, but why the heck can't they show the game if the local network has gone off that game? It's not like they don't have the technology, so why don't they? They can constantly monitor what's showing on the local networks and turn off the pay-per-view in one town but not another (hence selective blackouts), why can't they turn it ON when the local switches off a game?

Of course, hasn't been a problem the last few seasons, so maybe it's been fixed. If it has, PLEASE tell me so I can order it. However, if it's not, can someone explain to me why the heck they can't do this? Maybe one of our TV people like Jason can answer this for me.

Thanks,
Joe

[jacone21]

I've had MMM for the past 4 or 5 years, and they have always "unblackedout" the games when the local stations switch away from them. Sometimes a few possessions are missed, but it hasn't been too bad. I hope Duke blows out all of their opponents this year, even if I miss a few possessions. Sounds like a trade off I'd be willing to make.

[AIRFORCEDUKIE]

You can also watch the entirety of any game you want for free online at CBS site. There is a link for it on the DBR home page Les' viewing tips or something like that. That's what I will be doing since I live in Vegas and the UCLA vs VCU game will be on my local channel.

[bjornolf]

Really, they un-black it out? I've never noticed that. I guess I don't stick around long enough. About five years ago, I even called, and they basically said "sorry, you're out of luck". Maybe this is a recent development.

Maybe I will order it this year. Thanks for the advice, AFD, but my laptop has a lot of trouble keeping up with live video. I'll try it, but it usually lags pretty bad and skips a lot. It's really annoying.

[DukieInKansas]

You can also watch the entirety of any game you want for free online at CBS site. There is a link for it on the DBR home page Les' viewing tips or something like that. That's what I will be doing since I live in Vegas and the UCLA vs VCU game will be on my local channel.

And if you go there now, you can watch the last few seconds and celebrations of Duke victories over UNLV in '91 and Kentucky in '92. Those never get old - no matter how often I see them.