MLSE FO please address these Gol TV issues

[Stryker]

That score bar.. you know the HUUUGE ones where you pimp ads.
Yeah, you gotta downsize that SOB stat.
The full screen bios where half our players had some kinda mock Playgirl centerfold pose going on... I can live with.. PRE GAME. Not in the middle of play. So amateurish.

[James Oliphant]

I'm calling GolTV on Monday to offer my services as a graphics operator.

Honestly, that was embarrassing.

Oh...and how about Amado Guevara who, according to the graphics op, is a diminutive 5'1"?

[Ladies Love Julius James]

those bios were the worst things Ive ever seen in a broadcast to be honest and I never complained. Missing the 2nd goal to see some fuck's bio was unreal who thought of that. Crazy LOL so amateur.

[MrHawk]

Ya, show the bloody player profiles when the play is STOPPED.

Not live.

[Damien]

The full screen bios where half our players had some kinda mock Playgirl centerfold pose going on... I can live with.. PRE GAME. Not in the middle of play. So amateurish.

YES YES YES... and stop zooming in on the fuckin players... i dont care what the hell they look like... let me see the game play!!!

[Lucky Strike]

That score bar.. you know the HUUUGE ones where you pimp ads.
Yeah, you gotta downsize that SOB stat.
The full screen bios where half our players had some kinda mock Playgirl centerfold pose going on... I can live with.. PRE GAME. Not in the middle of play. So amateurish.

+1. And they missed the first 10 seconds of the second half. Not a huge deal but they really should be back for that - no reason they can't be. Otherwise the rest was very impressive with the pre- and post-game stuff. Wileman also did a great job on play-by-play; I didn't hear one thing referred to as "world-class". His commentary was world-class. :D

[rocker]

the Ricketts profile was awesome because he had that sexy, legs-spread-wide pose.. heheheh. ;)

[Jack]

I'll give out some praise along with my bitching.

The overall broadcast was great and it's really nice to have a big focus on TFC and a pre- and post-game show rather than quickly wrapping up.

But the HUGE, MASSIVE, GIANT banner with the score/clock/advert has got to go. Just too damn big.

And ditch the fullscreen cuts to player bios. Brutal! We missed a goal because of that crap. Set it up so it comes up but we don't miss any of the action during the match! Even some of the replays were run at inoppotune times!

Anyway, first match and all, so I'll give you a mulligan on this one.

But let's tighten this up!

[vilerichard]

the Ricketts profile was awesome because he had that sexy, legs-spread-wide pose.. heheheh. ;)

yeah, that seemed a bit odd. it was like a calendar pose...

and no reason for all of those useless graphics to get in the way of the game. i also thought that chad barrett interview was a complete waste of time. it was just jack astor's branding.

[flatpicker]

I could live with those player profiles if they put them up as soon as the ball goes out of play...
... and only leave them up for maybe 5 seconds...

The broadcast seemed alright... and yes, it's the first game so there is room to tweak things a bit.

But sort out these issues!

[Inklink]

Oh while you're at it MLSE, how about following through on your promise for freeview of the game? Yeah, that would be nice -- to not experience extreme anger when you tune in at 8:30 to watch a soccer game which is supposedly free according to official emails and websites but you end up with a black screen and an off white box telling you that you can't watch. :D

[Kevin]

Wow. After reading ya'lls posts I can see that there was some difference in our feeds. While I feel that I missed out on the pre and post game footage I came out great on the live footage. Soooo .... who's this little "hottie" ya'll keep talking about?

[Torcida]

I'm calling GolTV on Monday to offer my services as a graphics operator.

Honestly, that was embarrassing.

Oh...and how about Amado Guevara who, according to the graphics op, is a diminutive 5'1"?
Yeah, that had me laughing my ass off!

[rocker]

Wow. After reading ya'lls posts I can see that there was some difference in our feeds. While I feel that I missed out on the pre and post game footage I came out great on the live footage. Soooo .... who's this little "hottie" ya'll keep talking about?


http://mapleleafs.nhl.com/ext/leafstv/petrulo_head.jpg
http://www.truegravity.ca/truegravity/athlete_thumbnail.php?file=athlete_49_pic.jpg

[Sonny Cheeba]

referring to a score bar as an "SOB" is hilarious.

[Redcoe15]

AGREED! Fix the scorebar so that it does not become an annoyance. And drop the full screen ads during the game, we almost missed the Guevara goal. And work on your timing, I could have done without that Budweiser douche wasting the first ten seconds of the second half.

[akoto]

Paul has already said in another thread that the full page bios will be gone. Not so sure about the score bar but I agree it's way to big.

[Nuvinho]

^^ As well Paul said that they like the feedback, and will make and attempt to resolve some issues.

[pepher]

Step 1: Get the away games on T.V. consistantly.
Step 2: Work on the details to perfect it's presentation.

Well done MLSE on getting through Step 1! On to Step 2...!!!

[Draracle]

that full screen bio shit was horrible -- especially when it cuts out to the ball going into the net. Why not run a small pic in the bottom left and a ticker bar that scrolls the players stats for the season or whatever.

[greatwhitenorf]

Must say that being forced to scrounge up the internet feed of the KC home broadcast last night, they did a commendable job of giving us a clean presentation of the game. Good cutaway shots from the field level cameras.

Announcers were definitely pro-KC, but very fair in discussing TFC. All in all, not a bad night. Not like listening to Gord Stellick's bum-buddy Charlie Polillo in Houston flounder well out of his depth and range with Dynamo telecasts that were dreadful on every level. Littered with ads for a seafood restaurant. No real knowledge of the team or the league. Good for a few laughs, actually.

[David_Oliveira]

How is no one mentioning the "freeview" fiasco. It was a joke.

[Eastend]

I agree with all the "constructive criticism" and I just want to add that the commentating was really good. I don't know they guys name with DeVos but I thought he did a good job.

p.s. I didn't have to worry about the 'freeview' as I already pay the $2.00 per month to get the channel. But I can imagine the frustration.

[shawn6597]

at very least show us a full screen bio complete with sexy pose for andi petrillo

[wzhxvy]

Speaking of sexy poses...what the heck was Ricketts thinking with his pose ??? Are you freaking kidding me ?

[TFC RealDeal RPB]

Ya Gol tv needs alot of help but not bad for there first TFC game

[rocker]

Speaking of sexy poses...what the heck was Ricketts thinking with his pose ??? Are you freaking kidding me ?

he wants to be the next David Beckham?????

[Wagner]

How is no one mentioning the "freeview" fiasco. It was a joke.

I was at Joe's...
what is the fiasco all about?

[sulfur]

In short, on Rogers (at least), it apparently wasn't a freeview.

[BFin]

Other than the player bios being up too long and at inopportune times, what was wrong with the game? I was at Joe's too, and it seemed like a solid broadcast to me.

Also, I know exactly what Ricketts was thinking "Look at my crotch"

[TFC Cityboy]

Agree re RR's photo - wtf? was he posing for TFC calendar?

The full page bios were amateur and ill-timed. Best case, ditch the damn things, worst case do what the Score does with the split-screen during a lull in play- "squeezeback" is the technical term acc to Mrs TFCCityboy who works for Rogers Media (OMNI).

On the whole the coverage was excellent tho' - and if GOL can tweak the minor stuff we have far superior coverage than the shite we had to watch on US feeds last year. It was so nice not to hear " this yellow card brought to you by Dunkin Donuts" or "Buy 5 tickets for a Dallas home game and get free hot dogs and soda".
WAY WAY better!

[Jack]

The broadcast was solid.

The issues were those bios and the huge scorecard.

[Shakes McQueen]

Agree re RR's photo - wtf? was he posing for TFC calendar?

My "favourite" was Dichio's. Looked like a promo shot for the bass player of a nu-metal band. Leaning against a wall, all dark and brooding, hahaha.

- Scott

[BFin]

My "favourite" was Dichio's. Looked like a promo shot for the bass player of a nu-metal band. Leaning against a wall, all dark and brooding, hahaha.

- Scott
hahh still better than Ricketts sunshine boy pose.

[FCBarcelona]

I know this has nothing to do with GOLTV TFC game last night, but last nights game on MLS MATCH CENTER was excellent , i used 800k feed and the picture was perfect and surprising the KC announcers where very good.
I was going to get GOLTV but decided to go this way , after reading all these glad i went with MLS.





STill on high after our first win:D

[OneLoveOneEric]

And Kudos to the good people at adthe.net for a high quality, commercial free, cost free stream of the game! And the KC announcers were fantastic - fair, knowledgeable in comparison to other MLS commentary teams, and very non-homer. I wish our gys were as good.

[billyfly]

B/c I was about 4 beers deep I thought I had imagined that Ricketts pose. Not that I imagine Rohan in that pose....(coughs nervously)

[Parkdale]

For a first time live broadcast, and considering the feed came from a BASEBALL stadium, they did a pretty good job.

granted, I couldn't hear any of the commentary (it's loud at Shoeless)

[DigzTFC!]

There's lots of things about GolTV that are amateur.

1) Paul James leaning forward while being an analyst. Sit up straight for FFS
2) The new Toronto FC TV announcer twirling a pen during a live broadcast
3) Giant bios in the run of play
4) The scoreboard taking up half the screen.

The content of what's being said is good, the personalities are good, the quality of filming is okay. The real issue is that they probably don't have a quality producer to fix these things.

I REALLY hate how Paul James leans forward during extra time.....and his cocky eye mannerisms. What he says is outstanding but if he continues to act so nonchalantly and look like he's going to fall asleep at any moment ....take him off. There are plenty of sports personalities that can learn to talk soccer.

[stretchthetruth]

the pre and post game stuff was nice to see, finally - instead of just starting at the opening whistle and killing it at right at the end of the game... i'll agree with the full screen bios, that was brutal...

great broadcast though, when they fix the little issues, it will be excellent

[billyfly]

This shit needs to be in HD as well. Compared to Leafs/Habs game it looked horrible on my friend's 50" TV.

[Suljazz]

the player bios everyone is talking about were horrible, very similar to watching on the cbc in the early days, but they improved so hopefully GOL will too.

[Red CB Toronto]

I enjoyed it, this was their first game, I am sure during their production meetings over the next few weeks what works and what does not will be discussed and changes will be made.

[rocker]

I'd like to see someone post to youtube a copy of that awesome commercial from last night... where the players were yelling "GOOOOAL!". if you got it, let's see it. :)

[mlsintoronto]

This shit needs to be in HD as well. Compared to Leafs/Habs game it looked horrible on my friend's 50" TV.

this is true...there is no going back after enjoying HD...for the first 20 minutes all I saw were fuzzy red blobs. I think we need many more viewers first...then HD for Gol. I don't really know whats required - just assuming.

[Shakes McQueen]

this is true...there is no going back after enjoying HD...for the first 20 minutes all I saw were fuzzy red blobs. I think we need many more viewers first...then HD for Gol. I don't really know whats required - just assuming.

I considered suggesting HD in my feedback post, but then realized the channel probably doesn't have anything close to enough viewers to justify the expense. :D

- Scott

[StandUpIfYouHateChelsea]

what about that smoke shit at BMO will that be gone this year??? that craps a joke

[Bobo]

Oh while you're at it MLSE, how about following through on your promise for freeview of the game? Yeah, that would be nice -- to not experience extreme anger when you tune in at 8:30 to watch a soccer game which is supposedly free according to official emails and websites but you end up with a black screen and an off white box telling you that you can't watch. :D

THAT is amateur. Had to miss the first 20 minutes of the game running to Boston Pizza. Not cool. I fully expect an apology to the fans from somewhere.

Fuck, TFC was back, I didn't even care about the broadcast so long as it didn't pull a Charleston. The bios might be a bit corny but they may actually go a long way in grabbing new fans, who would want to learn a bit more about the players on the team. Surely it's not something we are going to see all season though so I don't think there's reason to complain about them outside the fact that they were run at wrong moments.


what about that smoke shit at BMO will that be gone this year??? that craps a joke

But if it were the RPBs doing it, then it would be the coolest thing in the league, right? This football purist self-righteous sentiment really kicks my ass.

[Four 4 Two]

Bobo...That's funny and may have a little truth to it, but it's been done and overdone!! This is an RPB site, let it be all that RPB want it to be!

But really.....Guevara is aparantly five foot one!! I loved that!

So, are all away games on GOL for sure? The broadcast was fine for me with some minor flaws which i'm sure will get fixed. I will order it if it is the only way to see away games.

[ccopela]

Another thing that I thought was a bit weird was after the game when they were showing highlights from last year and everything that was white was glowing. Would have been better without the white lines stretched across the screen. (Very minor I know but thought I would mention it)

[Sonny Cheeba]

so is there a reason why GolTV is showing the Columbus match tape delayed?

it won't be on until 7pm.

meaning even if i wanted to go to a pub and watch it i can't. It will be on Direct Kick, so streams will probably be available.

kind of disappointing.

i'm going to get a bunch of responses saying that i should be in columbus. i just don't have the money for it right now.

[mlsintoronto]

so is there a reason why GolTV is showing the Columbus match tape delayed?

it won't be on until 7pm.

meaning even if i wanted to go to a pub and watch it i can't. It will be on Direct Kick, so streams will probably be available.

kind of disappointing.

i'm going to get a bunch of responses saying that i should be in columbus. i just don't have the money for it right now.


sadly MLSEL do not own the station yet, and they put (whatever game they are showing) as a higher priority than Toronto FC. Why? I do not know

[Mark in Ottawa]

The broadcast was solid.
The issues were those bios and the huge scorecard.
Agreed with the one caveat below.


granted, I couldn't hear any of the commentary (it's loud at Shoeless)

It was hard to hear the GOLTV broadcast at times period.

The microphones picking up the crowd noise drowned out the commentators from time to time even when the crowd was not overly noisy, like after goals.

Now I know why the british commentators use those microphones with the little "ledges" or "boxes" on em that they hold up close to their mouths.

[mighty_torontofc_2008]

forward all complaints to

www.goltv.ca (http://www.goltv.ca)

the player bios..only in the pregame and post game shows..but other then that they had a good announce crew and a good pregame show..dint see the post one as i was watching the Revs Eartquakes match after the TFC match.

Oh yes GOL show the game live instead of the wcq next weekend!!

[Rochdale]

so is there a reason why GolTV is showing the Columbus match tape delayed?

it won't be on until 7pm.

meaning even if i wanted to go to a pub and watch it i can't. It will be on Direct Kick, so streams will probably be available.

kind of disappointing.

i'm going to get a bunch of responses saying that i should be in columbus. i just don't have the money for it right now.

GOL TV is committed to WCQ this Saturday.

[graeme117]

And Kudos to the good people at adthe.net for a high quality, commercial free, cost free stream of the game! And the KC announcers were fantastic - fair, knowledgeable in comparison to other MLS commentary teams, and very non-homer. I wish our gys were as good.

you've read my mind!

[Sonny Cheeba]

GOL TV is committed to WCQ this Saturday.

yeah i wasn't even thinking about that.

[rocker]

btw, the game is being rebroadcast right now on GolTV.

[Nuvinho]

^^ I was hoping they were going to do that :)

maybe down the line, have a game in an hour (kinda like the leafs and raptors do).

[bartzago]

The whole thing was a Micky Mouse operation. From the overlay to the sound mixing, to the producer in the van, the only highlight was the post game show and TFC's victory.

[nfitz]

The whole thing was a Micky Mouse operation. From the overlay to the sound mixing, to the producer in the van, the only highlight was the post game show and TFC's victory.Surely a Mickey Mouse operation would have been flawless. Compare Disneyworld to Canada's Wonderland, is like comparing EPL to League 1 - it's hugely professional. Perhaps terming it a Polka Dot Door operation would be more appropriate.

(but don't get me wrong, I think they did a great job given the situation! Yeah, some switching training is necessary - and I'm sure we'll see an infinite improvement for the next game).

[Shakes McQueen]

The whole thing was a Micky Mouse operation. From the overlay to the sound mixing, to the producer in the van, the only highlight was the post game show and TFC's victory.

Paul B mentioned that the live feed itself was local, not GolTV's production.

I assume every game will be of roughly Sportsnet-level quality, since they also just show the local feed, instead of using their own equipment.

- Scott

[mednus]

As to GolTV Canada not being in HD.

On March 4th 2009 Insight sports(still the official owner of GolTV until MLSE takover approved by the CRTC) applied for a licence amendment to allow broadcast of GolTV in HD.

http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/archive/2009/2009-114.htm


I relize that GolTV being authorized to broadcast in HD dosen't mean they will, but with Raptors TV HD and Leafs TV HD MLSE seems to understand that the viewers of sports want HD.

[CoachGT]

Aside from the full screen bios, my other "concern" is showing the pitch from field level on the sidelines. It looks like a mass of bodies and you lose perspective during regular play. Much better to use that angle for replays and for isolation shots on field rather than as a live play option. Go to a higher angle and stay there for the live action!

And it wouldn't hurt to mention and show the traveling faithful more than two seconds once a half - there is dead time on the field from time to time........

[C.Ronaldo]

Make GolTV OTA, , meaning part of basic cable or through antenna.

Its just the cost of a dish on the CN tower, MLSE can do it, should do it, and it would increase the awareness of soccer IMMENSELY


Is the church channel can do it, MLSE can

[SuperTCP]

I agree with many points here:
- the zooming sucks!
- the banner sucks!
- the full screen player profiles (especially during play and as TFC Scored) sucks!
- the SD is ok (but we want HD!)
- the freeview fiasco - sucks!

I am glad I made my way south to Joe's - The RPB know how to watch a game. It rocked!

Also since we are complaining about the broadcast - why is it that MLS does not show the Injury Time board? - show the board!

[bee dubya]

Make GolTV OTA, , meaning part of basic cable or through antenna.

Its just the cost of a dish on the CN tower, MLSE can do it, should do it, and it would increase the awareness of soccer IMMENSELY


Is the church channel can do it, MLSE can

Why would GolTV broadcast OTA? It doesn't make good business sense for them to do that. Does TSN or Sportsnet broadcast that way? No, they force people to subscribe and that's how they make their money.

I agree with just about everything that's been said in here thus far in regards to criticism about the broadcast. It would be excellent to see the matches in HD but when GOL (and other broadcasters) aren't even sending their own crews to do the games, I expect that HD is low on the priority list.

[nfitz]

I relize that GolTV being authorized to broadcast in HD dosen't mean they will, but with Raptors TV HD and Leafs TV HD MLSE seems to understand that the viewers of sports want HD.It's a good sign though! Given the sale is going on, I can't imagine they would bother with this now otherwise - though perhaps it was a condition of sale, that the application be submitted.

[loconet]

As to GolTV Canada not being in HD.

On March 4th 2009 Insight sports(still the official owner of GolTV until MLSE takover approved by the CRTC) applied for a licence amendment to allow broadcast of GolTV in HD.

http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/archive/2009/2009-114.htm


I relize that GolTV being authorized to broadcast in HD dosen't mean they will, but with Raptors TV HD and Leafs TV HD MLSE seems to understand that the viewers of sports want HD.


:eek::eek: oh please, let it happen!

[StandUpIfYouHateChelsea]

But if it were the RPBs doing it, then it would be the coolest thing in the league, right? This football purist self-righteous sentiment really kicks my ass.

no i am referring to the smoke machines pointed to the stands, THAT is a JOKE :canada:

[REDJUVE]

The banner sucks huge !!! They definitely need to make it smaller and maybe even so that it is see-through... like a watermark or whatever you call it. Besides the zooming in stuff, was it just me or was the picture quality poor?... definitely need GolTV in HD !!