Spark Sport: Rugby World Cup 2019

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#2332323 8-Oct-2019 07:19

This is classic

Complaints to the Commerce Commission about Spark Sport's service have continued to climb, a class action lawsuit has been threatened and TV personality Hilary Barry is one of countless New Zealanders to share her rugby streaming woes online.

ComCom has had complaints, when I first read that maybe a week ago there were 13 of them. They said if the issues were not about unsupported devices and not about users home issues, Spark is responsible. Thats the correct news

The lawsuit is a joke

Hillary Barry, no further info required

frednz

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#2332327 8-Oct-2019 07:28

I'e read through this article on "Stuff" this morning and it provides a good summary of what people need to do to get the best performance out of their Spark Sport App.

I can't help wondering whether the whole streaming project was too ambitious for a major event such as the Rugby World Cup. When you look at all the things people have been expected to be aware of, you could be forgiven for thinking that a relatively large percentage of viewers couldn't be expected to have this level of expertise or the time and funds available to buy and set up all the required equipment.

From the above article:

Spark had the following tips for the best live streaming experience:

* Move your router closer to the device you're viewing on

* If your device has the ability, connect an ethernet cable between your device and your modem

* Ensure your Spark Sport app is updated and running the latest version

* Ensure your device has the latest software update

* Speed-test your broadband. 15Mbps is the suggested speed for a high quality stream

* Check the internet speed on the device you intend to view on at www.speedtest.net

* Limit other devices using wifi at the same time within your home during a live match

* Talk to your internet service provider about your overall in home wifi set up to ensure it's optimised

Apsattv

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#2332346 8-Oct-2019 08:10

I see a facebook group called

Having Trouble Watching Spark Sport?

It might be handy also..

kornflake

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#2332495 8-Oct-2019 12:37

Would it be hard for Spark Sport to push out a Game on Sparks Lightbox service? as most people complaining are saying that Netflix, lightbox and alike work without a hitch.

Edit: changed with to without :)

networkn

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#2332499 8-Oct-2019 12:42

kornflake:

Would it be hard for Spark Sport to push out a Game on Sparks Lightbox service? as most people complaining are saying that Netflix, lightbox and alike work without a hitch.

Edit: changed with to without :)

Lightbox and Netflix aren't operated the same way live streaming sport is.

At best they could push the games once the asset was completed, but they clearly want to keep them separate. I guess one way they could keep games available to users beyond 30 days from play date would be to push them over there for archival sakes, but then you'd be paying for two services.

Crowbar

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#2332675 8-Oct-2019 14:37

tdgeek:

Not foolproof, not when its a computer

Yes, like the devices you mentioned...?

freitasm

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#2333324 9-Oct-2019 13:03

Just received:

As announced last week, Spark Sport has brought in additional customer care measures to help ensure more customers are having a better Rugby World Cup viewing experience.

As of yesterday, the Spark Sport team has identified a total of 309 customers with hard to resolve streaming issues who we have earmarked for a free-of-charge home visit to assess their in-home technology setup. Of these, home visits have been completed or booked for 100 customers, with a further 131 visits pending once a suitable time is confirmed with the customer (the remaining customers have either told us they have since resolved their issue or have declined home support).

In the home visits completed to date, our Spark Sport technicians have been able to identify the root cause of the customer’s streaming issues and, in almost all cases, our technicians have assisted the customer with in-home setup or device improvements and have walked out the door with the customer now having a good streaming experience.

Additionally, in cases where customers have contacted the Spark Sport Care team with issues and we have determined it would likely be helpful to their particular issue, we have been offering to send them a complimentary Freeview SmartVU device as an alternative way to watch. As of yesterday, 198 customers have taken up this offer.

Head of Spark Sport, Jeff Latch, says that since the tournament began, there has been a significant and steady decline in customers needing assistance: “The number of customers engaging via our Care channels declined almost 80% between the first and second weekends, and fell a further 27% last weekend. Furthermore, 86% of customers receiving care have only contacted Spark Sport once during the tournament, indicating that we’ve been able to promptly assist the large majority of customers.

“The best solution for each customer depends on a wide range of factors including their broadband connection, their in-home connectivity (WiFi proximity and location, etc), and the devices they are using to stream matches. Our in-home technicians have found that for the most part, issues have been related to in-home technology or device setup (such as WiFi quality and/or configuration).

“We’re pleased we have been able to help many customers achieve a much better viewing experience. That said, we acknowledge some customers are still having issues and we understand their frustrations in wanting to have a better viewing experience for such an important tournament to all rugby fans. We strongly encourage customers who may still have issues to get in touch with us so we can help them,” says Latch.

Tournament Pass numbers

There are now over 186,000 Spark Sport Rugby World Cup Tournament Pass subscriptions. The number of Tournament Pass holders has continued to grow throughout the tournament, with new subscriptions outweighing cancellations by a ratio of four to one since the New Zealand vs South Africa game on match day two.

Latch says the Tournament Pass number is in line with Spark’s internal projections and indicates that live streaming is being embraced by more New Zealanders, which is encouraging for the broader shift towards live streamed sports viewing.

“Having said that, we recognise the frustration of those viewers who have not found it easy to make the transition to live streaming and we’re committed to helping those customers as best we can.”

Sharesies

Trade NZ and US shares and funds with Sharesies (affiliate link).

antoniosk

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#2333329 9-Oct-2019 13:08

Imagine if they were brave enough to actually detail what the issue was, without ever revealing who the customer was

I’d then love to know what was happening - and my money is on old network kit, bad kit configuration, rubbish wiring or damaged cables, poorly tuned kit and so on

I’d love to see how many people had a 10 year router connected to a gig connection.

And of course.... genuinely dodgy hdmi cables

I also wonder how many people got a free network cleanup as a result 😊

________

Antoniosk

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#2333330 9-Oct-2019 13:12

Spark really are going above and beyond with that level of support.

Dingbatt

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#2333331 9-Oct-2019 13:12

Of those 309, I would love to know what the root causes were once resolved. But my guess is that would be commercially sensitive information. Particularly with a class lawsuit in the offing.

“We’ve arranged a society based on science and technology, in which nobody understands anything about science technology. Carl Sagan 1996

gcorgnet

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#2333332 9-Oct-2019 13:13

Agree with the above but it is also pretty easy to lsoe sight of the fact that not everyone out there is as technically minded as we all are here.

I mean people having used Sky for years and only know that don't understand the subtleties of network performance tuning. Hell, my wife wouldn't even understand that... I find it hard to imagine how the previous generations are supposed to cope with such a radical change.

That being said, I am 100% behind Spark and I was happy to see win the RWC rights and move the country further away from Sky's dominance. I really hope those teething issues get solved and that people soirt out their network so that we can all go back and watch TV.

networkn

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#2333334 9-Oct-2019 13:15

I appreciated being able to catch the second half of the game last night in my office, without seeing the final score in between. This is the big advantage Spark have over Sky presently.

tdgeek

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#2333335 9-Oct-2019 13:19

antoniosk: Imagine if they were brave enough to actually detail what the issue was, without ever revealing who the customer was

Probably wise to steer clear of naming brands

networkn

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#2333336 9-Oct-2019 13:21

gcorgnet:

That being said, I am 100% behind Spark and I was happy to see win the RWC rights and move the country further away from Sky's dominance. I really hope those teething issues get solved and that people soirt out their network so that we can all go back and watch TV.

Be careful what you wish for. You can choose single player market dominance, or fragmentation and most likely, and overall increase to your viewing costs to see the same stuff you can see under one roof. This isn't a Spark vs Sky comment, this is general market comments.

tdgeek

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#2333348 9-Oct-2019 13:26

I agree. I added another SVOD the other day, Amazon Prime. Sport has started the same path, I now have Sky and Spark Sport. This time next year I may also be paying ATP.com as well as Supercars.com.au for subs as well.

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