I noticed DirecTV was cleverly using the NFL lockout to lure new customers by offering NFL Sunday ticket for no charge, so I contacted them on July 24 to check if this offer could be extended to existing customers. Tracy offered Sunday Ticket free for the 12 season if I upgraded to the Premier package. She offered Premier at Choice Ultimate pricing for 3 months. After 3 months, I would receive partial discounts. After 6 months, the discounts would expire. The offer sounded too good to be true, so I reviewed it with Tracy several times and recorded the details in a Word Document. The NFL lockout ended on July 25 and all was well.
I didn't think twice until my recent bill reflected a $53.99 charge for NFL Sunday Ticket. I contacted Mark on September 3 & he referred me to his supervisor, Jennifer. According to Jennifer, Tracy’s offer was not valid & she offered some compensatory discounts. I invited Jennifer to review my recorded conversation with Tracy to verify the original offer. I explained that I had no intention of upgrading to Premier on July 24. My only motivation to upgrade was Tracy's offer of free NFL Sunday Ticket. Jennifer seemed to understand this logic & agreed to notify her manager. I didn’t hear from her manager, so I took the matter to the Better Business Bureau. The Better Business Bureau’s action was immediate and impressive. DirecTV responded with a "clarification" that Tracy had offered NFL Sunday Ticket-To-Go at no charge, rather than the NFL Sunday Ticket. This is an insult to my intelligence, as I would have never upgraded to Premier for such a menial token. It is NOT open for debate that Tracy offered NFL Sunday Ticket for no charge. DirecTV is well aware from the recorded conversation that I reviewed this offer with Tracy several times. The bottom line is: Tracy offered a deal she was not authorized to make. The respectable action would have been for DirecTV to honor this deal and they would have never heard from me again. On the other hand, I can understand why they chose to take the low road. If I told other existing customers about my deal, they would expect similar offers. The question is whether the couple hundred dollars they took from me is worth the negative feedback. If they lose one potential customer from my experience, we have both lost.
I’m a displaced NFL fan living well out of my team’s home market, so DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket is my only option. If you are not a rabid NFL fan and are debating between Dish Network and DirecTV, I would highly recommend Dish Network. I’ve been a customer of both and there is no discernable difference in quality, selection and service. Dish Network packages are approximately $10 cheaper per month and this adds up to significant savings in the long run.
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