F$@k You MLS Live

As I have stated a number of times on the show, I rely on MLS Live for matches not being shown on National TV as I live outside of the NJ/NY area.  This past weekend, I was not able to watch the Columbus match as I was with family.  So, of course, I watch it the first chance I get, which was tonight.  I made sure that nothing was going to interrupt me, I even made sure to avoid twitter over the weekend yet I find out the score, which ruins the watching for me.  All was well and good.  That is until around 1:30 into the match, when what should happen but a NY goal.

Now, you might be thinking; “How is a NY goal not good?  I mean, you are a Red Bull fan.”  Yes, normally, that would be a good thing.  Problem was, I didn’t get to see the goal on MLS Live.  The stream froze, and while I heard the Columbus play-by-play guy (we’ll come back to this), I did not get to see the move by Cooper.  It was only later when I watched the highlights did I see it.  Despite this small problem, I powered through.

I’ve become a veteran of online streaming, and know stuff can happen from time to time, so I gave the service the benefit of the doubt.  Maybe my ISP somehow saw a blip in service which stopped the video.  Nope, it was the start of a long and frustrating 68 minutes.  Why 68 minutes you ask?  That’s when I decided to give up.  During the 68 minutes of the match I sat through, the following errors occurred again and again.

• Video froze with the audio continuing on like normal.
• Audio stopping with the video continuing on like normal.
• Video “catching up” with the audio continuing on like normal.

During the end of the first half, and what I saw of the second, I was on web chat with tech support for MLS Live.

Quick side note: If the person I spoke to is reading this, I apologize again; it’s not you personally I was mad at, it was the service.

Tech support took me through a set of steps to try and resolve the problem, but to no avail.  Even though the tech could watch the stream perfectly fine on their computer, I was somehow stuck in a weird place of watching but not watching.  So, I gave up in the 68th minute and went to the Red Bulls site to watch the highlights, which I am sure did not do the match justice.  Now I sit here wondering if future Red Bull matches are going to be met with the same treatment on MLS Live, and whether or not it’s worth purchasing next year ( I was told no full or partial refunds this year).

Back to the Columbus broadcast team.  MLS Live only plays one team’s station, and in this case, it was Columbus.  While I was on tech support, I asked why we do not have a choice in broadcast, when services for the NHL, NBA, and MLB have the option.  I was told that NeuLion, the company that runs the service, does not have the option to give viewers a choice.  MLS is the almighty power which decides what stream to use.  Why does the MLS do this?  I don’t know, and I doubt the tech I asked would know.  At this point in time though, there really is no reason for MLS to limit a customer choice on broadcast, not when other services provide the same.

In conclusion:

• F$@k You MLS Live for not working when I pay for a service, especially when I am trying to watch a replay, not a live match.
• F$@k You MLS for not giving your fans an option of which broadcast to view.

-Jason