Ended up with $10 off a month until I leave DirecTV... first, she only offered $5/month forever. I had to fight to get the amount I got.

Disney Junior was added today.

If you're talking about HD channels only, our only 2 this year have been E! and TruTV but word on the street is Turner Classic Movies is coming this week, on the 19th I believe.

Isnt that replacing some other channel? SOAPNET maybe?

In HD right? I'll actually watch that channel if it's in HD. I guess I need to call..I'm not far into my contract and have premiere(with Sunday Ticket thrown in), but maybe I can get some kind of discount.

They have a battle ahead with Pac 12 Network. The conference is planning six regional channels and one national channel. That is a lot. I cannot see DTV doing it. The national channel maybe but it remains to be seen if the conference will settle for that. DTV has an available slot for it.....616.....where theMtn was.

correct

Just called. They gave me 20 bucks off per mo for 3 Months and 10 bucks off for months 4-6 plus Show and Starz and HD Extra pack free for 6 months. Not bad considering a couple weeks ago locked into a new one year contract for free ST and RZC.

Talked with two agents, got $5 off per month for three months and free Starz for 3 months. Second agent gave me $10 off per month for a year.

Soapnet is on 262

What did you base your request for relief on, the Viacom channels being dropped? I'm like you, I just called and got the dramatically reduced ST package, so between that and my part-time job of calling DTV to ask for stuff (I'm only half joking, a 20 minute call for $50 or $60 in discounts on channels I'm otherwise already paying for is a good return on my time investment!) I already have most of the discounts mentioned in this thread. So I don't have a lot of room for movement left unless the Viacom situation alone is enough for them to be able to dole out some more goodies on top of what they already routinely give out.

Nothing really - just the loss of those channels. I said 'cancel service' at the initial prompt - that should take you right to retention. I said that I think I deserve some price relief given the loss of the Viacom channels. The CSR apologized and checked to see what was available. At first she offered me MLB Extra Innings (probably because she saw that I had ST). I told her I wasn't interested in baseball. Then she said how about free movie channels, like SHO. I told her I could take SHO but would also like some kind of credit. She said she could do that - at first $10off/3mos. I would have settled for that, but then she just kept throwing in more things. She kept checking and she said besides SHO free for 6 mos, she could also throw in STZ and the HD Extra Pack free for 6mos. Then she checked even further and could get me an additional $10off/6mos credit.

I think a lot of haggling ability really depends on what package you have. If you're Premier, you're probably limited - but maybe you can get some credits. The ability to haggle is exactly why I go with Choice Xtra instead of Premier - I'm almost always on some kind of deal for premiums (2-for-1s, $5off SportsPack, 3-6 mos free, etc) and I just shuffle them around depending on what shows are going at the time. Now it also probably helped that I had no monthly credits currently active (my ST/RZC deals were simply lump-sum freebies) and had no current premium deals going (I only had STARZ and was paying full price).

I dropped to Choice Extra a while back just for the reasons you mention. I can end up getting most of what I was paying for with Premier but for almost nothing once they start making it rain with $5 and $10 credits. But I milked them pretty dry when I called in on ST a week or two ago. That said, I wouldn't mind the free HD Pack, SHO, and STARZ, none of which I have right now. I'll report back on my results.

Weird, because when I called in, they offered nothing, then I cancelled Sunday Ticket and they pretty much just said 'ok' and did it...
And the weird thing is is that I'm out of contract, and already have Uverse internet with them sending me flyers nonstop to go with their tv service. And my kid watches Nick Jr. nonstop.

I think a lot of it depends on which person you get on the other end. The impression I get is that some are not going to offer anything unless you really press them, while others seem pretty willing to give away the farm. When I talked to the person in retention, she wasn't going to offer me anything initially until I pressed a little.

So I called in, danced the "cancel service" shuffle over to retention, and spoke to a nice lady. I told her I would cut right to the chase and explained that based on the Viacom situation I know DTV has been willing to keep customers happy by adding channel packages, so what is available for me? She quickly offered an additional $10/month and Showtime for 6 months. I then I said that my internet friend Red Dog also got STARZ and the HD Pack, to which she responded, "OK, I can do that too." A ten minute phone call nets $60 and 20 premium HD channels. Glad they didn't settle with Viacom over the weekend.

I sort of get the feeling I could have gotten more, but I think Cinemax is all I still don't have that I would actually watch, but I rarely watched anything on it when I did have it. At least Showtime has some shows coming up this fall I like, with Dexter, Homeland, Inside the NFL, etc. Now I have to remember to call back in 6 months or my bill will skyrocket.

It is CSR roulette, but to get the best deals you have to go to retention, not regular customer service. If you're just calling to drop/cancel channels, you're not speaking to retention. It's why you always say "Cancel Service" at the initial prompt.

When it comes to Sunday Ticket haggling, I definitely press and if I don't like a deal, I pass and try calling another day. For example in my call a few weeks ago for it, I pressed the fact that RZC is a must for me (and don't like how DTV ties it into the more expensive ST MAX) and that FIOS has been sending me great bundle offers and they have the NFL RZC which is all I really need (even though I definitely want ST + RZC, but they don't know that). I think when a good customer says "FIOS," that sets off some kind of trigger for deals. Immediately, the CSR said she could give me RZC free. Then she further checked and said if I want to do a new one year contract, she'd give me free ST. I said if you give me both of those, it's a deal. Done.

There ya go.

Yeah - I wanted SHO for Homeland. STARZ for Boss (and the rest of Spartacus re-airs).

The only thing left I really need is HBO in the Fall for Boardwalk Empire (I assume it's starting then). Maybe the sportspack depending on what the college football TV landscape is like in the Fall.

I called sunday morning... had legitimate gripes over the viacom channels (for the kids). I also had issue years ago when I took advantage of getting the HD fee dropped, I was told when I got it that it would last as long as I kelp auto bill pay on my account... well... I find out that it was set up for only 24 months...

I ended up getting $20 off for a few months, $10 off for another 21 months after. Free sho/starz for 6 months and Redzone channel this year (which was the only one I watched when checking out the free view last year

(This is all my personal opinion/experience, YMMV)

Agree with this. Probably one time out of four I get push back. I don't drag it out in those situations though, because:

a) more flies with honey, etc
b) I presume they can add nasty notes to your account which the next CSR can read
c) even if you get something, based on their initial unwillingness to help it will be the minimum they think they can get you off the phone with
d) you can so easily just call back another time.

So I typically say "OK" and drop it, then call back a day or two later. I also think it helps if you have something you are actually willig to drop, such as Sunday Ticket auto renewal, or a premium channel you won't miss for a few days, etc.

I think this matters too in getting deals. The CSR I talked to yesterday asked if I was on auto bill pay and paperless billing, which I am.

When I called about ST I went to retention and got one deal offer, but had to go to someone who, as the CSR put it, "specializes in ST" for more. I think it was when I asked for free RZC. I don't know how legit that was, but it seemed as though there is only so much the retention people can do with ST and to get more they have a separate group/supervisor? Again, just my recollection of the call.

Me too, though it did not come up in the conversation.

No, I specifically said cancellation on the first prompt. She was also able to check when my contract ends (it already ended). I think it's so weird that you have to do this little dance with them and still get varying results.

As an aside, I don't see an HD Disney Jr... what channel is it?

You should also call on a Monday, since the CSRs have a pool of stuff to give away that gets replenished on Mondays.