Speed2 to carry IRC for the US market.

[rv65]

Speed Channel is launching Speed2 an online version of Speed Channel with exclusive content. For the first time the IRC will finally be available here in the USA. It uses special modem authentication so only people who live in an area where their service provider carries it can watch it. Only Time Warner Cable subscribers will be able to see it, but other ISP's are expected to join.

[rv65]

Only those who subscribe to Speed on that provider plus their internet access will be the only ones that can access this service. I have both RR Internet plus speed on my cable subscription so I'm good to go. I live in a Time Warner area and I'm looking forward to this to debut in July.

[ChrisB]

If they feed in the stuff produced by Chris Courteyn (what is normally shown on EuroSport) I can promise you will like it. I mention Chris Courteyn here, as he is not the only one producing for EuroSport, but he does most European IRC rounds. It is a very small company, just a few people, working on a fraction of the budget certain other organisations have, but he is a fan and producer since many years. Just shows what can be done without millions with the right, enthusiastic guys.

Maybe you have heard before that some people say the IRC EuroSport footage could contain more road side cameras. They certainly don't do that as much as we see in WRC. I believe it is a legacy to them having a limited number of cameras and men. But I personally love their mix. EuroSport IRC is usually a mix of helicopter and onboard. Whenever possible Chris is up with the helicopter, I have seen some of his old work before IRC and helicopter is a real Chris Courteyn trademark. I really love it, because what WRC has completely forgotten, the landscapes/sceneries are an integral part of every single rally and the helicopter brings that across nicely. Whenever possible means i.e. the much talked about Monte Turini Night live footage had no helicopter possibilities and therefore was entirely onboard, nothing else, we saw hours of onboard only, and it still was absolutely mega!

It is a shame WRC has absolutely zero helicopter, i.e. last round in NZ, you just can't get the full picture of the stages and settings without at least a few helicopter scenes. Onboard we have a lot in WRC too, but there is something strange in IRC. Chris Courteyn and actually every round, so whoever does it for EuroSport, they all have the weird habit, i they mount a camera inside a rally car, they point it into the direction of travel. So if you are used to WRC, you need to rethink a little for IRC. Because if you are with an onboard camera expecting a crash, you would obviously show feet, a pair of eyes behind crash helmets, roof trims.... IRC/EuroSport doesn't do that, they show the road ahead and how the crash happened!

Enjoy!

Oh, and hope rallies shown live you get live too in USA. Don't hesitate to write your critics on our forum. Especially if it is live. IRC and EuroSport are reading our forum and they are happy for critics, even bad ones, because they want to deliver a good show for fans! I know of at least one case (though this was not only our forum), when in Monte Vouilloz camera was mounted too high, I think they played with several mounting options and especially Vouilloz's was not liked, people wrote that on forums and imagine next loop in the evening the Vouilloz camera was lower and EuroSport went wild thanking everyone pointing it out to them! Now that is producing for the fans!

[rv65]

I think they'll just carry EuroSport highlight coverage which works for me or if they do offer live coverage, maybe they'll tape delay it; however, I don't see this happening as Speed2 is an IP based VOD service. All the IRC events will be delivered On Demand which is nice since I can watch it at my schedule. It's nice that I can finally follow the IRC. Maybe they'll carry the older rounds as well. I prefer tape delay as I live in Southern California and the time difference is quite huge. I could see other providers carry IRC on their Internet VOD services.

[Gregor]

Would this be like the coverage on the IRC website? Some of it is(was) live coverage and other bits are recaps. When it works with my browser (there seem to be at least two different stream formats) the coverage is pretty good, though the recap for Argentina spent a lot more time looking at crowds than cars.

[rv65]

Maybe they'll just carry the highlights. Maybe they'll do live coverage. Who knows but I'm probably the only one who can access it when it comes out in July as no other provider other than Time Warner has finalized a deal with them. I could see Speed carrying more NASCAR and just carry all the other stuff online.

[Gregor]

Maybe they'll just carry the highlights. Maybe they'll do live coverage. Who knows but I'm probably the only one who can access it when it comes out in July as no other provider other than Time Warner has finalized a deal with them. I could see Speed carrying more NASCAR and just carry all the other stuff online.

Speed has always been an extra pay channel in my area and I only have cable at home because my building provides it as part of its services. As a subscription internet site I may be tempted to get the IRC coverage, however. Maybe they could do a similar arrangement with other series and offer it all and go 'round the entire cable/satellite mess that chokes the US off from so much programming.

[rv65]

All you need in my market is Expanded basic, digital cable box plus a subscription to RR to get Speed2. They're going to launch it on a market by market basis. Charlotte, NC home of modern day NASCAR will be the first market to get it. Other markets will start getting it in July. Other providers will likely consider it but it will likely be a Cable/Telco exclusive for now. In my market, HD is free and they don't charge extra for an HD box.

[Gregor]

Trying to watch recaps of Ypres on the IRC website, I get a message saying the video not available in my country. I will guess it's part of the broadcast arrangement. Speed 2 is part of an expensive package of channels I don't want to pay for, nor would they likely have much else on I'd want to watch if I did. So no more watching IRC events, I suppose. Legally, at any rate.

[rv65]

Speed2 also requires to have your providers internet as well as having speedtv. Only Time Warner Cable has signed a deal with Speed2 and you have to live in NASCRAP err NASCAR country in order to watch it.

[Gregor]

I poked around on Youtube and found enough to keep my happy. Plenty of good footage; some raw and some well produced. Plus a few compilations from 1990 and 92 when it was billed as a 24 hour event.

My building's being rewired with new cable this year; with technology being what it is these days I can't imagine why programmers insist on purchasing channel packages and charge fantastic amounts to select a single extra channel. I have to deal with a lot of cross application and database traffic at work and can't figure why everything doesn't work as well as what we build.

[Gregor]

I'm finding complaints online at Speed's forum that Speed2 (launch date may 2010) hasn't started 'broadcasting' yet.

[rv65]

Time Warner Cable will be first to get it in the Charlotte market, with other markets launching in July. Maybe they are delaying it, as this service requires modem authentication. You can't watch this service on the go which sucks, but thats life. Not sure when it will come out.

[rv65]

Discovery HDTheater puts a lot of popups and large text saying that you are watching the WRC. They put this piece of text in Large capital letters that says WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP or something like that. Then they put graphics on the screen saying that you are watching the 2010 World Rally Championship. Of course the commercial breaks mention that you are watching the 2010 World Rally Championship. Discovery must think we are 2 year olds with short attention-spans. Most people who are watching the WRC on HDTheater have an HD box that has a program guide that tells you what you are watching.

My point is that Speed2 will have significantly less screen clutter than HD Theater and practically no commercials. I've heard you have to have the sports pack for Time Warner subscribers and RR HSI.

[rv65]

Rally Bulgaria had little if any screen clutter . Next year HDTheater will be able to carry the WRC in proper HD which will be awesome .

[rv65]

It's available to Time Warner subscribers as of now, but you have to subscribe to Speed on TV, and RR Online.

[rv65]

Website is www.speed2.com

Speed2 could air live IRC coverage, since the website does mention live events. All the IRC races are available On Demand on Speed2.com. Monte Carlo is less than 26 minutes, but most of them are at least 45 minutes.

[rv65]

Barum is now available on Speed2, but I must be the only user on this forum that can actually enjoy it. Still no live coverage, even though Speed2 is capable of having live coverage. It's not HD, but pretty acceptable. I wish the WRC was available OD, but HDTheater airs it a bunch of times, and I guess thats why they invented DVR's.

[rv65]

Speed2 works great in Fullscreen, now that I have the 64 bit "Square" which is the beta Linux flash player.

[rv65]

Dish Network subscribers can access Speed2, but not DirecTV.