Directtv as a company has been destroyed by ATT and is now the worst company I have ever dealt with

AT&T's new RC1 account system that all DTV accounts are being moved to no longer allows deactivated receivers to be reactivated as it is assumed that the deactivated receivers are returned to DTV.

That really makes no sense.  I have done this every year for 12 years and many other people I know do it.

The issue was the box was old, not that it was deactivated.

My friend had a HD box that was deactivated and he was able to activate though it took him 4 hours of phone calls.

Again, he used to activate via phone in 5 minutes with the extension.

ATT's new system has taken directtv backwards in customer service and pushed the burden to the consumer.

5 minutes vs 4 hours is not moving forward!!!!

If you are using a round dish or an trakvision or other portable dish they are also obsolete as DTV is shutting down the SD MPEG2 channels.

Ok so in the never ending saga, I would like to now say that ATT not only is the worst, but their people lie!

They seem to have a new trick, they lie and tell you what you want to hear.

I have had 4 different customer service people tell me they are sending me the box I need.

It never shows up.

I don't understand who is in charge there bc they are not reading these posts or monitoring their chats or calls as they say they are.

2 of the people who lied are customer service supervisors.

I am so done with ATT and I am looking to drop everything as soon as I can.

I am done with phone calls, bc there they transfer you around like a ping pong ball and eventually deliberately disconnect you.  I use chat now bc I can save it.  Here is my recent chat, about a week ago, never got the confirmation email or the box, Victor lied!! Below chat was 7/7/19

AT&T: Hello! Thanks for choosing AT&T Chat.

AT&T: We are currently experiencing very high chat volumes which may cause long delays. An agent will be with you as soon as possible.

AT&T: Thank you for your patience. Please continue to wait.

AT&T: Thank you for your patience. Please continue to wait.

AT&T: Thank you for your patience. Please continue to wait.

Julienne E: Hi Dave! My name is Julienne E. I'm happy to help.

Julienne E: I understand you are checking on the status of your order

Julienne E: is that correct?

Julienne E: Just checking to see if you are there so we can continue.

Julienne E: Please let me know if you're receiving my responses or I will need to end our session

Dave: hi

Dave: Yes

Dave: I have spoken to numerous people about this on phone and chat and tried of the run around

Julienne E: Glad we are still connected!

Dave: I used to have sat tv on my boat but I was told I needed a new box by ATT

Julienne E: How can I help

Dave: They sent me a new box that didn't work

Julienne E: I see thank you for letting me know.

Dave: I am still waiting for a replacement

Dave: boat has a multiswitch

Julienne E: May I ask when was the order placed?

Dave: I am told I need a HR24 box

Dave: order was placed like 2 weeks ago. People say they are shipping a new one and it is lies, I never get it

Julienne E: I understand thank you for letting me know

Dave: i gave u last # they gave me, do you see that order?

Dave: where is it?

Julienne E: Since this was an order for your boat. I would suggest coordinating via phone since we have a specialized team that handles this special order

Julienne E: Please call Winegard at 800-288-8094

Dave: NO

Dave: I don't have a winegard system

Dave: I have intellian

Dave: It uses regular boxes and when I call that # they say they can't help me

Dave: Been down that road

Dave: I am tired of how every agent either lies or tries to pass you off

Julienne E: I understand

Dave: I need a HR24 shipped to me or I will cancel all my service and my phone too

Julienne E: Let me check on our partner with intellian

Julienne E: I understand where you are coming from and to be honest with you, our team handles residentials.

Dave: I spoke to Intellian and they say i need a H24 box

Dave: treat this as if it is residential

Dave: I don't have a SWM

Dave: I have a multiswitch
Dave: if I get a box that works on multiswitch it will work

Julienne E: Let me check our TECHNICAL TEAM for you as you are currently connected to BILLING.

Dave: ok - not sure why I said I had a technical issue, why connect to billing.  Noone knows anything at this company!

Julienne E: *** To ensure this chat session will not get disconnected, kindly click the arrow button pointing upwards located at the upper hand of this chat window. ***

Dave: done

Julienne E: Thank you!

Julienne E: I am currently waiting for an available rep

Dave: ok I am here

Julienne E: Thank you

Julienne E has left the chat

You are being transferred, please hold... AT&T: Your approximate wait time is 7 minutes. Agent Saul enters chat

Saul: Hello, my name is Saul. I'll be happy to assist you. Give me a moment to review your request.

Dave: ok

Saul: I understand that you have placed an order for the receiver and you have not received it. Am I correct?

Dave: Yes

Dave: I was told they were shipping me a HR24

Saul: I am really sorry about that.

Dave: I have a multiswitch and need a multiswitch box

Saul: I can help you with that.

Dave: they gave me a H25 and I need a HR24 I am told

Saul: Okay.

Saul: I am checking.

Saul: Please help me with the phone number on the account.

Dave: NNNNNNNN

Saul: Thank you.

Saul: I am really sorry for the delay.

Dave: no issue - just want to get this resolved already

Dave: everyone says they can help but it has been 2 months already and I still have no tv

Saul: I will do my best to fix the issue.

Saul: I see that you have placed order last on 6/16/2019 and you not received the receiver.

Saul: I am really sorry.

Dave: yes

Saul: In this case I will go ahead and place an order for you.

Dave: ok for a HR24?

Saul: Yes.

Saul: I am working on your account.

Dave: ok

Saul: Please allow me 2 minutes.

Dave: ok

Saul: Thank you.

Saul: I see that you do not have H25 receiver on your account.

Dave: I have it sitting here at my home
Dave: The technician brought it and it didn't work

Dave: I will ship it back

Saul: Okay.

Saul: Please help me with the receiver id.

Dave: of the H25?

Saul: No, it will be 12 digit number

Dave: I have it Dave: what #?

Saul: You can find it on backside of the the receiver.

Saul: It is RID.

Dave: XXXXXXXXXXXX

Saul: Thank you.

Saul: I see that there are no orders on your account to activate this receiver. In this case I will raise a request and you will get the call who can help you in activating the receiver.

Dave: I don't have the receiver

Dave: I don' t want to activate the H25 it won't work on a multiswitch

Dave: I need a HR24 and then we can activate it

Saul: Ok I understand.

Saul: You will be charged $199 for the receiver.

Dave: WHY?

Dave: I had a perfectly good working box and directtv told me they needed to replace it since it was SD and replace with a HD, but they have yet to ship me the right HD receiver.

Saul: It is one time charge.

Dave: I never paid for my other equipemnt

Saul: I I understand you.

Dave: I have been with you for 12 years

Saul: I am checking with my Supervisor.

Dave: they didn't charge me for the h25

Saul: If you wish I will refer this chat to the Supervisor who has more access.

Dave: If you ship me the right box I will ship this one box and we can call it even

Dave: last time I spoke to as supervisor he disconnected me

Saul: No I will refer this chat right now.

Dave: ok

Saul has left the chat You are being transferred, please hold... Agent Victor enters chat

Victor: Hi

Dave: Hi

Victor: I see that you need a receiver at your boat and sent a H25 receiver, it doesn't work, you need HR24 receiver. Is that correct?

Dave: yes

Victor: Dave, there is a charge for HR24 receiver.

Dave: I will ship the H25 back when I get the HR24 so I shouldn't be charged?

Dave: Why is there a charge?

Dave: I feel like I am being extorted as I had a working box, a R15 on the boat and directtv told me they couldn't activate it. It worked fine for years. So you make me replace it and I have to pay to replace it?
Victor: I am sorry for all the trouble.

Dave: Can't I trade the H25 for a HR24?

Victor: Sorry Dave, we don't have option for it.

Dave: Ok fine ship it and charge me but it better work or I am cancelling everything

Dave: very frustrated with directtv

Victor: Please call 844-822-3352. They have access to it and can help you with that.

Victor: I understand your frsutration.

Victor: frustration*

Dave: I have to call someone else?

Dave: I am tired of the run around

Dave: How do I talk to someone who can make this right? I have been waiting for 2 months and it is rididuculous already Victor: Give it a last try. They might get it for free or they will order the receiver for you.

Dave: look at my account and you will see this has dragged on and noone seem capable and people lie

Dave: no they lie to me

Victor: Or if you wish, I can order it for $199.

Dave: yes order it

Victor: Okay. I will order it.

Dave: Is it a HR24 DVR with a card and a RF remote?

Dave: Will it activate?

Victor: Yes, it is HR24 with a card and RF remote.

Dave: ok

Victor: As soon as you hook up your device, you can go to - http://www.directv.com/activate to get the equipment activated. Dave: k

Victor: The tech will come and install it.

Dave: I don't need a tech

Victor: I am checking if I can send it via mail.

Victor: Thank you for waiting.

Victor: I am sending it via mail.

Dave: awesome

Victor: You will get it to XXXXXXXXXXX.

Dave: ok

Victor: I have successfully placed an order for you.

Victor: Is there anything else I can assist you with?

Dave: Order #?

Victor: You will receive order number on email.

Victor: Please do not worry. I will take care of it being supervisor.

Dave: I have heard that before but ok

Dave: Like I said, i can show you phone calls, chat logs, etc. Everyone says they take care of it and It still is not working Victor: I certainly understand, Dave.

Dave: customer service at ATT is very poor

Victor: Dave, we are here to help you.

Dave: hopefully they read these logs and realize as I save them
Dave: well please get me the box I need, shouldn't be so hard

Dave: when will i get the email

Victor: Sure, you will get the receiver and order ID.

Victor: Please help me with the email .

Dave: ok

Dave: dXXXXXXX@hotmail.com

Victor: Thank you.

Victor: As I have updated the email ID you can expect the email within next 1-2 hours.

Dave: should be the same as one on file

Dave: ok

Victor: Thank you.

Victor: Is there anything else I can help you with today?

Dave: i hope this works

Dave: saving chat

You have to replace the dish with a SWM dish as stated the round dish will stop working. The $199 is the up front lease fee that is waived if you have an upgrade.

Same thing happens to me. Anytime you call you can count on being on the phone for one hour and no resolution.

Yep and the company gets worse and worse and doesn't learn.

I loved DIrecttv before ATT bought it.

I am seriously thinking DISH

Do you have any idea what a satellite dish on a boat costs?

We are talking $2500 for the setup.

It has to move when the boat moves.

My friend has the exact same dish and his still works fine.

We put his box on my system and it worked fine.

So the setup still works, its just that ATT/Directtv is clueless.

Plus that is not what they tell me.  They all say I need a Multiswitch HR24 box but they have no idea how to get me that box.  In fact I have one here that I bought but they can't figure out how to activate it.

The company is dumb!

Deactivating and later reactivating individual boxes (common for RVs, boats, vacation cabin, guest room etc.) is a legacy option that is being discontinued with the move to the new account system. This option was more for back when they had options to own the boxes. The intention for leased boxes is upon deactivation to have them returned to DirecTV, or recycled if they are much older models so as not to cause issues later if something about the setup is no longer compatible. In the end you either pay for that authorized TV on the service, or return the leased box, as they will no longer allow people keeping equipment owned by the company without paying for the service of it.

As of April 2019, DirecTV has started shutting down the old MPEG-2 (SD only) feeds. The 2019 timeframe was the expected timeframe, announced years before the AT&T acquisition. So any old MPEG-2 boxes or receiving dishes (the old round dish), must be replaced with MPEG-4 equipment going forward. DirecTV is doing a complimentary MPEG swap for a standard home install, but will not do the install in a RV (unless permanently parked, used as full home) or boat. Though they may swap the box used in those custom setups (definitely if you can plug in at home along with the other boxes so would be part of the home swap)

If you acquire the box yourself, available models should be H24 or H25 (SWM only), or HR24 if you want DVR. Of course any main Genie DVR (not Client and only 1 allowed on the account) can be used, but not recommended unless that is your permanent home. Do not purchase from individual sellers (eBay, Craig's List, your neighbor, etc.) as like discussed above they cannot be reactivated. Must be from an authorized retailer (such as Sold Signal), and of course they still come with a 24 month service agreement. It is cautioned getting the box yourself through one of those 3rd parties at this time since DirecTV has been having issues with their new account system activating the boxes not through a direct order.

So I am with you and support alot of what you have said.

Now, I don't have a SWM.  I have a multiswitch.  So I am told the HR24 is the only box that will work.

Now explain why I have ordered the box 4 times and 4 times ATT says it is being shipped and it never shows up.

Explain why I am on the phone for 14 hours trying to resolve this.

Explain why I have done 5 chats and noone still can help.

The company is destroyed by this new system as they seem to of taken away the service part.

I understand I may need a new dish soon, but that is really going to annoy alot of boat owners.

When i spoke to the intellian satellite company they said  the satellite dish will not need to be replaced as it can just switch to the new satellite.  They said the problem is ATT doesn't understand how to service boats so they attempt to push the house process on to them and when they transfer you to their RV boat department they only know winegard when there is other companies with equipment out here.

Again, my issues should not be unique, I think ATT tried to fit directtv into a mold that is not fitting well and it is annoying alot of customers.  I read other posts and see many are not happy with their customer service.

I used to shut my receiver down every fall and in the spring I would call and while on the phone the computer would automatically turn my box on bc it saw my # and knew why I was calling. That is aritificial intelligence and great service.  ATT has destroyed this company.

Of course DTV knows nothing about mobile vehicles they don't install them, they only install homes,apt/condos.  

But that is what is ironic to say that, because the old directv did.

It is ATT who doesn't.

They thing every home fits a common mold.

Plus the fact that a boat is no different than a house, the dish part is same tech, just has a motor to lock and move, so it is actually easier as there is no satellite adjustments needed.

After that it is a signal that needs to be interpeted.

So to say that, shows the ignorance of ATT and their customers!!

DTV has never installed in mobile vehicles unless they are permanently parked.  

Again Mobile or Home, it is all the same.

Why are we so hung up on that?

It's Satellite service.

Sheesh

The issue with the receiving dish is not being pointed at the correct satellite, but being able to properly receive the MPEG-4 feed itself.

The only boat specific receiving dish that has been confirmed to receive DirecTV's MPEG-4 (not MPEG-2, or Dish's HD) is the Intellian s6hd.

The difference between home and RV is DirecTV's provided dishes are not intended for travel and their techs are not trained on the differences for install in an RV (as you are not mounting to the same sturdy surfaces). The home dishes can be used away from home, if you invest in a sled mount or tripod for it.