MSN Direct going away

I was notived a while ago that MSN Direct is going away - the message
attached below. Does anyone know if Garmin intends to do anything for
their customers - or will it take a large investment ot get traffic
services (FM receiver?). I purchased the lifetime - and will get some
sort of rebate, however small it is.

kinda sucks.



Dear valued MSN=AE Direct One-Time Payment customer,

We are writing to let you know that MSN Direct service will no longer
be available after January 1st, 2012. To continue to receive service
until then there is no action required on your part. You will
automatically continue to enjoy the full benefits of MSN Direct, along
with service and support, up until that date.

Changes in the marketplace, device capability and alternative network
availability have all contributed to reduced demand for the MSN Direct
services. Despite good initial adoption, Microsoft has made the
decision to end transmission of MSN Direct services on January 1st,
2012.

One-Time Payment customers will automatically receive a prorated
refund after January 1st, 2012 to the credit card account we have on
file, for any unused portion of their subscription. No action is
required for eligible customers to receive this refund. The unused
portion for the One-Time Payment is calculated based on a 3-year term
from the time of purchase. To update your billing information, please
visit Billing & Account Management. More information on refund
requests and MSN Direct services can be found at:
http://www.msndirect.com/MSNDirectServiceAnnouncement.aspx .

Thank you for using MSN Direct services.

The MSN Direct Team

On Tue, 8 Dec 2009 15:25:57 -0800 (PST), Don Simard wrote:

If there's still other FM sources of data, this may be fixable with a
firmware update...

--
Remember, a 12'x12'x18" raised floor can hold over a thousand gallons of
blood before it starts to seep up through the cracks.
-- Roger Burton West in the Monastery

        I don't think neither the firmware can nor Garmin will be that kind to
serve the PAID customers that sweet.

        IOW, FM and MSN Direct using 2 different types of hardwares (adapters) and

On Sun, 13 Dec 2009 11:34:23 -0600, Joel wrote:

Uhm, both "FM Traffic" and MSN Direct use FM-broadcast subcarrier
modulation to transmit data to the device. The FM-broadcast banding used
for each is the standard FM band so what's being listened to is a matter
of what frequency (obviously programmed since the same frequency is not
available in all markets) and encoding (also obviously programmed since
demuxing is WAY cheaper with a a programmable chip to do the job instead
of discrete components). XM is the one with different hardware since
that's using a DBS system instead of local towers/markets.

--
Is it just me, or is it a clear indication that a thread is ending its
useful life is when people start debating the merits of the analogies
that have been posed rather than the original subject matter of the
thread? --Rhetorical question by Rainer Atkins founding "Atkins' Law"

| On Sun, 13 Dec 2009 11:34:23 -0600, Joel wrote:
and
|
| Uhm, both "FM Traffic" and MSN Direct use FM-broadcast subcarrier
| modulation to transmit data to the device. The FM-broadcast banding used
| for each is the standard FM band so what's being listened to is a matter
| of what frequency (obviously programmed since the same frequency is not
| available in all markets) and encoding (also obviously programmed since
| demuxing is WAY cheaper with a a programmable chip to do the job instead
| of discrete components). XM is the one with different hardware since
| that's using a DBS system instead of local towers/markets.
|
| --
| Is it just me, or is it a clear indication that a thread is ending its
| useful life is when people start debating the merits of the analogies
| that have been posed rather than the original subject matter of the
| thread? --Rhetorical question by Rainer Atkins founding "Atkins' Law"


Could be worse than Atkins....
http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Godwins+Law


--
Regards,
Richard Harison