Direct TV / ATT care code 205.4

I am using Apple TV model A1842 w/tvOS 13.4. I select Directv as the provider and use my tested and working Directv user account as well as my tested and working password. The response message on the Apple TV is:

SIGN IN ERROR That User ID doesn't seem to work here. Please sign in with a different ID. Care Code 205.4.


I have tried it many times and am certain it is not a typo issue. I am able to log into my Directv account on computers and ipad with my known credentials and am not having any issue - tested by watching an Showtime show.


I have reset the Apple TV to factory setting and restarted with no change whatsoever. Please help




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Posted on Apr 28, 2020 12:09 PM

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Posted on May 15, 2020 7:16 AM

I found an answer on an AT&T forum. This worked for me. I am pasting below.


Hello!

 

Here’s an update on the issue and a solution that works (until AT&T fixed the underlying root-cause). After spending several weeks talking with DirecTV Now and AT&T U-verse TV technical support, there is an issue that occurs whenever you attempt to authenticate into the Apple TV or iOS TV Provider settings using an email address that is in the domain @att.net or @sbcglobal.net. The error: ‘you are not authorized to access this web-site’ occurs for ALL customers of DirecTV, DirecTV Now, and even AT&T U-verse TV whose AT&T User ID (formerly Access ID) is in AT&T owned domains such as @att.net or @sbcglobal.net. The issue seems to be that those domains are internal to the AT&T network and don’t have permissions to the TV Provider authentication page (somewhere within cprodmasx.att.com).

 

The solution is to change your AT&T User ID (formerly called the Access ID) to a domain other than AT&T, meaning external to AT&T (such as gmail or hotmail, or yahoo) or basically any e-mail address other than att.net or sbcglobal.net.  For example, I changed my AT&T User ID to my old yahoo address but you could also change it a gmail account or hotmail, etc.

 

Note: If you merged your AT&T accounts and services under one profile and have an AT&T Wireless number bundled with your other services, you can use your primary AT&T wireless number to authenticate AT&T as your TV Provider.

 

To change your AT&T User ID, follow these instructions:

 

  1. Login to att.com
  2. In the upper-right menu area, click your account name and select Profile from the drop-down menu.
  3. When the Profile page loads, click on the section that says ‘Sign-in info’.
  4. In the User ID section, click the link to Change your User ID.

 

By the way, even AT&T recommends you don’t use an AT&T email address for your User ID. They even post a suggestion at the top of the page that reads: “Want to change your ID? Keep in mind – It's best to enter an email address that isn't an AT&T email.” That suggestion seems more like a warning to me… and it should be heeded, as if you use an AT&T email address, it definitely causes this TV Provider authentication issue.

 

Note: This is safe to do. Changing your AT&T User ID does not change your billing e-mail address or your Member ID. If you have an AT&T email address such as @att.net or @sbcglobal.net, this will not affect those. Your ATT.NET Member ID will remain your @att.net email address.  And, you can still login to your att.com account to manage your bundled services, bill, etc. using either your User ID or your Member ID (or your phone number).  An easy way to think about this is that your AT&T User ID (formerly Access ID) is just an identifier for your profile that manages all your bundled AT&T services under one profile, but your Member ID is specific to your ATT.NET or SBCGLOBAL.NET email service. Apple has the same concept, they call it your Apple ID, and it is normally an external e-mail address like your gmail or hotmail account (although Apple recently allowed your Apple ID to be an iCloud.com email address, but I digress...).

 

Now that you’ve changed your AT&T User ID to something NOT at AT&T email address, let’s use your new User ID to authenticate into Apple TV or iOS’s TV Provider Single Sign-On.  Before we start, keep in mind, this error never occurred when trying to login directly to the DirectTV Now App.  The error only occurred when trying to authenticate AT&T as your TV Provider within iOS Settings on an iPad, iPhone, or Apple TV.

 


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70 replies

Apr 29, 2020 11:40 AM in response to dbn32

Others are having the issue, there's no debate on that. I never said anything about not writing on the forum. I was referring to the fact that you have submitted a case to Apple and are awaiting response from the side, when they aren't the ones who can fix it. I also wasn't implying that you weren't being persistent, merely that DirecTV is the body that you need to continue to persist with.


You are totally free to wait for advice, but it will be up to all customers who are having the issue to reach out to them and if enough are as persistent as you have been then ultimately they will be forced to take it seriously.


Apple may from time to time inform a developer about issues, but that would not be a typical case scenario. It would be no different with issues that occur via 3rd party apps on other platforms.

May 1, 2020 4:16 PM in response to smitmit

Want to contribute that we have this problem on mulitple apple products (iphones, ipads and appletvs) BUT ONLY when I use the integrated apple "TV Provider" setting. If I use the individual apps internal "kick out for authentication" feature, it works fine.


I ran a combination of tests trying different logins on different apps and different apple devices using different method on different networks.... All sorts of permutations. To me, this points to a problem BETWEEN Apple and DirecTV. Someone is more than likely blocking IP addresses (someone as in Apple or Directv it could be either of them)


This seems to be a problem with the TV provider setting that Apple added as a feature so that you did not constantly need to provide login credentials each time for each app. It takes two to tango so it could be either or both of them causing this problem.

May 8, 2020 4:45 PM in response to smitmit

Same issue with ATT here. Have 4 AppleTV boxes, 2 gen 4 and 2 gen 3. They all worked until recently (a month ago). I got kicked out of a network station and had to re-sign in on DIRECTV as my provider. Got a message saying the ID was not in the system, care code 201. Went to ATT website and reset both my login and password (probably a bad idea). Works fine on the ATT website, but nothing was working on any of my Apple devices, including iPhone. If I try to log in with my ATT access email as user ID, I get message that password does not match - care code 205.4. DIRECTV as provider has now been locked out on all my devices. Called over several days and many hours with ATT, get transferred to a busy signal, or told that it's an Apple problem. (sound familiar?). I'm pretty sure ATT has failed to sort out all its systems and the logins and passwords on the ATT sites are not synced to the logins and passwords stored somewhere in the DIRECTV system. The folks on the ATT support phone appear to have little knowledge of why this is hosed up - they appear to work off a script rather than knowledge. Wish us luck, we'll need it.

May 17, 2020 6:22 AM in response to QuickPost

I’m not sure who’s issue it is. I have a new Apple TV that worked fine before the update. I have an old AppleTV (gen 2) that still allows me sign into DirecTv and stream but the new, updated one gets error 205.4. I’ve called DirecTv and they said has to do with Apple update. It’s super annoying that everyone just passes the blame. We’ve tried changing passwords and everything. But again, all usernames and passwords work on a non updated Apple device. And it’s only an issue with Apple devices. Seems like AT&T/DirecTV and Apple, both can’t figure out their own technology. Super frustrating when you should be able to do something and you can’t. And all your tech is new!!!🤬

May 18, 2020 11:10 AM in response to seamegg

I thought the same but TV OS13.4 (the last update) auto installed on my system on March 24th and I signed in with Directv credentials many times after that with no problem until around May 4. So the update did not trigger the 205.4 care code.

The reps keep mentioning that Directv is working on "Enhancements" that may be causing this. This leads me to suspect it is an ATT/DirecTV issue. If it was an Apple issue with the last update it would have started just after March 24.

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Direct TV / ATT care code 205.4

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