In a radio network which employs adaptive antennas for transmission of data to mobiles methods and apparatus are provided for improving the reception of transmitted data. When a block is to be transmitted in a first beam of the antenna and the block contains information for the mobile in the second beam, a modulation and coding scheme is used for the transmission of the block such that the modulation and coding scheme provides greater protection to the portion of the block containing information for the mobile in the second beam. The use of greater protection for the portion of the block which includes information for the mobile in the second beam increases the probability that the mobile in the second beam can receive and correctly decode the information intended for the mobile in the second beam in the block.