Scott Greczkowski

Leaving For Las Vegas
January 4, 2008

My bags are packed and ready and I am actually looking forward to waking up tomorrow morning at 4:30 in the morning to head for Las Vegas, the home of the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show.

This year’s show is going to seem odd to me though as DirecTV, XM and Sirius Satellite Radio will not be exhibiting in their own booths nor will they be holding press conferences.

I was surprised when I learned last Friday that DirecTV had canceled their press conference and scaled back their display to a private meeting room at the Venetian. Even more surprising was getting a note from DirecTV stating that they have no plans for any press releases during CES.  Instead DirecTV is going to let their 85 HD channels shine for themselves. 

To me it was no surprise to hear that XM and Sirius were not going to be there, both companies are in limbo at the moment as they wait for their merger approval.

That leaves only two major satellite companies appearing at this years CES, those being Dish Network and newcomer XStreamHD.

This CES could be a make or brake for Dish Network, many of their hard-core customers are unhappy with Dish Network over the lack of new high definition content.  A number of these hard-core Dish Network customers have voiced their unhappiness on many of the online satellite forums.  In fact a number of these folks have noted that they will jump ship to DirecTV if Dish Network does not make some major announcements at CES.

So what does the future hold for Dish Network?  Honestly your guess is good as mine, however here are a few things I know, which may or may not be discussed at CES.

-         New Dish Network Pricing.  Yes folks rates are going up again not a big surprise here

-         New HD Package – Dish Network will introduce a new $10 package called the Dish Network HD Essential Package.  There is no word what channels this new bargain HD package will contain.

-         New Dish Network Exclusive Channel - Dish Network will launch a new channel in February called ‘The Pursuit Channel” this Dish Network exclusive will air on channel 230 and will feature non stop outdoor hunting action.  For more information please visit http://www.pursuitchannel.com/

But besides a new HD package, what does the future hold for Dish Network HD?  Now is the time for Dish Network to put up or shut up in regards to HD.  If they don’t have new programming to announce now they should at least give their customers a roadmap to what the future holds.  Their press conference should be interesting and is the one I am waiting for.

XStreamHD is a new satellite based service, but is not a satellite company like Dish Network or DirecTV.  XStreamHD will beam full 1080p movies into customers home using satellite technology.  The launch of this new service will happen on Tuesday Morning and will be kicked off by actor Michael Douglas.  I am looking forward to seeing what this costs and more importantly the selection and quality of movies they offer, after all you might not need a HD DVD or Bluray player if you have XStreamHD.

Posted by Scott Greczkowski on January 4, 2008 | Comments (3)