Things Picking Up For Dish
It was mixed numbers for Dish Network’s third quarter earnings but one that stands out for me is their subscriber growth, Dish Network reported 241,000 new subscribers in the quarter, while DirecTV only added 136,000 in the same time period.
This is the first time in a long time where Dish Network had added more subscribers at DirecTV. But what is the reason for the sudden shift of the tides from DirecTV to Dish Network?
The past few months DirecTV has been under fire in the press for customer service issues many of these reports made DirecTV look bad, even I fired an upset salvo at DirecTV (speaking of which, I STILL have not received my money which DirecTV took from me by mistake months ago!) But with the complaints I have seen some folks at DirecTV jump in and try grabbing the bull by the horns to fix many of the reported issues.
Some folks think that the reason for the turn around is because of Dish Networks new “Why Pay More” marketing campaign. While I was critical of the initial add and have been vocal about the poor marketing done by Dish Network, I am very happy with what I have been seeing lately churning out from the Dish Network marketing department. In fact many of the ads are featuring things I said here in The Satellite Dish that they should be harping on, and that is better technology, and better equipment. It appears that the gloves are off and the Dish Marketing folks are indeed finally showing how good the technologies really are. I am actually impressed at how the marketing department at Dish is turning things around, and while their ads are not as good or flashy as DirecTV ads it appears people are taking notice.
And while things appear to be turning around for Dish, Dish still has a way to go before it can even consider itself as world class as DirecTV. But with all the changes that have been made along in the last nine months at Dish Network I hope the folks at DirecTV are looking closely in their rear view mirror.
I feel making Dish Network better will force DirecTV to make itself better which ultimately means better TV for all.
Dish Tech Chat Tonight
Many people have been waiting a long time for the new Dish Network ViP Slingloaded 922 receiver, tonight we will get an update on the 922 plus a demonstration of its new search features as Dish Network presents another quarterly Tech Chat. Hosted by Echostar President Mark Jackson and Dan Minnick the Vice President of Software Engineering for Echostar.
The Chat will air on Dish Network channel 101 and looks like a jam-packed show. The folks at Echostar were kind enough to send me over a copy of tonight’s agenda.
Scheduled for Tonights Tech Chat includes…
The 922: A powerful search engine… on your TV!
Volume leveling technology with a special guest from SRS Labs
Sneak Peek of new interactive game with Scot Higgins
The Best way to watch the NFL Red Zone Channel
A look at the TV2 IR converter
Q&A and Giveaways
Sounds good to me except for the fact that I will need to sit through another ad for the NFL Red Zone channel.
What about EPIX…
So the rumors were that Dish Network and EPIX were very… very close to a deal to launch the new movie service on Dish Network. So what happened?
To me the email they sent out on Friday seems to indicate that they are further from a deal then many folks thought.
The email wanted people to contact Dish Network via Twitter or Facebook and let them know they wanted them to add EPIX to their lineup.
I thought about writing Dish and telling them I want my MTV. I would give anything to have the original MTV back. Oh yeah this is about Epix… I would have loved to see the Indiana Jones marathon their aired this weekend. Lets hope we see this channel soon.
Dish Sucks commented:
I had Dish Network for a total of 3 days.
I was tired of the cable company raising my rates. I was inticed by the $29.99 rate Dish was offering. I signed up for their service, the contractor installer arrived he didn't ask where I wanted it installed in the house, drilled a 2 inch hole through my window pane, installed the Dish directly in front of my walk light, Then told me about all the hidden fees. I don't have a land line so that was another $10 a month. The channels I want another $10, Equipment More $$$. Plus I was told I needed to bury my own cable which was about half a football field away from my house. Till it was all said and done it cost $20 more a month than Cable! And to top it all off it kept losing the signal, everytime you turned it on it took 20 minutes to boot up. Not to mention the installer was a total jerk and kept asking to use my cell phone to get the stuff connected and sweating all over it. I called the very next day to cancel the service and was told I would be charged a $300 cancellation fee. I told them they couldn't do that "Buyers Remorse". Only after I turned them in to the better business bureau did I get any respect. Remember if sounds to good to be true it probably is.
Sheeba commented:
I hear the epix trial was not impressive.
Shield95 commented:
Dish (SOON) can mean up to 6 months.
Satguybob commented:
Scott, I got the same email on epix for ATT Uverse's service. It appears to be the same email that Epix is wanting everyone to send out.
Epix commented:
People should say the same to @DirecTV when it comes to EPIX to show there's actually interest in the channel and they shouldn't have blindly passed on it. Especially since they now have exclusives to some key major studios.
