DISH Network Charges Forward With Another Round of National HD Channel Launches

**Slamminc11** · 05-30-2008 07:53 AM

Originally Posted by yaesumofo

Dish took away all of the cool voom chanels. They added 22 hunks of crap.
Dish network HD programming now sucks. What are they thinking? World fishing network? WTF? I just don't get it. I liked Voom. Voom was why I got dish HD in the first place. They got rid of Voom. They might be loosing me too, and I am a good customer with an expensive package and 2 HD DVR receivers. I sent an e-mail complaining and they responded with a lame stock e-mail which danced around my issues like an irish dancer on speed. Dish sucks.
Yaesumofo

Umm, okay. feel better now?

**mntwister** · 05-30-2008 09:46 AM

Originally Posted by yaesumofo

Dish took away all of the cool voom chanels. They added 22 hunks of crap.
Dish network HD programming now sucks. What are they thinking? World fishing network? WTF? I just don't get it. I liked Voom. Voom was why I got dish HD in the first place. They got rid of Voom. They might be loosing me too, and I am a good customer with an expensive package and 2 HD DVR receivers. I sent an e-mail complaining and they responded with a lame stock e-mail which danced around my issues like an irish dancer on speed. Dish sucks.
Yaesumofo

I agree with you, problem is that content is pretty much the same everywhere now. As I said before, with 3 hard drives (one 750gb and two 500gb) full of programming in HD (about 200 movies and some specials), that is still a great reason for me to stay with Dish. I see no advantage to go Direct, Dish's dvr is awesome and they really are doing alot to add channels for us and they are really moving on the locals, Duluth, MN (my locals) are on the map for this year.

I still feel their removal of Voom was a gigantic mistake not only for their customers, but for themselves, they had 15 exclusive 24-hour a day commercial free FULL HD content channels. That's the LAST thing I would get rid of had I been in charge of that decision. Now they have not much to say about why you should get Dish HD over Direct...very bad business move in my opinion, not very bad actually the worst. Man, when you have something exclusive like that, use your brain and keep it and promote it!

**db2** · 05-30-2008 09:58 AM

Originally Posted by mntwister

I still feel their removal of Voom was a gigantic mistake not only for their customers, but for themselves, they had 15 exclusive 24-hour a day commercial free FULL HD content channels.

I have seen this same comment several times on this forum since voom was removed. I know that everyone is entitled to their opinion and I'm not bashing you for posting it mntwister but what criteria are you using to determine that it was a "mistake"? Personally, I would consider it a mistake if Dish lost a significant number of subscribers that they did not gain back through the addition of other HD channels. Scott spoke with both Dish and Voom at Team Summit and both sources admitted that the number of complaints about the voom removal was lower than expected. I guess we won't know until we see the subscriber numbers and financials for Dish but for the time being it doesn't appear that Dish is ready to go bankrupt. My $0.02

**mntwister** · 05-30-2008 10:13 AM

Originally Posted by db2

I have seen this same comment several times on this forum since voom was removed. I know that everyone is entitled to their opinion and I'm not bashing you for posting it mntwister but what criteria are you using to determine that it was a "mistake"? Personally, I would consider it a mistake if Dish lost a significant number of subscribers that they did not gain back through the addition of other HD channels. Scott spoke with both Dish and Voom at Team Summit and both sources admitted that the number of complaints about the voom removal was lower than expected. I guess we won't know until we see the subscriber numbers and financials for Dish but for the time being it doesn't appear that Dish is ready to go bankrupt. My $0.02

DB2, my comment only stems from my business experience for 30 years, though I admit I am not in the Sat. industry. When you have competition like Dish does like DirecTV who has been making huge headway in HD in the last year, and you have 15 channels that are exclusive to you, where as all the others are available to your competition, it only makes sense to keep those channels and promote the heck out of the fact that you have them and Directv does not.

I do not put Dish down in any way for adding the channels they did, these are well-known national channels and Dish has to keep up with those. All I am saying is that when you have something you can use to sell exclusively that might tip the scale so a customer will sign up with you rather than the competition, it's not a great idea to get rid of that advantage. It worked for them for a long time, having Voom, many people added Dish because they had those....I think it could still have worked....I was speaking from a business/competition point of view here. My personal disappointment of losing Monsters HD and Filmfest and VoomMovies aside, I think they had a great advantage to pull in new customers by being able to advertise that they have 15 full time high def ad-free exclusive channels that each of which had interest for all different types of people.

**db2** · 05-30-2008 10:17 AM

Originally Posted by mntwister

When you have competition like Dish does like DirecTV who has been making huge headway in HD in the last year, and you have 15 channels that are exclusive to you, where as all the others are available to your competition, it only makes sense to keep those channels and promote the heck out of the fact that you have them and Directv does not.

My personal disappointment of losing Monsters HD and Filmfest and VoomMovies aside, I think they had a great advantage to pull in new customers by being able to advertise that they have 15 full time high def ad-free exclusive channels.

That's a good point. Certainly having voom must have convinced at least some potential subscribers to choose Dish, the question is how many? As Poke would say, we'll half to wait and see.

**StonesCat** · 05-30-2008 10:36 AM

When people are checking out who to go to for HD, I'd feel pretty safe saying that far more will be looking for USA, Sci-Fi, and other name networks, as opposed to the few that are searching out "unique" ones they've never heard of. Right or wrong, Dish isn't a public service, it's a business. Whether or not all the channels are stacked with HD programming or not, you've got to prepare for the long term, not the next couple of months.

**mntwister** · 05-30-2008 10:52 AM

Originally Posted by StonesCat

When people are checking out who to go to for HD, I'd feel pretty safe saying that far more will be looking for USA, Sci-Fi, and other name networks, as opposed to the few that are searching out "unique" ones they've never heard of. Right or wrong, Dish isn't a public service, it's a business. Whether or not all the channels are stacked with HD programming or not, you've got to prepare for the long term, not the next couple of months.

They already have those channels. So if I am shopping for HD content and making comparisons, I am definately going to say, wow, 15 channels here that are not on Direct, my other choice. I disagree with you. I feel it is a selling advantage. I agree that they will be looking for those channels first (sci-fi, ect) but they will not only be looking at that-they will look at charts of which service has which, and Dish showing 15 exclusives IS a selling point. Just my opinion of course.

**Jeffro34tx** · 05-30-2008 11:11 AM

Originally Posted by mntwister

DB2, my comment only stems from my business experience for 30 years, though I admit I am not in the Sat. industry. When you have competition like Dish does like DirecTV who has been making huge headway in HD in the last year, and you have 15 channels that are exclusive to you, where as all the others are available to your competition, it only makes sense to keep those channels and promote the heck out of the fact that you have them and Directv does not.

All I am saying is that when you have something you can use to sell exclusively that might tip the scale so a customer will sign up with you rather than the competition, it's not a great idea to get rid of that advantage. It worked for them for a long time, having Voom, many people added Dish because they had those....I think it could still have worked....I was speaking from a business/competition point of view here. My personal disappointment of losing Monsters HD and Filmfest and VoomMovies aside, I think they had a great advantage to pull in new customers by being able to advertise that they have 15 full time high def ad-free exclusive channels that each of which had interest for all different types of people.

Your comment regarding DirecTV....DirecTV making huge headway... while DISH did have VOOM.. the numbers don't lie... if you look at the net subs for both companies. DirecTV had a huge surge in comparison with DISH. So wouldn't you think that you have got to do something different? Especially when you have to report to Stockholders, obviously something has to change. That change unfortunately was VOOM. If Dish had their way, they would have kept the last 5 channels. My opinion on this is that VOOM had too many channels to keep up with. Frankly, without commercials, it is hard to keep new programming coming, especially for 15 channels. They really should have combined some of the channels. That in itself would have decreased the amount of repeats, which seems to be the number one complaint.

As for the other part of your comment, while it is good in theory, in just doesn't work well without the participation of VOOM doing their part. They had an agreement, and VOOM didn't hold up to it. Dish knew this before they ever did their audit of VOOM. I think anyone could tell by watching their programming. People may say, they were getting better... but that is only because DISH was already complaining and did their audit back in November. You can't just pay your executive team more money and say that you are spending the agreed amount of money! That's ridiculous!

BTW - for most people who are getting HD these days, most are going to be people who typically watch the well known basic and broadcast channels. If you are DISH, you do not want to be caught twiddling your thumbs and not have the well known basic channels in HD, while your competition does! If someone is shopping for a new HD provider, and they see the well known channels are available on one, yet the other doesn't... regardless if they have 15 "unkown to them" channels, I seriously doubt they would drift toward the provider that has the 15 "excusive" channels. Even if they are ALL HD 24 Hours a day, take out the repeats, and they don't have enough programming to fill the guide up. It was a novelty for many. For the long haul, most subs would prefer to have the well known channels, which will continue to provide new programming, as well as grow with more and more HD programming daily.

**jimboeau** · 05-30-2008 11:15 AM

Originally Posted by mntwister

When you have competition like Dish does like DirecTV who has been making huge headway in HD in the last year, and you have 15 channels that are exclusive to you, where as all the others are available to your competition, it only makes sense to keep those channels and promote the heck out of the fact that you have them and Directv does not.

Yes, but you are forgetting the most important variable. In most peoples opinion from polls here and elsewhere the channels SUCKED.

That is why they were exclusive in the first place.

**mntwister** · 05-30-2008 11:27 AM

Originally Posted by jimboeau

Yes, but you are forgetting the most important variable. In most peoples opinion from polls here and elsewhere the channels SUCKED.

That is why they were exclusive in the first place.

Some of us didn't think they sucked. I am one of those who watched them alot. Hey everyone, I don't cut Dish down for adding well known channels. I am ONLY saying that this would have been a good package to keep. I also understand Voom did not live up to its contract. I'm not talking without knowing the facts, just saying I feel that the Voom package would have been a benefit in certain ways. I also still feel that what they added really gave me hardly any more high definition. That isn't opinion but fact. Turn on those channels....wonderful high def 5-10% of the time, if that:-). Still, I realize why they needed to add those. Enough said I guess, which was only that I thought the extra 15 channels was an advantage as far as selection of true high def.