See, it's the buts that makes them want to differentiate the two. I think they are wise in how they are marketing them.
What will Dish do about HBO?
- Thread starter ctrenkamp
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The primary reason was not as you think, rather, it was to separate their equipment from Dish, so other cable and overseas Sat providers would embrace their product...which has not proven all too successful. Dish keeps Echostar in business for the most part.
Of course they do. AFAIK nobody expected it to go any other way. Dish Network gets all of the prime bandwidth from Echostar, and Echostar sells whatever is left over to other parties. They are really still in the "relationship building" phase at this point as far as third parties. They don't have enough leftover non-Dish bandwidth to sell to support the cost of the spacecraft.
When (not really if) the Internet becomes the dominant distribution platform for live video, Dish Network plans to be a strong player in that market, and Echostar plans to transition to selling a lot higher percentage of their bandwidth to third parties. They will probably break into that market by acquiring the dominant player in that space. There have been some moves that direction in the past. They made a bid to acquire Intelsat, but the price was higher than they wanted to pay.
The bandwidth rental and equipment sharing is a very small part of a much larger plan, so calling it the primary reason is a pretty big stretch.
How does splitting off Echostar achieve that end? It seems to me that the only thing it accomplished was to make Echostar more appealing as an STB box manufacturer to DISH's competitors.
The way it helps achieve that end is by making Dish Network a pure programming company, so they can enter into programming contracts that aren't coupled to how they deliver that programming. It also helps cover the eventuality that when Internet delivery becomes the primary distribution platform, the shrinking of the satellite part of the company doesn't drag down the programming side of the company with it.
In addition, it allows Echostar to lease satellite bandwidth to other companies without being owned by a competitor. Echostar is way more an uplink and satellite company than they are a Set Top Box company. The receiver engineering group is only a few dozen people.
But what would be the benefit of that? As a consumer why would I purchase HBO through Sling TV when I can buy HBO Now directly from HBO? Unless Sling TV sells it for less than the $15 HBO is charging directly there is no reason to do that. If Dish did do that, they would be make their own $19 satellite HBO package look like a terrible value.
There really is no reason to combine Sling TV with HBO now that you don't need a cable subscription to access HBO.
I disagree. The advantage at the same price for Sling TV is not having to go back and forth between the two services. All just one app.
As far as for Dish, with Dish you get the channels, the App, the On Demand. Although I'm sure we would all like the price to fall, I could understand an argument towards the TV side higher.
Well despite the argument of what Echostar is or isn't, down to the basics. I would rather rather pay an extra $5.00 per month for for the convenience and record-ability of HBO through Dish. But as of now, I can combine it with Max for $20, which unlike some, I like having around from time to time. So, DUH!
I wasn't trying to say there isn't value to having HBO delivered by satellite. I meant that I don't see any value to adding it to Sling TV now that HBO is selling it directly to consumers over the Internet. The only way I would take it with Sling TV instead of getting HBO Now directly from the source is if it was something like $10 versus the $15 HBO Now costs online.
I don't think Dish would try to sell HBO through Sling TV for that much cheaper than the $19 they charge on satellite. If they did they would make the satellite offering look like a bad value. If they aren't going to sell it on Sling TV for less than HBO Now's $15 there is no point in selling it through Sling TV at all. That's why I disagree with the person talking about Sling TV adding HBO.
I only care because I want the cheapest deal I can get on HBO. IF DISH lowers the price from $19.00 to match the HBO NOW version at $14.99, I will keep it with DISH . IF they don't, I will drop it on DISH and go with HBO NOW. Surely someone from DISH is reading this thread and gaining a perspective in what the consumers think. It might just influence their decision in this matter.
Or Dish can just offer HBO half off for 3/6 months like the rest of the premiums
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That is why I have had HBO for so long now. I either get it free for three months, or 1/2 price for 6 months -like I have now. I won't pay $19.00 a month for HBO and if DISH doesn't keep offering me 1/2 price deals , I can always go with HBO NOW and get if for $14.99 a month.
The CBS Autohop clause and the inclusion of Sling TV in the more recent negotiations is proof that you're wrong about this supposed independence.
What Charlie wants and what the programmers want are two different things. That's why it's called negotiations.
Your assertion that the programming has been completely decoupled from the hardware (and that it was accomplished by splitting off Echostar) is hogwash.
You obviously misunderstood what I was talking about. (And you seem to be antagonistic as well. I'm just going to ignore any additional antagonistic posts.)
What I was talking about is that from a contractual standpoint, one of Charlie's goals is to sign contracts that don't specify a delivery method. For example, you go to a particular programmer and get a deal to distribute their channels, and are able to distribute those channels both on satellite and the internet. Then when the internet becomes the primary method of distribution, you already have agreements in place that allow you to make an easy transition from being satellite TV company to an internet TV company.
I never said that the programming had been decoupled from the hardware. I said that one of the primary goals of the split was to decouple the current method of delivery, satellite, from the agreements with programmers. Whether the programming companies agree is another matter entirely. Also, I think the transition to internet delivery has been slower than many people expected. But it's absolutely positively going that direction in the future, and Dish/Sling is planning to be a leader in getting it there.
Hmm interesting, you might have to subscribe to HBO Now through a cable or satellite company and not through HBO directly.
What? I thought the whole point of HBO Now was being able to access it without cable or satellite. That's why the press made such a big deal about this to begin with.
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