As a high end subscriber (my bill runs over $190 a month) I'm disturbed by the lack of progress in regards to HD programming. In a month, D* has announced upcoming HD LIL coverage in the top 12 markets, added national feeds for O & O markets for ABC, Fox, and NBC, and is adding ESPN2 HD and UniversalHD.
Meanwhile the only new HD channel was TNT HD which was added 6 months ago and is made up of mostly upconverted SD content to boot.
I know that bandwidth constraints are a concern, but at the very least you need to get Fox HD up and running as the Super Bowl is less than three weeks away. I can't see Rupert Murdoch refusing to allow you to carry the channel, as it would violate the terms of the agreement which allowed him to acquire DirecTV. The only other possible solution is that you don't want to pay the fee involved, so as to not "raise our rates" as Charlie is fond of saying. Well our rates are going up anyway next month. Although not as "critical" a channel as CBS was last year at this time, you are turning your back on many of us HD early adopters who demand these HD channels. I fear that you will be relegated to an inferior position in the market if this is not addressed quickly. Right now, Cablevision has triple your HD channels and is now offering PVRs. DirecTV is leaving you in the dust as well with their announcements. I subscribed to Dish Network in 2000 because the quality and offerings were better than what I was getting from cable company. That is no longer the case.
At the very least, you need to negotiate the rights to carry the pregame and Super Bowl game on 2/6. Failure to do so will leave a bad taste in the mouth of many of your high end subscribers who are the ones most willing to pay $1000 for receivers that can receive them. I fear that many of us will not wait until 2006 for you to get Mpeg4 online. For the last 6 months you have only added local channels to extremely small markets and international channels with extremely limited appeal. I realize they are lucrative in that you can generate revenue of $5-20 a channel with them, but please realize that we existing customers who speak English and live in larger markets need something to keep us satisfied as well. A few of us have left for DirecTv having seen the writing on the wall. I beseech you to heed my warning and address these shortcomings before the churn goes from a trickle to a deluge.
Bob Murdoch
Brielle, NJ
Meanwhile the only new HD channel was TNT HD which was added 6 months ago and is made up of mostly upconverted SD content to boot.
I know that bandwidth constraints are a concern, but at the very least you need to get Fox HD up and running as the Super Bowl is less than three weeks away. I can't see Rupert Murdoch refusing to allow you to carry the channel, as it would violate the terms of the agreement which allowed him to acquire DirecTV. The only other possible solution is that you don't want to pay the fee involved, so as to not "raise our rates" as Charlie is fond of saying. Well our rates are going up anyway next month. Although not as "critical" a channel as CBS was last year at this time, you are turning your back on many of us HD early adopters who demand these HD channels. I fear that you will be relegated to an inferior position in the market if this is not addressed quickly. Right now, Cablevision has triple your HD channels and is now offering PVRs. DirecTV is leaving you in the dust as well with their announcements. I subscribed to Dish Network in 2000 because the quality and offerings were better than what I was getting from cable company. That is no longer the case.
At the very least, you need to negotiate the rights to carry the pregame and Super Bowl game on 2/6. Failure to do so will leave a bad taste in the mouth of many of your high end subscribers who are the ones most willing to pay $1000 for receivers that can receive them. I fear that many of us will not wait until 2006 for you to get Mpeg4 online. For the last 6 months you have only added local channels to extremely small markets and international channels with extremely limited appeal. I realize they are lucrative in that you can generate revenue of $5-20 a channel with them, but please realize that we existing customers who speak English and live in larger markets need something to keep us satisfied as well. A few of us have left for DirecTv having seen the writing on the wall. I beseech you to heed my warning and address these shortcomings before the churn goes from a trickle to a deluge.
Bob Murdoch
Brielle, NJ
