Distants - Emergency Retailer Chat

[Scott Greczkowski]

Well guess what notice is back...

DISTANT NETWORK CHANNEL ALERT

We need your help in Washington to save Distant Network Channels. There will be a Special Retailer Chat on Channel 999 at 12PM ET, Monday, August 28, 2006. Please tune in for important information from DISH Network.

 

[minnow]

Let's hope E* has a "Plan B" because whining to Congress is not going to get this situation fixed anytime soon if ever. Come 9/11/06 and there is no acceptable
Plan B, Dish had best be prepared for a mass exodus of current subscribers.

 

[Juan]

And where are these customer's going? they probably cant get distants from d* either

 

[riffjim4069]

Complete waste of time IMO. I doubt many in Congress will take a stand with Echostar on this issue based on their "willful" and "repeated" pattern of violating federal regulations. Pay up or pull the plug already...either way, the customers suffer, and E* has nobody to blame...but themselves.

 

[Tampa8]

Couple of things come to mind. First, the customers Dish probably has to worry about are those that are not served by Dish for locals and can qualify for distants, including RV's and people with waivers. Others who have distants either shouldn't at all, or were Grandfathered. Those last two groups won't get distants from Direct.

Second, I have seen some under estimate Charlie in the past. Now I can't see anyway for things to go well this time on the distants issue, but maybe there is a plan B. I admit I'm not holding out any hope on that. And referencing the above, I would have to think it is the customers who won't have any networks that Dish will have to find some way to satisfy, not the rest.

Third, with the advent of the Slingbox, there may be a way for some to get distants, even get them from a city they really want. Is there anyway for Dish to be involved with that process? Perhaps make it easier to set up a separate account in a city with only the locals and sling to you? Just thinking out loud....

 

[minnow]

And where are these customer's going? they probably cant get distants from d* either

The court had found that approximetly 25% of those now recieving DNS were doing so illegally. That is Dish provided these nets illegally to them. However that means that 75% to those subscribers who recieve DNS were receiving them legally and therefore Direct CAN provide DNS service to that 75%. And by the way, that's 75% of 800,000 DNS subscribers.

 

[Tampa8]

The court had found that approximetly 25% of those now recieving DNS were doing so illegally. That is Dish provided these nets illegally to them. However that means that 75% to those subscribers who recieve DNS were receiving them legally and therefore Direct CAN provide DNS service to that 75%. And by the way, that's 75% of 800,000 DNS subscribers.

Not really true. There are many as I mentioned above who were grandfathered that cannot now get distants. (Those that have them but for any reason drop them cannot get them again.)

 

[minnow]

Not really true. There are many as I mentioned above who were grandfathered that cannot now get distants. (Those that have them but for any reason drop them cannot get them again.)

Regardless, we are still talking about several hundred thousand subscribers that will eligible to get their distants from Direct. And don't care how one slices the loaf of bread, that's gonna hurt E*'s bottom line.

 

[ilee]

We cannot get our news from a city 100 miles away but Denver which is 300 miles distant is considered local. Do they think I need Denver's commercials?

 

[ThomasRz]

D* Lifeboat

Any E* customer who is legally receiving DNS may transfer to D* and get DNS. This includes RV/Truck, Grandfathering of all stripes and waivers. If you "accidentally" received DNS because of a white area error, D* will not requalify you but then you weren't entitled to DNS in the first place.

 

[Faw]

I wonder what will happen to those of us in Puerto Rico, since we don't have CBS, NBC affiliates. We do have a weird ABC/WB mutation (I guess now it is a ABC/WB/UPN mutation) that shows *some* ABC shows and *some* WB shows.

Right now I get the Superstations, LA and NY feeds. Losing them would suck...

 

[jrbdmb]

Any E* customer who is legally receiving DNS may transfer to D* and get DNS. This includes RV/Truck, Grandfathering of all stripes and waivers. If you "accidentally" received DNS because of a white area error, D* will not requalify you but then you weren't entitled to DNS in the first place.

No.

Grandfathering will not transfer from E* to D*.

From my underratnading of the new SHVIRA, there are no more "waivers". If you are not in a white area or get DBS locals, no distant NETs for you.

 

[Tampa8]

No.

Grandfathering will not transfer from E* to D*.

From my underratnading of the new SHVIRA, there are no more "waivers". If you are not in a white area or get DBS locals, no distant NETs for you.

You are correct. Direct cannot give you distants if you switch from Dish if the reason you have the distants is Grandfathering. If Direct carries your locals you cannot get distants, unless you get NEW waivers, and or apply as an RV. So my point is, there will be very few of the numbers being thrown around who would benefit changing to Direct, if it is to get distants. Even if Direct does not carry your locals, you still have to qualify to get distants. (Be in a white area)

And that goes back to my point that I believe Dish will work on something for those that Dish does not carry locals for and not worry too much about those that are not losing networks just losing a second or third set of networks. They may lose some RV subscriptions unless they come up with something however.

 

[Chris Walker]

Yea I don't think crying to Washington is going to help here. PAY AND SETTLE CHARLIE.

 

[Chris Walker]

Any E* customer who is legally receiving DNS may transfer to D* and get DNS. This includes RV/Truck, Grandfathering of all stripes and waivers. If you "accidentally" received DNS because of a white area error, D* will not requalify you but then you weren't entitled to DNS in the first place.

I have waivers for all 4 networks, if the local stations will let me transfer them, I'll switch to D* if Charlie is too cheap to settle and the plug gets pulled.

 

[Mr Tony]

I wonder what will happen to those of us in Puerto Rico, since we don't have CBS, NBC affiliates. We do have a weird ABC/WB mutation (I guess now it is a ABC/WB/UPN mutation) that shows *some* ABC shows and *some* WB shows.

Right now I get the Superstations, LA and NY feeds. Losing them would suck...

yes you do. Sort of

Puerto Rico has the following locals in their locals package
WPRU 20 (ABC)
WVGN 14 (NBC)...from Virgin Islands
WSJP 30 (WB/UPN)
WVXF 17 (CBS)..from Virgin Islands
WSJX 24 (FOX)

Yes there are NY locals available before they added most of these but new customers can't get them

 

[Chris Walker]

This affects so many people and causes so many headaches for E* in the future, they need to just pay and settle and end this. Raise the price of the distants if you must, but if there is an option to keep them and Charlie doesn't go that route, I'd be extremely disappointed and surprised.

 

[Juan]

This affects so many people and causes so many headaches for E* in the future, they need to just pay and settle and end this. Raise the price of the distants if you must, but if there is an option to keep them and Charlie doesn't go that route, I'd be extremely disappointed and surprised.

That may not be an option Rupert "directv" Murdoch was one of the driving forces behind This whole distant mess. Unless you live in the middle of nowhere you wont get distants from Directv

 

[neljtorres]

I wonder what will happen to those of us in Puerto Rico, since we don't have CBS, NBC affiliates. We do have a weird ABC/WB mutation (I guess now it is a ABC/WB/UPN mutation) that shows *some* ABC shows and *some* WB shows.

Right now I get the Superstations, LA and NY feeds. Losing them would suck...

I dont know what are you looking at because I have been a dish customer in Puerto Rico since 2000.
And the local channels the show all the shows that the networks offer.

WPRU ABC
WVXF CBS
WVGN NBC
WSJP CW
WSJX FOX

There are no mutations you are problable watching other stuff.
I have the New York and Los Angeles Networks too and have a 721 receiver that has PIP and the channel from here show what the New York feed has!

 

[Chris Walker]

That may not be an option Rupert "directv" Murdoch was one of the driving forces behind This whole distant mess. Unless you live in the middle of nowhere you wont get distants from Directv

Well Rupert does have E* by the balls on this one, but it's something that I don't think Charlie can afford not to settle