SimpleSimon said:
There's some speculation elsewhere that this may be a move by E* to boost HD user numbers before year-end. I'm also seeing some reliable posters saying the 942 is still several months out, and certainly NOT before 2005.
Now the dumping of the HDTV-in-a-box that happened in Denver today, is something else entirely.
IMHO the logic behind "E"'s latest moves is that Dish figures that if they can get customers to make a relativly bigger investment in their receiver they will be less inclined to switch providers.
Both "D" & "E" have their promos that provide free PVR receivers in every room of your mansion, so it's easy to switch companies without taking an investment hit but you invest $500 - $800 for each HD PVR that is only going to work with their signal and they've got you - you're not likely to jump ship the first time the competition adds a couple new HD channels.
At $1000 for a badly designed 921, they didn't get enough takers but that wasn't their intent anyway - it's inital release was for beta testing anyway and there were plenty waiting in line for the privlege. Now they'll put a unit out for the masses that will, when compared to the early model, seem like a heck of a deal.
"E" just announced the other day that they probably won't be provideing any more HD channels until they get more capacity (sometime in '05), so unless there's an unlikely shift in congress with SHVIA that will allow distant HD nets, "D" will take take / hold the lead with more HD channels in the very near future.
Basically "E"'s only hope to stop the heavy "churn" they know looms on the horizon is by sucking customers into an equipment purchase that will "lock" them into riding this out with them.
WaltinVt