Interesting (and sort of odd) conversation with rep

[sktrus]

I just wanted to share this. the purpose is not to whine, complain or act negative.
After installing ota and airttv adapter I kept watching locals from ota to be sure it was working for me. I was ready to drop the local package. (I changed my package from top 250 to Welcome several months ago. I don't think Welcome package is available now.). The lady who answered must have been new! These r the things she claimed:
If Dish sends u ota antenna (not that I needed), a technician must come and install it. She insisted that coax attach to Hopper directly. She had no idea what adapter meant. she didn't know any package price increase or change in equipment lease fee. She also claimed that we pay the same fee whether or not we own or lease receivers. she was willing to give me a $5 adjustment on my current bill. (Lost local Fox.)
I wanted her to connect me to her supervisor. the second lady sounded almost the same. Sounded like a Philippino accent.
She told me that antenna comes straight to my address. No need for technician. No adapter!!. You just plug the coax behind one tv. She wouldn't answer if they ran out of adapters. Told her I did not want the antenna. She confirmed the fee being reduced on Hoppers and joeys if you own them. She didn't know or wouldn't answer how much the packages would go up next month. But, she gave me $16.36 reduction on my current bill. I thought that was generous and accepted it.
another thing I learned is that Welcome package includes locals, and I can't get rid of it reduce my monthly bill. It is costing me about $40. $15 for Hopper 3. $7 for Joey 2.(I have total 3). So, my monthly bill is $76.

 

[sktrus]

I just wanted to share this. the purpose is not to whine, complain or act negative.
After installing ota and airttv adapter I kept watching locals from ota to be sure it was working for me. I was ready to drop the local package. (I changed my package from top 250 to Welcome several months ago. I don't think Welcome package is available now.). The lady who answered must have been new! These r the things she claimed:
If Dish sends u ota antenna (not that I needed), a technician must come and install it. She insisted that coax attach to Hopper directly. She had no idea what adapter meant. she didn't know any package price increase or change in equipment lease fee. She also claimed that we pay the same fee whether or not you own or lease receivers. she was willing to give me a $5 adjustment on my current bill. (Lost local Fox.)
I wanted her to connect me to her supervisor. the second lady sounded almost the same. Sounded like a Philippino accent.
She told me that antenna comes straight to my address. No need for technician. No adapter!!. You just plug the coax behind one tv. She wouldn't answer if they ran out of adapters. Told her I did not want the antenna. She confirmed the fee being reduced on Hoppers and joeys if you own them. She didn't know or wouldn't answer how much the packages would go up next month. But, she gave me $16.36 reduction on my current bill. I thought that was generous and accepted it.
another thing I learned is that Welcome package includes locals, and I can't get rid of it reduce my monthly bill. It is costing me about $40. $15 for Hopper 3. $7 for Joey 2.(I have total 3). So, my monthly bill is $76.

I have the retention specialist's number. But, I call that number only to get a good deal when my contract is up.

 

[dishdude]

$76 for the Welcome Pack?

 

[cpdretired]

When the computer answers your call select tech support. The overseas call centers are useless. This forum has some very knowledgeable members.

 

[pattykay]

another thing I learned is that Welcome package includes locals, and I can't get rid of it reduce my monthly bill. It is costing me about $40.

MyDISH

my.dish.com

$40 (well, $39.99 to be exact) is the new price of Welcome Pack, and that price shouldn't be on your bill until January at the earliest.

The problem with dropping locals from Welcome Pack (for those who have done it) is that it doesn't really lower your bill that much. If you are grandfathered with no Receiver Fee for your first receiver (but do not have the grandfathered Welcome Pack price) then dropping the locals reduces the bill by $12, but Dish then tacks on a $9 Receiver Fee for the first receiver. This makes the net savings only $3 per month. As you can see in the fine print below the chart in the above link, subscribers with the grandfathered Welcome Pack price are already saving $4 off the current Welcome Pack price. So, the ability to drop locals is not an option for them, since it would actually raise their bill. If you do not have the grandfathered Welcome Pack price (currently $30.99, going up to $35.99 in January) then you should see the option to drop the locals when you log into your online mydish account. If you are already paying a fee for your first receiver, then dropping the locals may save you the entire $12.

 

[sktrus]

$76 for the Welcome Pack?

No, $40. But the equipment lease is costly. Extra $36 in my case. If I had one tv, I would pay only $15 for hopper 3. And the total monthly bill would end up $55.

 

[sktrus]

MyDISH

my.dish.com

$40 (well, $39.99 to be exact) is the new price of Welcome Pack, and that price shouldn't be on your bill until January at the earliest.

The problem with dropping locals from Welcome Pack (for those who have done it) is that it doesn't really lower your bill that much. If you are grandfathered with no Receiver Fee for your first receiver (but do not have the grandfathered Welcome Pack price) then dropping the locals reduces the bill by $12, but Dish then tacks on a $9 Receiver Fee for the first receiver. This makes the net savings only $3 per month. As you can see in the fine print below the chart in the above link, subscribers with the grandfathered Welcome Pack price are already saving $4 off the current Welcome Pack price. So, the ability to drop locals is not an option for them, since it would actually raise their bill. If you do not have the grandfathered Welcome Pack price (currently $30.99, going up to $35.99 in January) then you should see the option to drop the locals when you log into your online mydish account. If you are already paying a fee for your first receiver, then dropping the locals may save you the entire $12.

Thanks Crodrules; the link above shows that $5 increase does not affect people with Welcome package prior to Jan. 15. I don’t understand the term ‘grandfathering’ with receivers. Would u be kind enough to elaborate?

 

[pattykay]

Thanks Crodrules; the link above shows that $5 increase does not affect people with Welcome package prior to Jan. 15.

To be clear, the lower Welcome Pack price is for people who signed up for it before Jan. 15, 2019. All Welcome Pack subscribers are affected by this upcoming $5 increase. The previous (current) price for grandfathered Welcome Pack subscribers was $30.99 per month. It is going up to $35.99 per month in January. Subscribers who switched to Welcome Pack after that date in 2019 are currently paying $34.99, which will increase to $39.99 as shown in the chart.

I don’t understand the term ‘grandfathering’ with receivers. Would u be kind enough to elaborate?

For customers who have been with Dish long enough (probably most of us here in this forum) there is no fee on the bill for the first receiver. Customers who signed up for Dish after a certain date (sorry, I don't know that particular date off the top of my head, but it was before the Welcome Pack date listed above) now get charged a fee for the first receiver. My sister only has one Wally on her account, and she currently gets charged that $7 fee. Since the Wally is purchased, her fee should go down to $5 in January. Long-term subscribers with the same equipment would continue to have no fee for the first receiver. (Hopefully. We still need some more clarification from Dish on that point.)

 

[sktrus]

Thank you kindly. U r so dependable.

 

[fmj77]

Dish and DTV are going to keep bleeding customers thanks to the yearly price increases. Many of my neighbors, who don't watch much TV to begin with, will be cancelling and going strictly to OTA next year.

 

[pattykay]

Dish and DTV are going to keep bleeding customers thanks to the yearly price increases. Many of my neighbors, who don't watch much TV to begin with, will be cancelling and going strictly to OTA next year.

They have certainly raised Welcome Pack to the point where it is no longer affordable for someone who wants a bare minimum package. Fortunately, for those of us in areas where we do not have reliable OTA reception, Dish is introducing a new Locals Only option for $15 per month. I am considering switching to that. I also recommended that option to my sister, who has Welcome Pack, but mostly watches the locals on Dish. Unfortunately, she also watches a lot of programs on History Channel. If she had a cheap way to stream that, or a cheap add-on from Dish with History Channel in it, then she would be all set.

 

[jerryez]

I have had the Welcome Pack for several years now and it is 30.99 per month, but I still pay a $12 per month receiver fee for my HWS.

 

[navychop]

Dish and DTV are going to keep bleeding customers thanks to the yearly price increases. Many of my neighbors, who don't watch much TV to begin with, will be cancelling and going strictly to OTA next year.

And in five or so years, they’ll be paying for OTA under some ATSC 3 scheme.

 

[PasTypique]

And in five or so years, they’ll be paying for OTA under some ATSC 3 scheme.

That will be the day that I stop watching OTA. Call me old school but OTA radio and TV have been free for the first 50 years of my life and they better be for the last 50. ;-)

 

[fmj77]

And in five or so years, they’ll be paying for OTA under some ATSC 3 scheme.

Most of my neighbors that have cancelled Dish and gone to OTA are in their 80's. They probably won't be around if or when the ATSC 3 scheme happens.

 

[sktrus]

No way will charging ota viewers take place in the future as long as we are stuck with commercials. Free tv when you are forced to watch one commercial after another. I can't disagree with that. Remember the time when Dish introduced auto hop on Prime Time! Networks hated that.

 

[navychop]

Sounds like when cable TV came out. Free.

How long did that last?

 

[sam_gordon]

No way will charging ota viewers take place in the future as long as we are stuck with commercials. Free tv when you are forced to watch one commercial after another. I can't disagree with that. Remember the time when Dish introduced auto hop on Prime Time! Networks hated that.

While I agree I don't think OTA will have a charge associated with it (more on that in a moment), commercials aren't the reason why. Look at all of the cable companies that have commercials and still charge for their content. Look at the local broadcasters who charge MVPDs for their content and still show commercials.

IMO, even if the ATSC 3.0 format allows for charging, I think free OTA will still be around. I think Congress will make the licensing contingent on providing a free OTA signal. The question is actually what content will be on that signal. Will the "big 4" main channels be moved to a subchannel and become PPV? Then, the current subchannels (MeTV, AntennaTV, Grit, etc) become the "free" signal? I doubt it, but wouldn't bet against it.

Again, just my opinion.

 

[sktrus]

Sounds like when cable TV came out. Free.

How long did that last?

My memory is fuzzy. I thought the promise was no commercials if u pay for cable.

 

[bwexler]

That will be the day that I stop watching OTA. Call me old school but OTA radio and TV have been free for the first 50 years of my life and they better be for the last 50. ;-)

What about the 50 in between?