Ok, I didn't know anyone wanted the long version. I'm not pissed, I am dissappointed. I have enjoyed being a Dish subscriber and I can't really say anything bad about them other than they are just not competitive unless you want just some basic service. Chalk me up as another person that is bothered by the idea that Dish and Cable companies are far more interested in landing new customers than retaining current ones. Until lately, though, Dish always seemed to land on their feet and their customer service was second to none. Here's the story.
I recently went from a two tv to four tv household, 2 HD and 2 SD. The first four years with Dish were great, the last two were just barely good. It just seems like they've been sliding with all the carriage disputes, inferior PQ to D*, dealing with technical issues, phone calls from auditors, etc.
I've had my 722 hooked up to my OTA antenna for about a year and last fall, for some reason, the DVR would not record the OTA ABC affiliate. Long story short, the 722 needed to be replaced but it took three chat sessions and two phone calls over the course of several weeks before Dish would believe it, including comments by Dish employees that said "your service problem has been noted and sent to tech support. Issues are ranked by priority and your problem will be addressed in a similar fashion." I asked when I would expect a call and they told me to just give it a try again in a couple of weeks, either it will have been fixed or it won't. No one will call you. After getting clarification about that statement (which is exactly what it says), I waited three weeks with no resolution and finally had to call and demand a new 722. It shouldn't have been that difficult and it never has been in the past.
Since then I have been keeping my eyes open for a "better" service. When it came time to add another HD and SD tv I called Dish for a second 722 and they wanted $100 up front, an additional $17/month, a visit from a tech and renew the contract at $82/month. I just figured that if tech and customer service had really gone downhill that much and I was gonna have to pay up front for equipment anyway and restart the contract clock, then it might not be a bad idea to explore other options.
In the end, there was no reason, other than sentiment, not to switch. I get a better programming package, with Whole Home DVR (2 DVRs) and a lower monthly payment with D*. At any point, had a Dish employee waived the $100 equipment fee and offered a competitive monthly rate (not necessarily better, just competitive) I would have gladly stuck around, even with the inferior programming and equipment. I chatted with Dish reps three times before signing with D* and explained the situation to the rep, wanting a reason not to go with D*. They wouldn't even move me up to customer retention until I told them that I wanted to schedule a cancellation of service. To this moment, if Dish could offer me something competitive, I would cancel the install and stick around.
Anyway, that's my reasoning. I just keep seeing Dish slide with customer service. When you call them, the only answer seems to be offering Starz or some other premium channel that I don't want. With the new rate hike, I would have expected to see Disney/ESPN restored to its former HD glory. After all, isn't the whole reasoning behind these carriage disputes based on the premise that Dish is refusing to pay the providers in order to keep rates low for the customers? Well, they raised em anyway, right past D* who doesn't seem to suffer from these kinds of things as much.
Like I said, Dish used to be great, but it looks like they are going the way of everyone else where it's more important to lure potential new customers than to retain the ones you already have.
