OLN Dropped by Dish over Programming Disputes

[Chris Walker]

I'm with you, I am so glad I have DirecTV. I get tired of these catfights that Dish Network has. I dropped them a few years back and haven't looked back since.

Once again, how is this Dish's fault? And also, how is Trio and All News Channel looking on Directv? And did we forget when Directv was going to drop ABC Family? Short term memory some people have

 

[Minsk1]

"Fortunately, those customers do have the ability to explore other cable and satellite options that carry OLN."

Ha-Ha-Ha

 

[pjm8047]

"The Men's Channel" is a replacement? :haha :haha I've had the "Men's Channel" blocked since the first time it showed up in my guide. What a joke

WHY BLOCKED? Great hunting

 

[ITK]

OLN...the bullriding 24/7 ch. do they ever sow anything besides rodeo?
As long as ive still got the outdoor ch I wont miss OLN.

 

[dishrich]

Uh, WHY is Tony's post being posted under MY name??? What happened to MY posting???

What IS going on here - is this place turning into the TALK board now...

Guess the "forums" is the only place now one can speak their mind.

 

[jeffwtux]

Here's the bottom line, Comcast will spend $65 million for the NHL rights for OLN and as a result now FEWER people will be paying for OLN. That doesn't exactly sound like a very good business move. Only the 2 million DISH subscribers could be possilbe Comcast converts which was surely their real motive for buying the NHL rights. Unfortunately, most of the Dish's AT180 subscribers who DO jump ship will probably do so for DirecTV not Comcast. I truly sense this is the first battle that Charlie will win convincingly.

 

[SummitAdvantageRetailer]

I'm with you, I am so glad I have DirecTV. I get tired of these catfights that Dish Network has. I dropped them a few years back and haven't looked back since.

You obviously looked back to post this response.

Anyway, anyone remember the Golf Channel being provided a-la-carte on E* a few years back? It came off a-la-carte and onto AT180 and I can see why: Comcast wanted more subs to have it (more subs on AT 180 than subs with a-la-carte Golf channel) to earn more money, obviously.

This really needs to be escalated to the Congress so that these monopolies don't stifle competition. This example might be a bit of a stretch, can't you see a resemblance of Comcast with Microsoft? Where Microsoft bundled IE with every Windows just like Comcast having exclusive channels available ONLY to their subs: i.e. Comcast SportsNet Philly, InHD1, and InHD2. They're using both their transmission and programming powers to lure subs away. Of course, same can be said about News Corp. but for the sake of argument, I hope that programming and transmission properties don't combine to create unfair advantages for the company and disadvantages for the market competition.

 

[jeffwtux]

You obviously looked back to post this response.

Anyway, anyone remember the Golf Channel being provided a-la-carte on E* a few years back? It came off a-la-carte and onto AT180 and I can see why: Comcast wanted more subs to have it (more subs on AT 180 than subs with a-la-carte Golf channel) to earn more money, obviously.

This really needs to be escalated to the Congress so that these monopolies don't stifle competition. This example might be a bit of a stretch, can't you see a resemblance of Comcast with Microsoft? Where Microsoft bundled IE with every Windows just like Comcast having exclusive channels available ONLY to their subs: i.e. Comcast SportsNet Philly, InHD1, and InHD2. They're using both their transmission and programming powers to lure subs away. Of course, same can be said about News Corp. but for the sake of argument, I hope that programming and transmission properties don't combine to create unfair advantages for the company and disadvantages for the market competition.

I hate to be partisan, but there is no way that this will happen with the GOPs in charge of Washington. GOPs will always defend the monopoly over the little guy. The thought of recieving campaign money from a unstoppable monopoly is what GOPs live for. They will take Comcast's side on this in the name of "small government". If you are a GOP and are offended by this, sorry, it's a fact.

 

[GaryPen]

The biggest way that a network like OLN will earn more money by being added to AT120 is through increased advertising revenue, NOT through per-subscriber fees. They can charge more for ad time, with more subscribers.

I doubt very much that they are asking for substantially more money from Dish. But, the idea of a programming provider calling the shots is anathema to Charlie. He wants to keep OLN, and their NHL games as a carrot for subs to upgrade to AT180.

Also, I'm sure he is thinking that dropping OLN won't hurt, as more people might pick up Center Ice.

To those that refuse to accept the above as a very real possibility, and only assume that the evil cable-owned channel is at fault against such a wonderful human being like Charlie, who only has his customers best interests in mind, needs to put down that big f-ing glass of Dish Kool-Aid you're drinking, and start looking at things a little more objectively.

 

[dishrich]

Also, I'm sure he is thinking that dropping OLN won't hurt, as more people might pick up Center Ice.

The games on OLN would not be on CI anyway, so what would be the point there?

 

[mattb]

I dont see where Charlie is the bad guy at all here. E* had the channel in AT180 for ages, OLN is just being a jerk and trying to get E* to move it to a lower tier... I dont think E* should have to do that.

OLN is pulling the same thing with cable companies that have OLN in a sports tier instead of "basic" ... This is all on Comcast not E*, for once Charlie is doing something right!

 

[GaryPen]

The point is that a fan of any particular sport wants to see as much of that sport as possible, regardless of team. If he/she can do that for free, they will. If it isn't available that way, then they will consider paying.

However, I didn't say that was his major reason. Just one thing that might have made Charlie's decision to drop OLN seem easier to him.

Oh, and one more thing...

My prediction is that OLN will end up on AT120, with the NHL games intact.

And yet another thing...

Wasn't the title of this thread "OLN dropped by dishnetwork???". What happened to that?

 

[wicked]

Wasn't the title of this thread "OLN dropped by dishnetwork???". What happened to that?

lol it converted in a blame war lol but what i think is that NHL WONT do NUTHING about it but maybe they will thinkin about what they just went through with fans from the cause of the lockout i dont know i dont care all i care is that Sharks Games are on FSN untill the las regular season game wich will be on OLN but hopefully the sharks have their playoff ticket on their hand!!!!! its confusing but i think it will comeback to dish as viacom did!!!

 

[rad]

I won't miss OLN one bit. I'm glad that Dish fights these battles.

Until it's a channel you DO want to watch, then lets see if you have this same response.

 

[jeffwtux]

The biggest way that a network like OLN will earn more money by being added to AT120 is through increased advertising revenue, NOT through per-subscriber fees. They can charge more for ad time, with more subscribers.

I doubt very much that they are asking for substantially more money from Dish. But, the idea of a programming provider calling the shots is anathema to Charlie. He wants to keep OLN, and their NHL games as a carrot for subs to upgrade to AT180.

Also, I'm sure he is thinking that dropping OLN won't hurt, as more people might pick up Center Ice.

To those that refuse to accept the above as a very real possibility, and only assume that the evil cable-owned channel is at fault against such a wonderful human being like Charlie, who only has his customers best interests in mind, needs to put down that big f-ing glass of Dish Kool-Aid you're drinking, and start looking at things a little more objectively.

Sorry Gary, but I just look at the facts. Comcast is a vertical monopoly trying to leverage their cable monopoly's immense profits to be able to bully Dish over this NHL deal. That trumps everything. I don't care whose best interest Charlie has in mind. The bottom line is he isn't being anti-competitive.

 

[riffjim4069]

Just how big of a loss is this for Dish Network subs? Not much if you ask my opinion. I don't watch anything on OLN, and this year I am boycotting the NHL - no big loss over here. Even if I were watching the NHL, I pretty much follow one team (Red Wings) and typically don't care to watch the other teams. I current subscribe to ESPN's GamePlan so I can follow college football. If I were following the Wings this year I would probably subscribe to the NHL Center Ice package.

- OLN is not a major sports network
- NHL market share has dwindled in recent years
- NHL has black eye after last years strike
- Most people follow their local team (more so than football)
- NHL fanatics are likely to subscribe NHL Center Ice

Based on the above, are most Dish Network subs willing to pay extra for this channel? I don't think so. If OLN is going to bring us the NHL, it has better be on their dime. All I can say is OLN better hire more sales people and sell more ad time.

 

[piperut]

My wife and I have had dish network since 2000. We had a BUD before that.

We installed the BUD when we moved into our house in 1986 as the cable company said it would be a couple of years before they wired the subdivision for cable. It was actually five years before they came around knocking on the door saying "We can install cable now."

We installed the BUD to watch hockey. When the small dishes came along, and the BUD was getting old, and too many channels were becoming scrambled we went to Dish Network.

This was all to get hockey games. The other programming is nice, and my wife is now hooked on some channel called Lifetime. Also, some of the Hallmark channel specials are good. However, the main reason for the satellite receivers over the years have been to watch hockey.

When we had the BUD, and none of the cable companies had hockey games (there were a couple of years where ESPN did not have the contract, and the cable company did not carry the channels that had the games) we would have hockey parties at the house to watch hockey. I had 30 people in the house at one time to watch hockey.

So, I am a bit PO'd about this entire thing with Dish Network.

It is now time to just get rid of Dish Network and go to Direct TV. The cable company is really out of the question. They wouldn't provide service when I moved into my house, so I really don't want to deal with them.

roland

 

[bgilga]

Dish does not seem to have any leverage with Communistcast. If C* tries to pull this with Directv, they run the risk of having the Fox channels pulled or the price on them increased. I thought I read somewhere that Dish was going to buy Viacom or vice versa. That would give Charlie a ton of leverage. That might be the way to go. I hate the cable companies and Comcast is the worst. I love the fact that they have competition and they can't stand it. I pray every night that all houses in the U.S. will have a dish and the cable companies will be gone , just like the outhouse.

 

[Purogamer]

OLN is an up and coming sports network. They rode the success of their Tour De France coverage for years and used that to expand and explore other "non-mainstream" sports, such as extreme skiing, rodeo, NHL, Survivor-reruns, etc...

I don't expect this to last long, and I only watch OLN in july for the tour, but if they don't have OLN next july i'm gone. It's that important. This isn't about whether you watch OLN 24/7, this is about being deprived of an opportunity to explore more sports. There's other crap they could get rid of instead. If they can figure out a way to charge more to those who want it, hey, go for it. I'll pay more for OLN when I want the channel. Some people never want to pay more for more product. At some point your wallet needs to open. Another dollar a month won't kill you, especially with most of us going all gaga over NFL, CSTV and ESPNU being added without a bill increase.

I think the thing DISH is most guilty of here is not masking some of these charges. Pay OLN the extra money while adding those other 3 channels, and then take the price up a buck and spread the blame to all 4. Minimal complaining would be the result...

This is why providers shouldn't own channels, especially comcast. They don't know what the hell they're doing but every provider should have equal footing. If E* has to pay more for OLN, everyone should get squeezed. If E* has to make OLN a more "average package" channel, so should comcast and adelphia and d*, etc...

Can we put aside the mighty dollar for half a second to do something right for a change, that will actually make more money in the long run?

 

[Juan]

It's the principle of the thing. Remember right around that time DISH hiked their prices too.

dude its a comcast thing !! a lot of other cabel providore (think cablevision) are included now