Why are FX and Animal Planet not in Top 120?

[dissident]

Aside from offering ala carte, I'd love it if dish offered a 'science' package. I'd gladly pay $50 per month for a package that includes all the science channels while leaving out the sports channels, for example. As it stands, the American HD (bronze) package has all the science channels that the regular bronze package has and the silver packages only add animal planet and investigation discovery. Going to the full out gold package which is more then double the price of american HD bronze is the only way to get national geographic (both of them) , planet green, etc.

I'll probably downgrade to american HD bronze here with platinum in the next couple days. Great value there I'll miss animal planet, but that's about it really. If they threw in a few more science bones to their middle package like directv does, it might encourage me to stay in it. That... and offering virtually all of the locals in HD instead of 4.

Yup and DIRECTV dropped the claim later since Dish said that their package contained more of the higher rated channels in their base package then DIRECTV does.

Just a dumb pissing contest if you ask me.

yep ... the differences in packages and prices are so small that I'll probably just switch off every 2 years to get the promotional prices. I thought they were more, and indeed they are more for the least expensive package, but not so much because the second year is still $15 off. Plus, when I switched from Turbo HD silver to the top 200 package, dish somehow forgot about my discount I was supposed to get the first year, and has been billing me the standard rate. My relatives had the same problem with directv... they both like to 'forget' about their promotional discounts? I should get that fixed.

 

[Scherrman]

Now that could be interesting. Have packages created based only on interest groups. A science/history/discovery package. A sports package. A Movie Package. A business/news package. Have each package a certain price and customers could mix and match. Commercial programming is similar to this.

 

[dissident]

Now that could be interesting. Have packages created based only on interest groups. A science/history/discovery package. A sports package. A Movie Package. A business/news package. Have each package a certain price and customers could mix and match. Commercial programming is similar to this.

it would probably sacrifice revenue though. It's all about the numbers. Both Dish and direct must have the subscription figures and know how many people subscribe to what packages. If everyone's willing to pay for gold, why would they change?

Either way, there are far worse ways to spend 50 or 60 bucks a month then on HD television, so it's not all bad an entertainment value for the money.

 

[tulsa agent]

if every channel was in the t120 pack, then they would have to call it, well, i guess the t250, huh?

 

[Awohar]

Yep and then they would charge accordingly.

 

[dishcomm]

If they put all the good channels in the lower package then no one would subscribe to the higher end packages.

Bingo!! And that is why people pay seventy to 80 dollars per month for "extended basic service" on cable.

 

[dishcomm]

Get real......

how do you mean?
I find it frustrating how people can be opposed to choice.
Is that you angle?

 

[dishcomm]

Back in the days of C-Band, there were several companies ( Programmers Clearinghouse comes to mind) where customers could pick any service they wished. Each service had a monthly price. Simple.
SInce these days, many of these services have been snapped up by large companies. Those companines have big war chests and DC lobbyists that have successfully entrenched the idea of packaging of channels.
These broadcasters have a vested interest in burying the idea of a la carte in the deepest sub basement of a federal building behind a triple locked door that says "do not open for any reason"..