Why does Dish Charge for locals?

[Yes616]

And in addition to all of this,
if you don't want to subscribe to your locals and just want to get them OTA, you cannot get the programming on your on screen guide.

Is this true?

I know if Dish is having contractual problems with a provider and they yank the signal over it, no programming info is available on your on screen guide.

In any event, Dish thinks they are playing hard ball with the providers but I don't think they see they are also hurting their subscribers at the same time.

 

[dishtechsup]

And in addition to all of this,
if you don't want to subscribe to your locals and just want to get them OTA, you cannot get the programming on your on screen guide.

Is this true?

I know if Dish is having contractual problems with a provider and they yank the signal over it, no programming info is available on your on screen guide.

In any event, Dish thinks they are playing hard ball with the providers but I don't think they see they are also hurting their subscribers at the same time.

To the first part of your post, if you have a HD rec and OTA locals you can connect the coax to the rec and scan them in and they will be on the guide.

To the 2nd part we are aware of the effect pulling chns has, we hear it all day long, they prepare us in the call centers ahead of time. But in the long run Dish is hoping by playing "hard ball" we keep the cost down for you.

 

[Van]

Every provider charges for locals wether its on a satellite dish or a cable line coming down the road. Cable factors in the cost into the total charge and if you want to get an idea as to how much your local cable companies charge just call them up and ask them how much the basic basic package is that just has locals. This charge generaly runs between $10 - $20 depending on the market and the only thing it has over what you get on satellite is that it will include public access stations wich you dont get with an antenna or on satellite.

 

[voyagerbob]

I've always hated that Cable and now Directv force you go purchase your locals by including them in the base price of you package. I've always lived close enough to the towers to get a better picture than either Cable or satellite can provide.

It is all a matter of perspective as others have mentioned.

If you would like to get your locals through cable or satellite, it looks better if it is "labeled" as no extra charge. If you don't want to get them it looks better for the charge to be separate and you see that you are not being charged extra for locals.

I've had a few friends ask why Dish charges for locals and I've had others ask why DirecTV forces you to purchase them. It is that crazy perspective thing.

Voyagerbob

 

[jwfgeol]

To the first part of your post, if you have a HD rec and OTA locals you can connect the coax to the rec and scan them in and they will be on the guide.

AFAIK and unless this has changed, the channels will show up in your guide, but you will not have programming information unless you subscribe to locals.

 

[DishSubLA]

You have to pay the broadcaster.
You have to pay to transport the video to the uplink site.
You have to pay for the compression/multiplexing equipment.
You have to pay for the uplink earthstation.
You have to pay for the satellite capacity.
You have to pay "Joe" in India to take your order.

The D*/E* differance appears to be that D* spreads the cost over all the customers while E* charges the individual subscriber.

Well, actually, the broadcaster, by law, must pay the costs to transport their signal to Dish. This is usually the fiber route the station takes. The locals must also provide/pay for the encoder from their station through the fiber to Dish. This is why some locals don't look too good to begin with because they aren't providing Dish with the best possible PQ. The local broadcaster often resents having to pay for any of the costs and will not buy a good encoder, so they cheapskate it at their own PQ loss. Of course, Dish often further diminishes LIL PQ by its own SD MPEG2 compression.

The only truly substantial cost to Dish for providing locals is the fees demanded by the local stations. All the remaining costs you so very well cited, are chump change to Charlie, and he is quite willing to pay that part of it as it represents a much smaller portion of the total cost.

Stations may elect to be carried claiming Must Carry, meaning they do not charge Dish any fees for retransmission of their signal and Dish must carry that local, or decide to negotiate with Dish on a fee for retransmitting their signal, but risk not being carried. Most small stations gladly take the Must Carry route as it increases their audience numbers while they don't have sufficiently compelling or fresh content that Dish would ever pay for and would, therefore, not be carried.

On the other hand, the big network affiliates and other large locals generally try to squeeze all they can from Dish because they know they have the fresh and compelling content and high ratings because of it. Sometimes locals may demand, what Dish feels, is an outrageous amount, and Dish feels it is way too much money. That is when a dispute occurs and a local may be taken down because the parties have not come to an agreement and it would be illegal for Dish to continue to provide the channel--unless each party agrees to an extension for a limited period until a long-term agreement can be reached.

It is often locals in the smaller markets that Dish feels comfortable dropping, if necessary. However, Dish has had to bite down hard and pay huge fees to the locals in the biggest cities. It is all about how many people live and subscribe to Dish in a given area or huge metropolis.

 

[Wrister17]

To the first part of your post, if you have a HD rec and OTA locals you can connect the coax to the rec and scan them in and they will be on the guide.

To the 2nd part we are aware of the effect pulling chns has, we hear it all day long, they prepare us in the call centers ahead of time. But in the long run Dish is hoping by playing "hard ball" we keep the cost down for you.

I was always under the impression that if you didnt subscribe to the locals, then the programming guide info didnt show up? So what I am reading from you is, that it does, even if you dont have the local package??.....I live about 10miles from all the towers in Columbus...Dish does not have HD locals in my DMA, so I have an indoor HD antenna that i get great signals on all my locals....the only reason i even get the local package is for the guide info.....if i drop my locals thru dish, will i still get guide info??....thats key for my DVR timers....please advise....thanks in advance....

 

[DishSubLA]

I do not think locals are a big profit center for either provider. They probably charge enough to cover costs, as mentioned above there are huge costs that could be avoided if they did not provide locals.

But, the biggest seller of DBS is locals. Both providers know that most customers will not sign up without locals being available. Yes people out in the middle of no where have no choice when DBS is the only choice. But, when they want to compete with cable they have to have locals.

Yes, LIL was the one thing that helped satellite become HUGE. Charlie knew that long before Direct TV. It was by far the number one reason people did not subscribe to satellite. Charlie started the SHIVA. It was later that Direct TV saw the light, and once they got behind SHIVA, congress become much more agreeable. Even Ergan admits that Direct TV's deeper pocket lobbying ran around the mega-powerful NAB and got SHIVA passed.

 

[rsprec1]

It seems that most people pay for locals, but I've had Dish Network for almost three years and I've never paid for locals. I get my service thru AT&T and get Americas Top 250 w/locals included at no cost.

 

[TNGTony]

They used to be bundled in your package, but Dish had a price increase a couple of years back, and in in order to disguise the price increase, they de-bundled the locals.

This is not true Tyralak. Local channels through Dish have "always" been $5. (4.99 a la carte at first, then 5.99 a la carte or $5 with a basic package)

See the History of Dish Network price increases on the EKB for detailed info.

Now there was a time on the lease plan where they FORCED people to subscriber to locals, and there was a time when Dish marketed their packages including the locals, but they have never, not even for a little while, been included. they have always been a separate item.

See ya
Tony

 

[TNGTony]

I was always under the impression that if you didnt subscribe to the locals, then the programming guide info didnt show up? .

You are correct. If you do not have local channels through Dish, you only get "Digital Service" listed on your receiver's OTA section. Program listings are not free to Dish either. It is an insentive for you to subscribe to locals through Dish even if you have an OTA antenna.

Look at it this way: how much is a TV Guide or Newspaper subscription for the TV Week magazine? How much are locals? I bet the $5 a month for locals is cheaper. Not to mention the convenience factor.

See ya
Tony

 

[Tyralak]

Now there was a time on the lease plan where they FORCED people to subscriber to locals, and there was a time when Dish marketed their packages including the locals, but they have never, not even for a little while, been included. they have always been a separate item.

See ya
Tony

That's exactly what I was talking about. They discontinued that at the same time there was a price increase. We had a meeting about it, and for at least 2 months we had to fix work orders, especially from sales partners who were quoting customer's the old price (Which was conveniently the price without the locals.) and we had to call in and add the locals that the customer was told they would already be getting, and listen to them argue with the CSR about the extra cost. I remember that unpleasant time all too well. I wasn't saying the locals were not charged for, I was saying the packages were priced with locals, and in fact, marketed as "Locals at no additional charge" When they upped the price, they stopped advertising locals as part of the package so it would appear that there had been no price increase. This is what led to all the f&$^#$ed up work orders.

 

[mike123abc]

Well, actually, the broadcaster, by law, must pay the costs to transport their signal to Dish. This is usually the fiber route the station takes. The locals must also provide/pay for the encoder from their station through the fiber to Dish. This is why some locals don't look too good to begin with because they aren't providing Dish with the best possible PQ. The local broadcaster often resents having to pay for any of the costs and will not buy a good encoder, so they cheapskate it at their own PQ loss. Of course, Dish often further diminishes LIL PQ by its own SD MPEG2 compression.

This is only true if they elect must carry and the OTA signal cannot be picked up at the point of presence in the DMA. The big 4 do not elect must carry. They know that DBS/Cable will have to pay for them. They make DBS come get the signal and pay for it...

 

[TNGTony]

The rules for must carry and a brief synopsis are available on the EKB
EKB: What does "Must Carry" mean?

 

[Claude Greiner]

Locals have been included in packages off and on for the past several years!

A typical call I get from a customer asking about locals goes a bit like this...

Customer: Do you got to pay for your local channels. Why should I pay for something I get for Free?

Me: Sir, Your local channels are "Included" as part of the package price I just quoted you a few moments ago.

Customer: Oh, Ok!

I always quote the price with local channels, when the customer asks if they have to pay for locals I say its included in the price I quoted them and they stop complaining because they think they are Free.

I did not mis-quote the customer at all, the price I quoted included the $5 charge for the local channels!

Let me add another $14.99 and HBO can be included also as part of your package

The word "Included" is such a great word for us sales people!

I try to be honest with everyone, but from a sales point its easier to give a price with what the customer wants, then start at $32.99 for Top 100 and then have to add $5 for locals, and add $5.99 for DVR Etc. Quote $39.99 makes it alot easier!

 

[Tyralak]

Locals have been included in packages off and on for the past several years!

A typical call I get from a customer asking about locals goes a bit like this...

Customer: Do you got to pay for your local channels. Why should I pay for something I get for Free?

Me: Sir, Your local channels are "Included" as part of the package price I just quoted you a few moments ago.

Customer: Oh, Ok!

I always quote the price with local channels, when the customer asks if they have to pay for locals I say its included in the price I quoted them and they stop complaining because they think they are Free.

I did not mis-quote the customer at all, the price I quoted included the $5 charge for the local channels!

Let me add another $14.99 and HBO can be included also as part of your package

The word "Included" is such a great word for us sales people!

Absolutely correct! :up

 

[TNGTony]

Okay, I understand what you are all saying. You can word things however you want. But when it comes down to it, ON THE BILL THE CUSTOMER RECEIVES, locals have ALWAYS been a separate line item and NEVER included in the basic package?

Fair enough?

See ya
Tony

 

[kb7oeb]

Directv and Dish pick up most stations OTA. Dish and DirecTV have started converting their POPs to receive the stations digital signal and that is why all the networks moved their logos over to be in the 4:3 area and removed "HD" from the logo.

There was a lot of talk about it a few months ago and even a conversion schedule.

 

[CharlesO]

Okay, I understand what you are all saying. You can word things however you want. But when it comes down to it, ON THE BILL THE CUSTOMER RECEIVES, locals have ALWAYS been a separate line item and NEVER included in the basic package?

Fair enough?

See ya
Tony

I have the AT100 plus package which includes locals and that's how it's listed on my bill.

AT100Plus with Locals $42.99


No separate line the local stations.

 

[TNGTony]

Okay then... You're the one. 11 years with Dish and different packages and it has always been a separate line item for me. I stand corrected.

See ya
Tony