DISH discontinuing 921?

[Scott Greczkowski]

I called and called and callled, and I actually got through. They asked me if I had a question for the show, I rattled off the NBR and EPG questions, and all of the sudden I got transferred somewhere else. I am guessing they screen what questions they want to answer.

Didn't get to see the tech chat though....

Did anyone get to ask the question on the air?

Nope with the threat of SatelliteGuys members flooding their phone lines their phones magically were not working. (I guess they are affraid of SatelliteGuys members)

No mention whatsoever of Name based recording tonight.

 

[SimpleSimon]

Scott - let's see how long they can keep their phones broken.

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

now that we know that the 921 will be discutinuing soon i have some questions regarding Puerto Rico:
1. If we arent able to buy the 522 because PR dont work the Digital Home Plan, will we be able to buy the 942?
2. how soon will the 921 will be disc?
3. will the 942 will use the firewire?
4. when dish will change the hdcbs channel to the 110 sat?
5. how much channels can we expect in hd and how soon?

1. From what we are hearing the 942 will not be for sale, it will be lease only. From what I also understand is the 921 will not work in PR because it does not have software to support the PR solution.

2. From what I know they are already been discontinued, the email I have says "When they are gone they are gone."

3. No

4. They have no plans to do so

5. Dish has no plans that I know of to add new HD content in the near future. But they could always surprise us.

 

[mkerdman]

Does Dish "lease" 522's to people who otherwise own all their other recievers and are not on any lease plan?

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

Not yet on the 522's they are supposed to lease 522's to all who want them in January.

 

[Stargazer]

Not to those that are already under a promotion (such as those that already got a promotion in their first year contract) from what I was told today. If I was told wrong then correct me on this because I know someone that just signed up on RETFFA2 that would be interested in the Dish'n It Up Promotion. I had a customer that was offered this after getting this but was told yesterday that they couldnt do it until they kept it for a year since they already got their promotion for the year.

 

[mkerdman]

Not yet on the 522's they are supposed to lease 522's to all who want them in January.

So, it may follow that they will also lease the 942 to all who want them if they can become a reliable volume producer.

I'll wager the total universe of 921's at their end-of-life will be shockingly small.

Dish's business model will by necessity change to be more like cable with "leased" and month-to-month equipment "rentals" as the obsolescence curve, especially in HDTV, will keep customers from "investing" in Dish hardware.

 

[Stargazer]

This will also keep Dish Network from 'investing' in Dish hardware since they will receive it back everytime which is important for reducing their costs with the more expensive hardware. If the customer keeps it then they will get a nice return on their investment if kept long enough. If not kept long enough they could sell it as a refurb (like new) but would have to offer the customer the latest and greatest that is currently available or offer them to customers that are less qualified for the newer hardware.

 

[mkerdman]

This will also keep Dish Network from 'investing' in Dish hardware since they will receive it back everytime which is important for reducing their costs with the more expensive hardware. If the customer keeps it then they will get a nice return on their investment if kept long enough. If not kept long enough they could sell it as a refurb (like new) but would have to offer the customer the latest and greatest that is currently available or offer them to customers that are less qualified for the newer hardware.

In the cable business model your cable co. often does not buy/own the hardware.

They lease it from S/A and Motorola who themselves often do a sale/leaseback deals with let's say GE Capital and the numbers grind on.

In cable, the STB's usually can have another life in secondary U.S. and foreign markets.

It's all about Net Present Value, Depreciation and Residual Values- not equipment.

In the case of special purpose Satellite STB's, there may not be a secondary life at all.

Still, I read that the newer Satellite STB hardware designs, such as the Voom boxes by Motorola, can be upgraded by download to new decoding schemes possibly including MPEG4.