I emailed ceo@echostar.com on this issue and 2 other issues recently. I have not received a response. Usually, they respond on a timely basis. Has anyone else had a similar experience recently? Are they being inundated with emails and can't respond fast enough? Are they just ignoring us/me? Have they run out of canned responses?
dish networks bill increases?
- Thread starter chefwan
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What exactly are you expecting? A drop in rates? Things cost more. Insurance for employees. Costs of the buildings. Wages of the 22,000 employees. Costs of the satellites. Cost of running the business. Costs of programming. If you want your programming to be free, then go OTA.
Hell, yes. A drop in rates would be a refeshing change. Where does it all end, for Christ's sake? $800 a month for TELEVISION eventually?
Greed drives prices up higher and higher...as well as people like you, who are so addicted to television that they mindlessly and happily fork over more and more each year.
I haven't made the move to OTA yet, but I trimmed the bill a helluva lot a few weeks back, by dumping DirecTV and going with Dish's $29.95 a month package...once that spirals out of control, as it no doubt will sometime in the distant future, then I WILL dump this nonsense once and for all. You're more than welcome to wallow in it until the end of time if you see fit.
Who's wallowing (besides you I guess). My rate went up less ($3)than the friend of mine who has Comcast ($6) and my friend who has Direct ($4), and if you count my dropping the movies channels three months ago (I wasn't watching them) then my bill went down about $25. I for one am not under the delusion that if I want a plethora of channels that I am going to have to pay for them. I also understand that if I am going to go with a company then that company is going to have overheard (see my previous post) and that isn't free. Apparently someone hasn't seen the cost of health care, salaries, new product, advertising, building upkeep, etc, etc.
Don't forget about managements big bonuses and there farewell packages they get in the millions.
Show me where Dish does that? All bonuses are given in stock not in cash and I can't name one person from Dish's upper management who has left that was given any big packages.
Now unless you can show proof of the statement...
The price increases are caused by forced bundeling that all channels do. You want ABC ? Then you have to take Disney and ESPN and all the sub channels with ESPN . Also there is no Ala carte allowed as a model in satellite or cable like in Canada. Add that together and you have no way to make a channel stand by itself . IF people could actually say I want no sports channels , they could save about 5-10.00 off of their bill a month. Every year these and other companies DEMAND more money per sub which causes our bills to go up yearly. We have had now 6 or 7 price increases with Dish since 2000. I went from 97 - 2000 with no price increases with Dish.
The only way to put a cap on this is for the law to change and ala carte be not only allowed but mandated by the FCC and congress. Yes we will lose a lot of special interest channels and yes the sports channels will have no forced extorted money to pay their high priced jocks on the football , basketball , baseball leagues, but guess what? Your bill will go down and a lot of fluff that nobody watches anyway will go out.
The only way to put a cap on this is for the law to change and ala carte be not only allowed but mandated by the FCC and congress. Yes we will lose a lot of special interest channels and yes the sports channels will have no forced extorted money to pay their high priced jocks on the football , basketball , baseball leagues, but guess what? Your bill will go down and a lot of fluff that nobody watches anyway will go out.
Well I Don't Ever Come Into Here. Just Recently Started. Sorry I Missed The Announments.
Who's wallowing (besides you I guess). My rate went up less ($3)than the friend of mine who has Comcast ($6) and my friend who has Direct ($4), and if you count my dropping the movies channels three months ago (I wasn't watching them) then my bill went down about $25. I for one am not under the delusion that if I want a plethora of channels that I am going to have to pay for them. I also understand that if I am going to go with a company then that company is going to have overheard (see my previous post) and that isn't free. Apparently someone hasn't seen the cost of health care, salaries, new product, advertising, building upkeep, etc, etc.
Okay, what say we call it a truce? I was in a lousy mood last night when leaving that post anyway. These days, it seems as if everyone wants a piece of my wallet more and more...it gets a bit frustrating at times, which is why I finally cut ties with DirecTV and went with Dish's $29.99 package a few weeks back...it's one of the few areas where I could comfortably trim things a bit.
As if the annual rate increase (which seemed to start when Rupert Murdoch took over) wasn't enough, our state decided to tax DBS services effective January of this year. So, when DirecTV announced another rate increase effective March 1st, it was a bit like getting hit with two rate increases within a couple of months of each other.
If we had to pay $2-3 more each year four our satellite tv service then it would end up being $10 more by 2010-2012. That seems a bit steep. By 2015 it would be $15 more. Thats $50 for the basic package with locals. OUCH! By then DBS might not be around (or like we see it today) anyways. Hopefully by that time it will be internet based and that most can get high speed internet even in the country and that it will drive the prices down.
AEP started in 2001 at 69.99 and now in 2007 it is 89.99 before locals are added. So a $20.00 increase in 6 years. At this rate by 2013 we will be paying 109.99 for AEP before locals are added. There has to be an end to this price inflation somewhere. The worst thing is not only does the price go up yearly with Dish , they also will hit you with all kinds of extra fees if you don't go with AEP. Like Dvr fees PER RECEIVER, Hd enabeling fees PER RECEIVER , Phone line connection fee of 5.00 PER DUAL TUNER RECEIVER, etc. I hate paying extra fees, and would rather have the extra programming than the fees, but come on, the price went up 10.00 this year just for AEP + hd pack before locals are added.
As far as hd is concerned, they can not keep jacking the price of hd pack when they add hd channels. IT started at $9.99 then it was $14.99 and now $20.00. IF you pay for the sd channels ,you should get the hd versions for free, other wise you are paying TWICE for the same channels. I have read here that Dish will follow Directv in the future, by adding a tech fee and if you have the sd channels the hd are free. My guess is that AEP will soon include the hd channels with no sd equivalent like Hdnet, Universal ,VOOM etc. Which will make AEP go up again by , want to guess? $10.00 or more.
The law needs to be changed and Ala carte should be allowed . But with providers like Dish, hitting you with every made up fee they can to push you to the higher programming packs , it won't make much difference.
As far as hd is concerned, they can not keep jacking the price of hd pack when they add hd channels. IT started at $9.99 then it was $14.99 and now $20.00. IF you pay for the sd channels ,you should get the hd versions for free, other wise you are paying TWICE for the same channels. I have read here that Dish will follow Directv in the future, by adding a tech fee and if you have the sd channels the hd are free. My guess is that AEP will soon include the hd channels with no sd equivalent like Hdnet, Universal ,VOOM etc. Which will make AEP go up again by , want to guess? $10.00 or more.
The law needs to be changed and Ala carte should be allowed . But with providers like Dish, hitting you with every made up fee they can to push you to the higher programming packs , it won't make much difference.
You make it sound like Dish is the first and only pay-tv company to ever raise their rates and charge fees for using equipment and service!?!
When I first heard about the next round or price increases, I dropped my 180 down to 60. Then signed up for netflix the same day, and can now actually choose the movies I want to see, instead of seeing the same 4 that encore and the movie channel played everyday
I dropped the movies channels about three months ago. Out of everything the pay-tv companies offer (any of them). the movies channels are the biggest waste of peoples cash nowadays!
I for one consider DishNetwork a bargain for what I am getting. America's Everything, locals and HD - 2 622s and 1 211 feeding 3 HDTVs - $120.99 a month going up to $130.99. $5 of the increase is the ending of the "platinum" discount AEP was getting on HD. I love the choices and find new things to watch all the time. Access to 4 recorders makes it easy to view anything when we want to. Local Cable can't begin to compete nor can DirectTV.
I also believe that government mandated ala carte would destroy a very good business model that is providing extraordinary choice at a reasonable cost. What ala carte proponents want is to cherry pick the current business model by not paying their share. If everyone just selected ala carte and paid only for what they used, most choices would go away and the average cost to the consumer would go up to meet the costs of the business infrastructure plus profit. We would all be paying what we are now paying, but for less product. There is already substantial competition in the TV business now. it's hard to imagine that overall costs would go down.
The one thing that isn't considered in these discussions is the cost of consumer hardware. All of the "free" or dicounted dvrs are being paid for in the monthly cost of service instead of up front. That is a choice made by providers as a better way to attract customers.
Pat
And don't get me started about the $5 discount Dish gives for an additional tuner if you'll just hook up a phone line.
I also believe that government mandated ala carte would destroy a very good business model that is providing extraordinary choice at a reasonable cost. What ala carte proponents want is to cherry pick the current business model by not paying their share. If everyone just selected ala carte and paid only for what they used, most choices would go away and the average cost to the consumer would go up to meet the costs of the business infrastructure plus profit. We would all be paying what we are now paying, but for less product. There is already substantial competition in the TV business now. it's hard to imagine that overall costs would go down.
The one thing that isn't considered in these discussions is the cost of consumer hardware. All of the "free" or dicounted dvrs are being paid for in the monthly cost of service instead of up front. That is a choice made by providers as a better way to attract customers.
Pat
And don't get me started about the $5 discount Dish gives for an additional tuner if you'll just hook up a phone line.
Ya no kidding, even when they did the free previews of the other channels. Most of the time it was the same movies that I got on Encore. Or some movie from 1982, that nobody watched back then.
I got so tired of paying the extra $20 a month for that, and the last price increase was the final straw for me.
"...government mandated ala carte would destroy a very good business model that is providing extraordinary choice at a reasonable cost. What ala carte proponents want is to cherry pick the current business model by not paying their share. If everyone just selected ala carte and paid only for what they used, most choices would go away and the average cost to the consumer would go up to meet the costs of the business infrastructure plus profit. We would all be paying what we are now paying, but for less product...."
Absolutely. Folks that think they'd pay one tenth as much for one tenth the number of channels should look at their water bill. Usually, most of the bill is fixed for infrastructure costs. Then you start paying for water.
Emotionally declaring you want it otherwise won't get the "something for nothing" crowd anything. But politicians are nuts, they'd vote for anything no matter how stupid and counterproductive, if it gets them re-elected. Don't believe me? Look at the laws suppressing medical marijuana, or how some states such as NC won't allow hemp to be grown for fabric, even though their farmers need new crops (tobacco going bye bye), and even though the hemp plant for fabric DOES NOT get you high.
Inflation is a fact of life. Why should we expect Dish to constantly provide more when a bill goes up? Their costs go up, our bill goes up. They're still competitive, often even the price leader. If you don't think so, go elsewhere or start up your own company. But give up on how "evil" Dish is for raising prices.
Absolutely. Folks that think they'd pay one tenth as much for one tenth the number of channels should look at their water bill. Usually, most of the bill is fixed for infrastructure costs. Then you start paying for water.
Emotionally declaring you want it otherwise won't get the "something for nothing" crowd anything. But politicians are nuts, they'd vote for anything no matter how stupid and counterproductive, if it gets them re-elected. Don't believe me? Look at the laws suppressing medical marijuana, or how some states such as NC won't allow hemp to be grown for fabric, even though their farmers need new crops (tobacco going bye bye), and even though the hemp plant for fabric DOES NOT get you high.
Inflation is a fact of life. Why should we expect Dish to constantly provide more when a bill goes up? Their costs go up, our bill goes up. They're still competitive, often even the price leader. If you don't think so, go elsewhere or start up your own company. But give up on how "evil" Dish is for raising prices.
