Special Charlie Chat Tonight

[Stargazer]

If Dish gets the best price then it should reflect in our monthly statements yet it does not. It only reflects in their wallets, not ours. If they raised their price and the competition don't then people will switch or cancel service but the question is if enough will cancel to where the increase in price makes up for what they lose in subscribers plus make up for the additional money that they have to pay.

 

[mike123abc]

What the cable/satellite companies should do is allow you to buy each local individually if they do not want the standard charge. Then we can see how many stations want to be singled out for big $$.

 

[riffjim4069]

What the cable/satellite companies should do is allow you to buy each local individually if they do not want the standard charge. Then we can see how many stations want to be singled out for big $$.

Agreed, but the same thing goes for all the "cable favorite" channels. There are probably a lot of women who would drop kick the ESPN channels to the curb, and save a few $$$ each month in the process. Personally, I would prefer that 100% of my money go toward programming I actually watch...and not one penny towards the other 200+ channels of garbage.

 

[PBX_Guy]

If Dish gets the best price then it should reflect in our monthly statements yet it does not. It only reflects in their wallets, not ours. If they raised their price and the competition don't then people will switch or cancel service but the question is if enough will cancel to where the increase in price makes up for what they lose in subscribers plus make up for the additional money that they have to pay.

Perhaps if you were a shareholder you would feel differently. All the many years I had GM stock I never once complained about the price of a car.

 

[tempVAdish]

This comment is so true. Some of you will recall that Fox placed a portion of the NASCAR broadcast schedule on FX a few years ago. Upon inquiry and complaint, Fox was blunt: we're trying to force carriage of FX. And it worked. Another recent issue was carriage of NFL Network: the network was placed by Dish on a particular tier based on a contract showing exclusivity of broadcast of several NFL games. When NFL Network came under fire for not broadcasting a particular football game last year and caved in to pressure by allowing simulcasting on 2 of the big 4 networks, the exclusivity was breached and Dish responded by placing NFL network on a different tier. So we know pressure works, but only up to a point.

In the case of the local broadcasters, the FCC requirement is for carriage of only the main signal. This is very significant in the digital age since the local broadcasters can easily now carry 3, 4, or 5 signals in their allotted space. Many locals are now carrying one of the big 4, plus CW or MyTv, and a weather channel, and would like to force Dish, DirecTv, and the local cable companies to carry all three, four, or five signals. And each additional carried signal deteriorates the quality of the primary signal.

Regards,
Fitzie

While I remember the "bold" statement & situation, I feel it's a poor analogy for OTA... That was FOX being a-holes to NASCAR fans, I highly doubt you'll ever see FX broadcast OTA as a FOX channel's sub channel...

 

[Jim5506]

The programming providers have their business model set as package deals.

These contracts have already been negotiatied with the distributors.

It would literally take an act of congress to force a change to a-la-carte.

 

[Stargazer]

Perhaps if you were a shareholder you would feel differently. All the many years I had GM stock I never once complained about the price of a car.

My point is, they should not be saying that they are fighting to keep our rates down when it obviously aint. If it was then they would be cheaper than the competition for the same channel offerings.

 

[TheKrell]

My point is, they should not be saying that they are fighting to keep our rates down when it obviously aint.

Well... They said they were fighting, not winning.

 

[Fitzie]

Well... They said they were fighting, not winning.

Spot on.

Fitzie

 

[peaked]

As I recall they did the same thing a few years back when the ABC o&o stations went away for a few days. It's just Charlie beating his chest and saying how unfair Fisher (or whoever) is in their demands, and how he is standing up for YOU the customer. He will also suggest that you can put up an antenna, perhaps offering it for free, and preferably use it with a new model 722 receiver that seamlessly integrates off-air locals with Dish programming.

Can anyone recall the last time that DirecTV shut off any channel due to a contract dispute? In the interest of full disclosure, I am a satisfied Dish customer currently in a new 2-year contract.

Not to upset anyone,but D*TV did drop a local here a few years ago. It was a religious channel from Beattyville KY called WLJC (We Love Jesus Christ). It came with locals from Lexington Kentucky. Many customers switched to Dish as a result. I replaced many myself. Later they picked them back up, but contracts are contracts.

 

[peaked]

The programming providers have their business model set as package deals.

These contracts have already been negotiatied with the distributors.

It would literally take an act of congress to force a change to a-la-carte.

I agree on the Congress thing. Providers don't want to risk guessing which channels will be popular, so they package them in lumps and then stick a price on the group. Maybe if they allowed one of the premium channels a la carte it would sell.