Starz/Encore soon to not be available in the AT250?
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They stopped offering Starz/Encore for free trial to new customers several months back and we've seen them eliminating them from lists so it looks like a contract renewal is coming up. I really hope we don't have any more channel blackouts.
It's getting really hard trying to sell Dish to new customers as it is. We have to tell them that we don't have HBO/MAX, no regional sports channels in our area, no Univision and as of last night our local FOX affiliate is gone.
It's getting really hard trying to sell Dish to new customers as it is. We have to tell them that we don't have HBO/MAX, no regional sports channels in our area, no Univision and as of last night our local FOX affiliate is gone.
Thanks. I hope not starz on demand is great.. Picture quality is so much better than the actual live channel. Dish should start working on quality of the channels with higher bit rates to lure new customers. Now that Directv is going to lose Viacom Dish can market that. Get TV land in HD. Dish already has the best equipment, why not have the best looking channels to go with it. Give the premium channels higher bit rates than the rest. With all the new 4k tv's the poor bit rates really show it's ugly head. I'm sure there will come a day but I bet it won't be anytime soon.
I wonder if this is just another step on the (overdue IMHO) path to smaller channel packages. Seeing what AT&T (and others) is doing with Viacom makes me think the reckoning is forthcoming, and the number of channels might actually start to shrink some.
I think if Dish does not include the Encore channels in AT250, I feel more will migrate from Dish. One reason I keep AT250 is for the Encore channels. Dish does not need any more loss in customers. Except for HBO/Cinemax, Dish still is a better deal that most other providers out there.
Why not just stream Starz (plus Encore) directly through the Starz app for $9/mo? I realize that's not an option for those without home internet service but if you're already watching Starz via Dish's on-demand platform, that's via the internet, isn't it?
Interesting question/point made in post #3 of this page...
Let's ask the full question: with HBO/Cinemax gone and not looking like they're coming back, why doesn't Dish bump-up the bandwidth on the remaining premium channels some? The bandwidth is now available, with 13 channels gone, why not increase Starz/Encore, Showtime, HDNet Movies and Epix bandwidth up so those channels look a lot better (especially the HD versions)? There's some "wealth" to spread around, so-to-speak, now. They should do it and then make it a selling point...
Let's ask the full question: with HBO/Cinemax gone and not looking like they're coming back, why doesn't Dish bump-up the bandwidth on the remaining premium channels some? The bandwidth is now available, with 13 channels gone, why not increase Starz/Encore, Showtime, HDNet Movies and Epix bandwidth up so those channels look a lot better (especially the HD versions)? There's some "wealth" to spread around, so-to-speak, now. They should do it and then make it a selling point...
Or offer more 4K programming. The average customer probably wouldn't notice much difference in upgrading an already-HD picture. They could (and should) upgrade all remaining SD feeds to HD.
Absolutely, there is no excuse for the remaining movie channels not being HD.
It's a viscous circle. With the Viacom take down an DTV, apparently our office is slammed with installs
I agree, get rid of the SD feeds of HD channels...they're a waste of bandwidth and if someone doesn't have an HD TV by now, will they ever? As for 4K, I haven't even gone there yet due to standards issues with HDR, etc. Content is also an issue and as yet, the locals aren't even thinking of going 4K. So, I'd like to see the HBO/Cinemax bandwidth reallocated to the other HD premiums...I'd sure notice the difference, even a 30% increase in bandwidth would be noticeable and appreciated and for cryin' out loud, put up TVLand in HD also...
Myself looking at the Viacom channels and being a boomer, Tvlamd and Comedy Central are the only channels we watch of the line up and we always have other choices. What is AT&T thinking?
You can, but is Dish going to drop our price down $9 a month if they lose Encore/Starz? If we have to stream everything, why even have Dish?
I wonder if we are getting to the point in the future of having to stream everything on our own as there will be so many gaps if you sub to cable or satellite.
if you want certain things it looks like we will have to compliment out service with a streaming service. Prices won't come down, we pay more for less and more for streaming.. so in the end we pay more than before when each provider had all of the services. If you can afford it compliment your provider with a Cband or Ku dish system. Lots of stuff to watch that don't cost a dime.
Yeah, if Dish drops the Encore channels from AT250 but doesn't drop the price, that would obviously not be good . But Starz -- which is the main channel with all the original series and the newer movies -- isn't part of AT250, only the Encore channels are. Encore by itself isn't worth $9, so even if Dish did lower the price after dropping Encore, it wouldn't be by $9.
From the channel bug (StarzEncore), it seems to me that they aren't separate entities anymore...
in 2001, I told my roommate that I could see one day where cable services will become defunct, since we'll probably just download whatever we want to watch. I think was looking for something on On Demand or whatever Adelphia Cable called it at the time. I don't remember if you tube was much of a thing yet but I may have been watching videos by then and tying it all together, but I knew I could look up about anything I wanted on Google, so why not look up anything I wanted to watch, right?
So here we are. At the door step of streaming becoming a more profound part of our entertainment lives. DTV is going to all streaming services, right? Dish is experimenting with streaming their service wirelessly with MVDDS. I think we are just starting to enter an age where we have to look at different options and a new way of watching the things we want to watch and providers, streaming providers are probably 2 steps ahead of that, looking at what and how they deliver that programming.
My concerns are cost to get all the services I want and the viability of streaming in an age where, in my opinion, this country has failed miserably at providing high speed - meaning 50+ MB/s speeds - consistently throughout out the entire populated regions of the US. And that includes small towns in the desert, the deep forests, like Northern Maine, the Great Northwest and the great plains states.
I think one of the main reasons why I will not cut the cord, and do just streaming is the Internet where I live. Reliability with Dish rarely going out vs. my Internet going down, is the main reason why I will stick with Dish. My Internet goes down sometimes 3 to 4 times a day, without any streaming, which can be very frustrating for all involved in our Household. Dish rarely goes out, if it ever does, so I know who I will rely upon for my TV entertainment needs.
