Direct TV/Dish Network

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

OK, here’s the question in short.
Apparently, there is/was a law in place that prevented Direct TV from giving me the major networks if it was determined, according to the charts they have, that I was within the reception area, regardless of if I could actually get the station or not. One of my local stations sent me a waiver that said they knew I couldn’t get their channel, so I sent it to them and after MUCH hassle, they turned it on.

My brother in law works for Dish Network, and he says they passed another law saying that the sattelite companies can now offer me the network channels without the waiver and all that crap. He says it passed on Nov 19, and Dish Network is currently turning the network stations on for people like me.

So, does anyone have any concrete proof either way about this? I called Direct TV and they were totally clueless and still insisted that I have the network waiver.

If anyone know where all this stands, I would appreciate the info. Thanks!
Zette
PS- I’m inclined to think my brother in law is wrong, that’s why I’m asking…

Work a little bit harder on improving your
low self esteem, you stupid freak!
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2

OK. Big-Ass (but important) Disclaimer first.

*I, my employer or my/its affiliates may have had, may have, and/or in the future may establish, add to, reduce or liquidate long or short positions in the securities of Echostar Corporation, the parent of Dish Network.

This posting is for information purposes only and is based on information available to the public from sources believed to be reliable, but no representation is made that it is accurate or complete, and no information herein should be relied upon as such. Opinions and projections found here reflect my opinion as of the posting date and are subject to change without notice. This report is neither intended nor should be considered as an offer to sell, or solicitation or basis for any contract, for the purchase of, any security, loan or other financial product.

I, my employer or other affiliates, from time to time may maintain a long or short position in or purchase or sell a position in, securities, loans or other financial products mentioned herein, or of the entities referred to herein, or related investment securities or products.*

Whew. Your brother-in-law is half-right. The industry term for the bill that passed is “local-to-local”, and Charlie Ergen over at Echostar worked his butt off to make this happen. His press release is [url=http://www.corporate-ir.net/ireye/ir_site.zhtml?ticker=dish&script=410&layout=1&item_id=61992

Here’s the part that sucks. It doesn’t work for you. In order to benefit from local-to-local, you must live in a city for which the satellite company is providing local service. Dish Network’s current cities are Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Miami, Los Angeles, New York, Pittsburgh, Washington, D.C., Denver, Phoenix, Salt Lake City and San Francisco. They’re adding cities as they add satellite capacity, but they are focusing on the top 50 markets.

In other areas, you have to live with the old “distant network signals” rules, which mean that unless you are in the New York ADI (I seem to remember you being further upstate than that), you still need the waiver.

But there’s some hope. Without getting into details that will get anyone in trouble, some companies are a little less, uh, persnickity about what it takes to determine whether you are eligible for distant network signals. (hint: your current provider is persnickity and there exactly one other provider. Capice?)

Livin’ on Tums, Vitamin E and Rogaine

3

The Press Release is here

4

I get what you’re saying, but I’m not looking for LOCAL stations, just a Network Feed of some sort. The network I get now (CBS) is not local- it’s just an East coast and a West coast feed. Does that make any sense?
Thanks!
Zette

Work a little bit harder on improving your
low self esteem, you stupid freak!
Click here for some GOOD news for a change Zettecity

5

I’m sorry- I didn’t mean to be rude! Thank you so much for posting that well thought out answer. I really do appreciate it :slight_smile:
Zette

Work a little bit harder on improving your
low self esteem, you stupid freak!
Click here for some GOOD news for a change Zettecity

6

No apology necessary, Zette. I know how frustrating this can be.

Yep. Your response made perfect sense. You’re getting That’s the “distant network signal” I was talking about. The rules for that have not changed. You won’t be surprised that local broadcasters hate distant network signals, because every time you watch the east coast feed from Boston or NY, you are not watching local advertising. So local broadcasters have a pretty expansive idea about how far their signals go. If you are already getting the distant feeds of all the major networks, then you’re golden. If your provider only gave you the one from the station that gave you the waiver, you may want to shop around for a provider that will consider the admission of one station proof that you can’t get any of them.

Livin’ on Tums, Vitamin E and Rogaine

7

Agreed and understood…However, once you’ve paid for the dish and reciever, mounted the dish and all that crap, it seems like more of a pain to change. I am going to start writing letters to the stations that denied me, however, explaining that I’m not seeing their ads anyway, (as I can’t get thier station) and maybe invite them over for a little Network TV viewing at my place. Thanks for the info!!
Zette

Work a little bit harder on improving your
low self esteem, you stupid freak!
Click here for some GOOD news for a change Zettecity

8

Not a huge disclaimer just a reminder that this comes from personal experiance.

A few years ago my roomate bought a DirectTV system. We couldn’t get the local channels, so we called DirectTV and told them. They said “Are you sure? Scout’s Honor”. We said yes and by the time we hung up we had East and West coast ABC/NBC/CBS, one PBS, and one FOX. It was AWESOME!!! We both worked nights, but because we had west coast stations we could still catch alot of our favorite shows. And I hafta admit, watchin’ LA’s and SF’s 11:00 news was kinda fun. My roomate has since moved out so I don’t know if that’s still the deal, but it was a golden age.

9

When my parents got Primestar the installer pretty much said to tell him they couldn’t get any of the locals. He filled that in on his form and they got whatever they wanted for b-cast TV, they ended up just getting FOX and PBS. They might be cracking down on that type of thing nowadays though, this was 4+ years ago.

10

Thanks for the info, everyone. It appears, according to Direct TV, that they are offering the channels (Not just network, which is what I want) but LOCAL network broadcasting to the major cities in the next few months and have no intention of offering them to me. I don’t live close enough to to a major metropolitain area to qualify.

So the letter writing campaign starts, and I regret ever buying this dish. All I want to do is watch Monday Night Football. Is that to damned much to ask?
Zette

Work a little bit harder on improving your
low self esteem, you stupid freak!
Click here for some GOOD news for a change Zettecity

11

Hmm, how come this is two screen widths wide?
Ack,

12

I’ve had the Dish Network system for almost 3 years and have had the East-West feeds from day one. My local channels suck (and their signal is bad, too :)) I get the networks from New York and Los Angeles. It will probably be a while before my city is added.

I feel that I should be able to get my network feeds from wherever I like. I liken it to being forced to buy a car from a local dealer as opposed to going out of town. Can you imagine how THAT would go over?

The only reason the locals bitch is for commercials (as mentioned above). The only time this actually comes into play is for Nielsen families. I think the future of TV ratings will be some form of system as seen in Max Headroom. Constant ratings by the minute.

BTW, many of the things mentioned in Max Headroom have come true to an extent: network logos pasted in the corner of the screen so that you won’t forget what network or channel you’re watching amongst them.