Cable Card Support

[stanger89]

Originally Posted by mikesm

DirecTV hit their goal of 100+ HD channels last year. Most are HD locals, which Dish doesn't have capacity to carry.

The announcement was 100 HD nationals by end of 2007. The biggest reason I wonder if it's "all talk" is there aren't anywhere close to 100 nationals in existance. Regardless of if D* have capacity to carry them, they must exist first, and I'm skeptical there will be ~90 new national HD networks by years end.

DirecTV is likely to be the long term survivor in the DBS industry. They have spent 3+ BILLION on new Ka band spacecraft that can support tons of HD programming, along with HD locals. Two of these have yet to be launched, and one has is all MPEG-4.

They are pressing this advantage and inking deals with national programmers to get more national HD content, because they believe they will trash dish and the cable guys with the new bird's capacity.

If true, they will, until switched digital and IPTV take off, both of which for terestrial systems, basically eliminate bandwidth issues.

Charlie (Ergen - CEO of DISHTV) was at CES and made some lame comments about "his subs just wnat simple TV, no nfrills, etc...", basically implying they were cheap and uninterested in HD. Remember he got all that HD capacity by buying the Voom assets and transponders. He aslo was complaining of how the FCC lets everyone else merge b ut not DTV and Echostar. He's in the market to sell, has slots but no $$$ budgeted for new spacecraft, and a deal with AT&T that likely makes them the new owner when they realize how hosed U-verse is.

The R5000 doesn't work on the new DTV box because of how they designed the STB, but we can hope the new PC option will make it unecessary.

Given DTV's history, I fear a PC solution will be as bad, or worse than the CableCard one.

Believe me, I know the management team at DTV, they intend to be the premier video supplier in the US, and have the money and programming connections to make it so. Don't count them out.

Like I said, I'm not counting DTV out, just question where they're going to pull ~90 networks that don't exist from.

Honestly, if they manage the list of 10 new networks they mentioned that would be impressive, and lacking a response from Dish, two of them might be enought for me to switch.

[Kirby]

Originally Posted by mikesm

DirecTV hit their goal of 100+ HD channels last year. Most are HD locals, which Dish doesn't have capacity to carry.

Like Stanger already pointed out, the 100 channels was announced as nationals, not locals. They failed on that promise, that was my point.

DirecTV is likely to be the long term survivor in the DBS industry. They have spent 3+ BILLION on new Ka band spacecraft that can support tons of HD programming, along with HD locals. Two of these have yet to be launched, and one has is all MPEG-4.

You arent referring to the 3 Spaceway birds are you?

They are pressing this advantage and inking deals with national programmers to get more national HD content, because they believe they will trash dish and the cable guys with the new bird's capacity.

The problem I have with the so-called signings, is that some of these channels announces have already said they have no plans on a HD channel. If that has changed, great! But I take any announcement of channels from any provider as just "talk" until I see that channel make a formal announcement that they are going HD, and then I dont count on ever seeing the channel until its available on my receiver.

Believe me, I know the management team at DTV, they intend to be the premier video supplier in the US, and have the money and programming connections to make it so. Don't count them out.

I wont count them out, or Dish, or any of the IPTV providers, or cable providers. Cable could win simply by migrating all channels to digital. My cable company here (Charter) is using 75 frequencies for analog alone. Switch those to QAM256 carriers, and you have 150 HD channels, and 75 SD channels (given that a QAM256 carrier has 39mbit). And thats if they stay just as MPEG-2.

As for D* wanting to rule the world, they didnt accomplish it under Rupert, I have my doubts that they will under Malone.

[stanger89]

Originally Posted by Kirby

Like Stanger already pointed out, the 100 channels was announced as nationals, not locals. They failed on that promise, that was my point.

Well for my part, I'm going off the "new" (to me at least) announcement at CES this past week, that they were going to do it this year (2007).

[Kirby]

Originally Posted by stanger89

Well for my part, I'm going off the "new" (to me at least) announcement at CES this past week, that they were going to do it this year (2007).

Yup, I will give them a pass for last year too, but still find it hard to believe there will even be 100 HD channels this year, unless many are PPV. Hope I am proven wrong!

[phenixdragon]

Originally Posted by Kirby

Yup, I will give them a pass for last year too, but still find it hard to believe there will even be 100 HD channels this year, unless many are PPV. Hope I am proven wrong!

I think everyone is forgetting that DirecTV announced channels that will be HD before even the channels announced it at CES. A lot of channels that aren't HD will be HD by years end. THere isn't a reason why they won't be.

[Kirby]

Originally Posted by phenixdragon

I think everyone is forgetting that DirecTV announced channels that will be HD before even the channels announced it at CES. A lot of channels that aren't HD will be HD by years end. THere isn't a reason why they won't be.

I would say cost is a motivating factor that will keep many non HD channels from changing. As well as lack of a HD library to pull from. Thats 2 huge reasons why many channels wont go HD this year or next year. Keep in mind, just because a programming provider (D* in this case, but it could be anyone) says they are going to carry a channel in HD doesnt mean that channel has any plans of going HD. Its easy to promise channels that dont exist. Costs nothing in contracts or uplink costs, and you get the added PR benefit of saying you will carry the channel.

My guess for 2007: 15-20 new true HD channels (not counting PPV, sports packaging channels, and the like). RSN's channels dont count either, based on their name and blackout rules.