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July 2010
DirecTV doles out “save” promos for existing Sunday Ticket subs
While DirecTV is offering a discount to returning subscribers, effectively making the $300 NFL Sunday Ticket package $180, it is applying the savings to the main DirecTV monthly subscription price, which serves to keep the Sunday Ticket revenue whole. The company always faces a balancing act each year prior to the football season — making sure legacy subscribers aren’t alienated if new DirecTV subscribers get a great deal on Sunday Ticket along with their basic subscription.
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June 2010
Dish, DirecTV offer up free HD
Both DBS companies have newly deployed satellites that will cause a ratcheting up of the HD channel arms race, both for national and local channels. Dish is seeking to keep its subscriber growth momentum alive with its new campaign, which is largely directed at DirecTV. Lost in the June 3 “Free HD” hoopla: Dish raised programming rates on two packages, and raised rates on a number of a la carte and international channels.
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May 2010
Dish beats DirecTV in subscriber additions, again
Both DBS companies are paying more for each new subscriber, as SAC is rising. Churn, however, is rising at DirecTV and falling at Dish. Although both companies are adding new HD channels, Dish will likely keep the pressure on in the marketplace, perhaps sensing an opportunity with the new Michael White regime to take back even more share.
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April 2010
New DirecTV HD channels move into sight
Cable operators should be prepared for a new onslaught of HD channel launches from DirecTV in late April and early May. The launches will be a mix of linear channels and more channels devoted to PPV/VOD, both of which will put greater pressure on cable’s HD competitive offering.
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March 2010
DirecTV tunes in multiroom DVR
DirecTV’s moves will put greater pressure on cable operators to move quickly with their own MR DVR offerings. DirecTV’s pricing may scare some consumers away, but the new technology will likely strike a chord with upper-end subscribers who have been waiting years to share and send recordings throughout the home.
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February 2010
DirecTV subscriber additions continue to slow
DirecTV appears to be increasingly focused on the high-end subscriber market, with new credit standards for new customers, removal of the low-end family package and goals to add MR DVR and 3D to its lineup. New CEO Michael White, while intent on raising customer service scores, appears to be sketching out a strategy to gain and retain the high-end customers, abdicating other lower-end consumer groups to competitors.
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January 2010
DirecTV launches multiroom DVR application
DirecTV is raising the competitive ante with this new multiroom DVR application. The final go-to-market version, however, will carry a monthly fee (rumored to be $3.99), and that could serve to alienate some customers.
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December 2009
Dish Network tunraround continues with new subscriber milestone
Dish is back. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing for cable, because it seems that Dish’s subscriber momentum is coming as much from the DirecTV universe, where subscriber additions have fallen over the past two quarters, as cable. In addition, Dish’s major telco partners are mid- and smaller- sized providers, making cable, potentially, a more suitable broadband ally than Qwest, Verizon or AT&T.
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November 2009
Dish Network beats DirecTV in Q3 additions, handily
Dish has been more aggressive in the tone of its advertising against DirecTV. And its lower-priced service also appears to be resonating, again, with consumers in a down economy. From a strategic viewpoint, it’s interesting to note that although it’s an arch foe to cable, Dish lacks marketing alliances with the Big 3 telcos, meaning Dish may have reason to favor cable over DirecTV-connected telcos as a provider of broadband service. >> Download Abstract
October 2009
DirecTV advances iTV efforts with applications storefront
DirecTV’s push into the applications arena will put pressure on cable operators to keep up development work on EBIF, tru2way and other TV application vehicles. With Verizon already ahead with Twitter and Facebook applications on FiOS TV, cable now faces a second challenger intent on using applications as a way to drive loyalty and subscriber growth. >> Download Abstract
September 2009
DirecTV to launch Netflix-styled broadband movie service
Over the past month, DirecTV executives have disclosed the company plans to expand its movie video on demand service, zeroing in on a Netflix-type subscription service that would let subscribers download commercial-free movies via a broadband connection. >> Download Abstract
August 2009
Dish halts sales of HD-only packages
Dish Network launched three Turbo HD tiers in early 2008 in an attempt to capitalize on rising consumer interest in HD, even as Dish Network was falling behind rival DirecTV in the total number of HD channels it offered. With a low-end package price of $29.99 per month, Dish was appealing to its traditional low-end base. But Dish never released subscriber figures for the HD-only packages, and was soon caught in a program carriage conundrum. As more programmers offered more HD channels, those programmers wanted carriage on the most popular tiers, not limited-circulation HD-only packages.
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July 2009
Dish Network to offer double-digit pricing discounts in fall promotion
According to published reports, Dish Network officials presented new fall pricing plans to affiliated retailers, describing plans to offer monthly discounts ranging from 15% to 37% on programming packages. The discounts pertain only to new subscribers, and impose penalties for early cancellation.
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June 2009
Dish Network may scrap HD-only packages
Under pressure from program networks, Dish Network may eliminate its HD-only channel packages later this summer, according to recent reports. The likely elimination of the TurboHD packages suggests relatively few subscribers are willing to make the trade-off Dish Network offered: inexpensive packages that sacrifice a plentitude of standard-resolution channels for up to 70 national HD channels and pay-per-view options. >> Download Abstract
May 2009
Subscriber gap widens between DirecTV and Dish Network
DirecTV added 460,000 subscribers in Q1’09, while Dish Network lost 94,000 subscribers. The gap between DirecTV’s gains and Dish Network’s losses (its fourth consecutive quarter of subscriber losses), reached a staggering 554,000 subscribers in Q1‘09. Aggressive promotion from DirecTV plus the continued afterglow of DirecTV’s HDTV strategy and new telco partner AT&T helped boost additions to record levels. Dish Network, meanwhile, continued to work its way through an operational reorganization and new smart card deployment aimed at curbing piracy. >> Download Abstract
April 2009
Dish Network tops DirecTV in international content
Although Dish Network has been outmaneuvered by rival DirecTV on several fronts recently, there is at least one area where the No. 2 satellite TV provider reigns supreme: international programming. Looking for any advantage in attracting new customers, Dish Network has made a point of offering a broader selection of international channels than DirecTV or cable/telco video providers. >> Download Abstract
March 2009
Sunday Ticket renewal: Can Cable make an end run?
DirecTV extended its exclusive distribution agreement for the prized NFL Sunday Ticket package of out-of-market games through the 2014 NFL season, but conceded exclusive rights to a related live-game highlights feed called the Red Zone Channel. >> Download Abstract
February 2009
DirecTV Q4 growth: A red alert for Cable rivals
DirecTV had its best quarter for subscriber growth since early 2005, adding 301,000 new customers during the last three months of 2008 as it seemingly defied a bruising recession. DirecTV’s mantra — deliver a better “TV experience” than rival providers — is achieving strong traction as customers flock to what many perceive as a superior HDTV offering and attractive promotional rates for new customers. Also of note: With nearly half of all subscribers taking HD and/or DVR services, DirecTV is far ahead of most cable companies in penetration of advanced digital video services. DirecTV’s growth illustrates how important perceptions of television and video service quality and offerings remain, even in the bundled-product environment that dominates wireline telecommunications. To fight back, cable providers must not only fortify and invigorate their own video offerings, but continue to drive home messages about fundamental reliability, signal quality, channel breadth and advanced service elements of the video offering. >> Download Abstract