OT: DirecTV buying out Dish
- Thread starter MSUDC11-2.0
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That’s kinda like the Lusitania buying the Titanic.
Not a big surprise. Charlie Ergen’s been in control of Dish and EchoStar since he founded them. And Dish and DirecTV have been losing satellite customers.
Looks like EchoStar will be concentrating on Boost now…
Looks like EchoStar will be concentrating on Boost now…
There's probably more folks than we realize who live in areas with no wifi/cable access and don't want to deal with streaming via a Starlink connection.
Call me old but.... I prefer satellite over streaming any day. Streaming is just to slow and choppy. I have issues in my home with the slow navigation between aps. I've seen slow service at other houses.
I can switch channels on the DTV and navigate quickly at home. I can put a dish tailgater up at the tailgate and get uninterrupted service.
Saturday at this big UofTexas tailgate ... they tried streaming games on YouTube tv. Constantly buffering and kicking out for "reaching memory limit" Just to many issues.
I can switch channels on the DTV and navigate quickly at home. I can put a dish tailgater up at the tailgate and get uninterrupted service.
Saturday at this big UofTexas tailgate ... they tried streaming games on YouTube tv. Constantly buffering and kicking out for "reaching memory limit" Just to many issues.
High speed internet access is about to be available to pretty much everyone the next couple years. It's so much better than satellite going dark when it rains and is a fraction of the cost.
This does suck for me. I have Dish with the SECN, ESPN+, and all the good live sports options right now, and I pay less than I was paying for streaming services. I am not a fan of youtubeTV, especially with the price increases over the last few years. Direct has always had ridiculous pricing.
I am one of these people. I can’t get high speed internet except for Starlink, and it’s not offered in my area yet. So i have dish. And i like it. Before i bought land in the country, i had Hulu, Fubo, and YouTube TV. I prefer dish to be honest.
I can remember when I was in high school my dad came home one day and asked my brother and I which we would rather have satellite tv or an inground pool. We chose the TV. At that time they were about the same price.From my cold, dead hands...
No doubt that cable and satellite were better at the interface with humans. I used to have picture in picture and switch between them. Funny how that is now just being advertised again or available on the Red Zone. I finally have a TV screen large enough for it to actually work, but I don't have it.
I used to have a button I could hit and it would immediately go back to the previous channel I was watching. I finally almost have it with Google TV.
I used to be able to enter 5 and immediately go to channel 5. I now have to navigate through a bunch of screens to change a channel.
I used to be able to have my TV magically switch to a channel at 7pm to make sure I didn't miss the beginning of my show. (Yes I know I have an option to watch from the beginning)
DISH had the Hopper and I could skip commercials with one button press. Now I get commercials on Amazon Prime.
I used to have a button I could hit and it would immediately go back to the previous channel I was watching. I finally almost have it with Google TV.
I used to be able to enter 5 and immediately go to channel 5. I now have to navigate through a bunch of screens to change a channel.
I used to be able to have my TV magically switch to a channel at 7pm to make sure I didn't miss the beginning of my show. (Yes I know I have an option to watch from the beginning)
DISH had the Hopper and I could skip commercials with one button press. Now I get commercials on Amazon Prime.
It might only help them get more streaming viewers on the DIRECTV streaming platform. I would have changed from YouTube TV to Hulu Plus, but the interface sucks on Hulu. I decided to wait and see what the next big thing is. I'm expecting something to rear its ugly head within the next year.
In the summer, we just turned the dish sideways and filled it up with water
They tried to merge in the early 2000s but the FCC blocked it. Echostar owns Dish. DirecTV absorbed Primestar in the 2000s then they were bought by ATT a few years ago.
The merger hasn’t been approved yet so I guess we will wait and see. The merger would make them the owner of 99 percent of all satellite subscriptions.
I think you overestimate how easily it is for people to get good internet. There’s places even in one of the most affluent counties in TN where the über-rich can’t get internet. It’s all limited to satellite internet or the cellular network. That’s just outside Nashville. There’s podunk areas of MS that have better internet options than celebrities up here. It’s really eye-opening and surprising but true.
That’s what it looks like behind our shop. A satellite graveyard. Now we have Starlink.
Thanks- was too lazy to ready up on what happened.
Owning 99% of satellite subscriptions sounds like a bad idea.
...but if you view competition from a wider perspective and just say Sat is simply one way to deliver programming, I guess it isnt monopolistic since they are competing against cable companies, streaming companies, etc. Its just one other option to deliver content, even if one company owns 99% of the market.
They are getting close to taking the lead for my money next year. Their biggest problem is their beef with Disney. I don't like Disney either but I don't like losing my channels.
Great, two of the most hated company's in America merge to form a larger, more hated entity.
The whole landscape is obviously very different from 2002 and now with streaming services so maybe that changes the perspective a bit with regards to a merger.
I hate DirecTV but I cut the cord and initially went with youtube and hulu. I had the same issues you experienced because I'm a channel surfer. I recently switched to Diretv stream and got the gemini air device. I now can channel surf just like with satellite. It's more expensive than most streaming services but it's $65/month cheaper than what I was paying for DTV satellite. I suggest getting the 5 day free trial and seeing if you like it before you splurge. That's what I did but you just won't have the gemini air but you'll get a good idea of what you're getting.
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I think this is the route we are going to go. Do you like the Gemini box?
If you were to add mirrors to that satellite (like a mosaic), the end result would be a solar weapon capable of starting quick fires on sunny days at the focal point. You’d probably catch on fire if you were in the focal pointFrom my cold, dead hands...
From my understanding if you're on contract DTV will send you the box, remote, etc. However, if you don't go with the contract and go month to month like I am you can buy the gemini air on the secondary market and you won't need a box, just the receiver that hooks into a HDMI port. Here's exactly what I bought on ebay........
DIRECTV Gemini Air Streaming Device - 4K | eBay
Yea, I think that was a legit concern about market consolidation and would have screwed lots of people out in the boonies. I think with starlink and also some cellular options, hard to say that Direct TV will have too much market power.
Hell, the fact that DirectTV isn't doing anything but assuming a portion of Dish's debt and the consolidation is contingent on bond holders taking a haircut is probably indicative of the businesses still not being that great together. I think Dish's bonds were trading at something like 85 cents on the dollar.
For all the jokes DirectTV was still 3rd in subscriptions from traditional cable/sat providers at around 8 million. They have another 2 million subs on top of that for streaming. Not too shabby.
Merger ain’t happening.
DISH bondholders rejected the offer.
foxbusiness.com
DISH bondholders rejected the offer.
DirecTV scrapping DISH merger
Satellite TV provider DirecTV is walking away from its planned acquisition of EchoStar's video distribution service, DISH DBS, after DISH bondholders rejected a debt exchange.
foxbusiness.com
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