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Satellite TV Home Dish Network DIRECTV Blog Search DIRECTV Official Offer Packages from 29 99 a month Free HD DVR Upgrade 130 HD Channels and 3 months free HBO Starz Showtime www directstartv com Satellite TV Satellite TV has become one of the great technological success stories Only 20 years ago cable television operators had a monopoly on the pay television market and within that time frame there are now 30 million satellite TV subscribers 17 million for DIRECTV and 13 million plus subscribe to DISH Network Its no wonder why it has become so popular with free satellite TV systems being given away to new customers Here you will find hundreds of pages on satellite TV The advantages of satellite TV are many but like anything in life there are disadvantages as well We will try to provide you with both the pros and cons of both DISH Network and DIRECTV Also you may want to browse through our Satellite TV Blog There you will find the most up to date information on DIRECTV and DISH Network If you are looking for something specific on satellite television we have provided this search function If there is anything you want to know about DIRECTV or DISH Network whether it be programming packages channels pricing HD DVR information or just about anything else you can find it here So why should you seriously consider satellite TV what makes DIRECTV and DISH Network superior choice to cable One thing to remember is that no matter where you live in the United States you can hook up a satellite dish and get high quality 100 digital picture and sound While people who live in rural areas almost exclusively subscribe to satellite TV many in the suburbs and cities also have come to see the advantages Even those in apartments have recently won the right to install a dish on their deck or porch in order to receive programming DISH Network and DIRECTV are also deploying new technology that will allow those in high rise apartment buildings the ability to subscribe to satellite services So now satellite TV is just about with reach of everyone So if you move into a new area explore side by side what the local cable company offers with what either DISH Network or DIRECTV can provide You may be surprised to find out that a satellite TV provider can offer you free installation for up to four rooms free receivers including DVR s and discounted programming packages that either give you several months of free service or a monthly discount for the first year The dish they bring out is also free as well Another thing to compare is what the price will be after any promotional period is up Often DISH Network and DIRECTV programming packages are 15 20 lower than a comparable cable TV package from a provider like Comcast Time Warner Brighthouse or Cox cable One current consideration is the high definition or HD market that is growing by leaps and bounds Everyone is going out and buying brand new flat screen plasma and HDTV sets from Costco Sam s Club Best Buy and the like But what happens when you bring that brand new HDTV home and hook it up Well of course it looks great because it is probably a 40 TV or even bigger if you decided to go for the gusto But are you really getting the best picture you can get Amazingly some folks don t know you have to subscribe to an HD package from either your cable or satellite provider Here is where satellite TV has an inherent advantage over the cable company Cable TV is delivered by a hard line to each and every house that it serves These homes are served from nodes spread throughout the neighborhoods you live in With this type of situation each area has to be upgraded to provide the additional capacity to carry HD channels Some cable companies have even compressed high definition programming in an attempt to try to deliver these HD channels to their customers when their networks cannot really support the amount of data being pushed out This has resulted in some cases in an even worse picture than standard definition or SD programming With satellite TV there is no hard line to the customer Once the agreement is in place between the programmer and the satellite carrier either DISH Network or DIRECTV then everyone in America can get the channel all at the same time once it is turned up This contrasts with cable companies which have to deploy HD channels in one area at a time and only after network upgrades have been completed The end result with this is that the densely populated areas are the focus of Comcast Time Warner Cable and other cable operators Logically that makes sense for them as they want to get new HD services to as many customers as possible but it leaves smaller towns isolated neighborhoods and rural areas out of the loop Why should the cable company upgrade 500 subscribers when they have 5 000 down the road who are waiting for HD The bottom line when it comes to HD is found in the results offered by satellite TV companies DIRECTV currently offers 95 national high definition channels and DISH Network offers about 83 as of late July 2008 DISH Network is adding 17 additional HD channels on August 1st 2008 and DIRECTV has a new satellite in orbit already that will soon allow them to upgrade their HD lineup even further Most cable companies offer anywhere from 20 to 60 national HD channels That is a wide range but as mentioned earlier every area and every cable provider is different You will have to research the cable operator in your area to make an accurate comparison Now the question I get the most is which is better DIRECTV or DISH Network The answer to that question is kind of like answering the question Which one of your kids do you like the best There really is not a definitive answer which satellite TV Company to choose Each has their good and bad just like your kids But if you really must know here are a few of the high and low points of DISH Network and DIRECTV First a quick review of DIRECTV DIRECTV is the largest satellite television company in the country right now boasting over 17 million subscribers DISH and DIRECTV were neck and neck for many years but DIRECTV has executed their sports and HD channel deployment very well in the last few years and it now shows up in the subscriber numbers Comcast is the only company in America that can claim more subscribers with upwards of 25 million customers DIRECTV has had strong subscriber growth over the last few years due to two specific points of focus Their first strength is in their exclusive sports programming packages Now we are not just talking about sports channels like ESPN ESPN2 and the regional Fox Sports Networks What we are discussing is the specialized sports packages that offer fans much more than traditional broadcasting has offered in the past DIRECTV is the sole provider of the NFL Sunday Ticket the NASCAR HotPass and the NCAA Mega March Madness package In addition DIRECTV has picked up smaller packages including the Masters the French Open and Wimbledon DIRECTV also carries MLB Extra Innings NBA League Pass and NHL Center Ice packages though not exclusively So if a sports fan is looking into satellite TV and they are passionate about a specific sport and want extra coverage DIRECTV is really the only choice This fact alone has separated DIRECTV not only from cable TV operators but also from DISH Network The company 8217 s second strength is in the DIRECTV HD programming lineup In 2007 DIRECTV started a big campaign advertising that they would have 100 HD channels by the end of that year While they didn t reach that goal ending up with about 92 the publicity around the campaign really touched a nerve with the public DIRECTV set out to become the 1 source for those interested in HD and they still are widely recognized as the leader With their recent launch of the DIRECTV 11 satellite the company should shortly have enough capacity for up to 150 HD channels DIRECTV of course offers plenty as far as programming packages and the DIRECTV DVR Additional details on these items can be found throughout this site These are the areas where you will find things generally equal between DISH Network and DIRECTV So those are a couple of strengths with DIRECTV Are there any caution flags you with DIRECTV that you should consider As with any purchase you should certainly consider all of the factors involved DIRECTV currently has a fairly strict credit and contract policy Credit checks are done on all new customers and most new customers are expected to honor a 24 month agreement to stay with satellite TV from DIRECTV Why such a long contract for what many consider a utility It has to do with what is referred to in the business as subscriber acquisition cost or SAC How much do you think it costs DIRECTV to acquire and set up a new subscriber 100 200 300 Not even close try 700 plus for each new subscriber according to DIRECTV conference calls with investors and analysts Remember DIRECTV pays for the dish the receiver and the technician to come out and install service in up to 4 rooms in your home Newer HD equipment is costly and depending on current promotions there may be some upfront costs for the subscribers But in general DIRECTV pays those costs for the customer because they want you to subscribe to their service So don t expect to get out of a contract with DIRECTV unless there is something truly wrong with the service So those are a few of the pros and cons with DIRECTV what about DISH Network DISH Network currently counts more than 13 million satellite TV subscribers They are the third largest pay television company with Comcast and DIRECTV having more subscribers When comparing DISH Network and DIRECTV side by side DISH offers basically everything that DIRECTV offers except for the exclusive sports packages So if sports aren t a big deal to you DISH Network can probably fit your needs and at a slightly lower price DISH Network offers a little more flexibility in building a package exactly how you want it For example you can get a base package with DISH Network without local channel programming While most people want their local channels if you do not watch local networks you can decline this option and save 5 per month DISH Network also offers packages comprised of just HD channels Their new TurboHD offering allows you to pick from several different HD bundle options DISH Network is also known for their wide variety of international programming Foreign language channels in Spanish Chinese Arabic Vietnamese Russian Korean and several other languages These packages are designed to help those who have moved to America from different parts of the world stay in touch with what is happening at home While DIRECTV also offers foreign language programming DISH Network has been the leader in this area especially with their DISH Latino programming lineup Another area which DISH Network dominates is their Digital Video Recorder or DVR for short DISH Network s ViP 722 DVR has won praise and accolades from the press and continues to be the best DVR on the market today CNET has awarded the ViP622 their Editors Choice award winning out over the DIRECTV HR20 and eventeh TiVo HD DVR The dishDVR can record up to 350 hours of standard definition SD programming or up to 55 hours of HD programming Of course it handles all of the other DVR features with ease such as pausing live TV watching one program while recording another and best of all the ability to bypass commercials DISH Network truly provides you full control over how and when you watch television So there you have it well at least some of it Obviously the satellite TV market continues to evolve and improve as DIRECTV and DISH Network compete against each other as well as cable television operators across the country A little comparison shopping goes a long way so we invite you to look around our site for further satellite TV information on DISH Network and DIRECTV Top Satellite TV Deals DIRECTV Special DISH Network Special DISH Network Turbo HD Spanish Satellite TV DIRECTV Mas Special DISH Latino Package Satellite TV Search Compare Satellite TV and Cable Providers Cable vs Satellite TV DIRECTV Mas vs Dish Latino DISH Network vs DIRECTV DIRECTV vs AT T U Verse DIRECTV vs Cable Time Warner vs Satellite TV Direct TV vs Comcast DISH Network vs Bright House DIRECTV HD vs Dish Turbo HD Dish Network versus Comcast Verizon Fios vs DIRECTV Satellite TV Articles DIRECTV Chinese Programming DIRECTV Deals DIRECTV Mas ESPN Gameplan Charter Cable TV DIRECTV Friday Night Lights DISH Network Turbo HD Sunday Ticket Superfan DIRECTV Premier Package DIRECTV Deals Cox Cable Review Dish Network Drops VOOM HD Recent Posts DIRECTV Masters Experience 2009 Dish Network Deals DIRECTV NFL Extend Sunday Ticket Dish Network Slingbox Dish Network New HD Channels Satellite TV Systems DIRECTV Russian Packages DIRECTV Raising Rates Dish Network Raising Rates Dish Network vs Comcast DIRECTV Celebrity Beach Bowl 2009 Cablevision Drops VOOM HD DIRECTV HD vs 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via the internet use varying terms for DISH Network including dishnetwork dishnetwork COM www dishnetwork com satellite tv dish netwrok sattellite tv satelite TV satellite television cable tv and dish television To help searchers find what they are looking for we may use these and similar search terms on our website Common spellings of certain terms are often searched for as well including dishnetwork satalite dish tv satelite and satallite tv These terms may be used to help searchers find the information they are looking for when in reference to DISH Network This website does not have any official relationship nor is authorized in any way by Dish Network 684
