Daystar back on Dish Network

[mwgiii]

Effective 5:00 pm ET on Thursday, May 18, 2006, DISH Network will have launched the national Daystar feed on channel 263.

Daystar: With an extensive blend of interdenominational and multi-cultural programming, Daystar is committed to producing and providing quality television that will reach our viewers, refresh their lives, and renew their hearts.

The updated information regarding the station is:

Station:
DYSTR

DISH Network Channel:
263

Satellite:
110


Intersting since Dish & SkyAngel were in a lawsuit which resulted in Daystar being removed from Dish.

I wonder if the 3 missing channels on SA are part of Dish's negotiating tactic?

[Fifty Caliber]

I don't know why Sky Angel insists on demanding "no-carry" of certain stations by E*. That's sort of like biting the hand that uplinks your channels.

[TNGTony]

FYI several e-mail reports that the local O&O Daystar channels are going away....again to be replaced by the national channel. There is info on the program guide saying as much on Boston, Phoenix and Dallas locals.

See http://ekb.dbstalk.com/dishlist.htm

See ya
Tony

[James Long]

I don't know why Sky Angel insists on demanding "no-carry" of certain stations by E*. That's sort of like biting the hand that uplinks your channels.E* signed what SA considered a binding agreement NOT to compete with Sky Angel, including an agreement not to add any more religious channels to the E* system. Thanks to DayStar wanting to be on E* and E* adding them the issue went to court where SkyAngel's view was upheld by the court and DayStar and a couple of other newer primarily religious channels (FamilyNet and Entertaining Everyone who carried JCTV) were pulled from the E* system.

But the hand that feeds it IS E* and the SkyAngel service would not have been uplinked at all if it were not for E*. It appears that E* is excersizing their leverage and doing what they want.

The addition of "family channels" Hallmark, Hallmark Movie, HGTV and FoxNews could also be seen as a violation of the non-compete agreement by SkyAngel. We won't know for sure unless someone excersizes their right to sue the other someone and a court decides.

Wild Card: SA is working on their own uplink center. Whether or not that allows E* to continue to control what is uplinked (by simply refusing access to the satellite if they disaprove). Back in the day that E* and SA signed the agreement E* needed a few extra transponders at 61.5° - today, not so much. E* could just abandon the SA transponders and tell SA if they want to transmit buy their own satellite. That decision would end up in court since the agreement is to allow SA to use the transponders for "the life of the satellite" but E3 is slowly dying.

Regardless of the contract, as long as SA is borrowing from E* SA has to work WITH E* if they want any service at all.

[TNGTony]

But the problem is that E is borrowing from SA as well. E* is in need of 6 of the 8 transponders that SA has at 61.5°. With the current mood of the FCC if SA would fold up shop tomorrow, it is not assured that E* would get these tps. They would have a net loss of 6 tps at 61.5°. This is a symbiotic relationship and not a parasitic one. :)

See ya
Tony

[James Long]

More parasitic now than it was when crafted. E* now has R1 and more importantly 11 more transponder licenses of it's own. Of the six transponders E* could use under the agreement E* has already lost one due to E3's failures. They could more easily give up the five remaining transponders they have permission to operate on now than when they signed the agreement - before they got permanent license to Cablevision/RainbowDBS's 11 transponders.

The two other failed with no remaining transponders at 61.5 are events in favor of keeping SA and the five for their use (since of the 24 transponders the FCC has directly given permission for E* to use only 22 are available and 20 are permanent). Not breaking the deal with SA could also count as "good will" at the FCC when it comes to getting 23 and 24 permanently.

If E* pulls the plug on SA I do not expect the FCC to give the transponders to E*. As a block of 10 transponders (SA's 8 and the two remaining STA transponders) it is a much more valuable location for auction than just the two channels. SA having those transponders is in E*'s best interest as long as E* can use a few of them, so I agree that E* probably won't pull the plug on SA.

But the recent issue of apparently refusing to uplink three SA channels and adding DayStar to the national E* service despite the court ruling shows just how much power has in this situation - not quite an equal partnership. I wouldn't call it symbiotic, but strained and good to maintain for the moment. It does appear that that moment is waining.

[Fifty Caliber]

Maybe E* could uplink 3ABN on both 119 and 61.5, make it available to any subscriber of either service. That should solve some of the problem.