Charlie Chat Summary for 6-14-04

[Chris Blount]

Summary written by Chris Blount. Text is Copyright 2004, DBSTalk.Com.

Welcome to the Charlie Chat. Hosted by Charlie Ergen and Jim Defranco.

The Charlie Chat is in a new studio tonight!

Dish Network has reached 10 million subscribers. Charlie says thanks. A couple of videos were shown of various celebrities saying thanks. Dish Network congratulated Dwayne Dragon, the 10 millionth customer, with a free HDTV system, surround sound, and free programming for 10 years.

Existing customers are entered into a contest to win HDTV equipment in celebration of 10 million customers. 750 systems will be given away; 25 each day until July 13th. Go to Dish Network website for details or CLICK HERE.


Programming Update:

131 locals now available; 90% of the US is covered.

Upcoming launches:

Amarillo, TX
Augusta, GA
Charleston, SC
Greenville, NC
Joplin, MO
Macon, GA
Montgomery, AL
Myrtle Beach, SC
Puerto Rico
Toledo, OH
Youngstown, OH
Wichita Falls, TX

G4 and Tech TV have combined (but we already knew this).

Sirius Satellite Radio has been added, channels 6001-6099 (but we already knew this, too).

Starting June 16, TV Guide channel will be on channel 102.

Trivia Question:

What was the full name of the Echostar subsidiary in 1995 that designed Dish Network’s first satellite receiver, the model 2000?

Question Time:

E-mail from Scott: Will the phone line connection still be required for pay-per-view? I would like to go wireless if possible.

Answer: Technology has not been developed. The requirement will not change for now.

Call-in from Karen: Is it possible to have satellite TV in the car?

Answer: There are systems available, but they are very large and expensive.

Call-in from Brad: Will the 921 be available in the HDTV package anytime soon?

Answer: 921 is shipping now in the thousands. The 921 is 60 days backordered. Unit not quite perfect, but people are pretty satisfied. Get your name on a waiting list.

Someone answered the trivia question correctly; the answer is Houston Tracker.

E-mail from Miguel: Why does Dish claim to have more HD with Voom out there?

Answer: Voom’s programming is repetitive. We have more “original” hours.

E-mail question: When will you be offering more Portuguese channels?

Answer: We are looking into that.

E-mail from the Marks family: When will we qualify for free DVR service with our Everything pack?

Answer: If you have a DVR, you should not have the fee.

E-mail from Peter: Are there any plans to bring Air America to Dish?

Answer: We will carry it when Air America’s future is more stable.

E-mail question: Wants to know about Fox Sports Network in HD.

Answer: We are looking at ways to carry those local networks in HD.

Call-in from Chris: What are plans for new HD channels over the next few months.

Answer: First priority is to deliver differentiated content, meaning more true HDTV. Not upconverted from SD content.

Charlie starts a rant about the satellite taxes. Kentucky has proposed a 7.62 sales tax on satellite TV. Call the governor of Kentucky at 502-564-2611, or the state legislator at 502-564-8100 to let them know you are against any satellite tax. Utah is also getting more tax. Call the Senate at 801-538-1035 or the House at 801-538-1029.

More international channels introduced.

KTV, channel 796
UDAYA, channel 803.

Call-in question: Will Dish Network be carrying the Horror channel that is set to launch in October?

Answer: We have never heard of that channel, but we’ll look into it.

E-mail from Kevin: Why do I have to pay to upgrade to a DVR as an existing customer?

Answer: Subsidizing customers is very expensive, so in order to try to keep costs down, newer customers usually get a better deal. Changes are coming though.

Call-in from James: Why can’t I get Bingo TV in Ohio when there are bingo parlors here?

Answer: Laws vary by state so certain states don’t get Bingo TV despite having local bingo parlors.


Next Charlie Chat: July 12th.

In regard to the HDTV giveaway the website says that tier 3, tier 2, and founder customers are given 301 entries. What qualifies one as a tier 3, tier 2, or founder customer?

[Scott Greczkowski]

Where are the two VOOM questions?

Charlie had the line of the night when he said "We do not carry VOOM yet"

[Darkman]

Originally Posted by Chris Blount

Upcoming launches:

Amarillo, TX
Augusta, GA
Charleston, SC
Greenville, NC
Joplin, MO
Macon, GA
Montgomery, AL
Myrtle Beach, SC
Puerto Rico
Toledo, OH
Youngstown, OH
Wichita Falls, TX

Just to add - They said to approx. expect those in June/July (or over next next 60 days.. ...or something like that)

[mainedish]

Bingo TV . OH BOY!!. I want that!!!......

[rh26]

Originally Posted by Scott Greczkowski

Charlie had the line of the night when he said "We do not carry VOOM yet"

You know, the way he phrased it (not exactly as Scott quoted it, but I can't get any closer) I immediately thought, "I wonder if Charlie is thinking about buying Voom?"

[rh26]

Originally Posted by Chris Blount

Call-in question: Will Dish Network be carrying the Horror channel that is set to launch in October?

Answer: We have never heard of that channel, but we’ll look into it.

At first, I was bemused that Dish had never heard of it but then I thought, "If I was launching a new channel, the first thing I should do is call Comcast, DirecTV, and Dish Network and pitch my plan to them!"

Really, how do you plan to launch a network and not secure somebody to carry it?

[Darkman]

hehe - with my English being poor - it sure sounded as "the whore channel" at first...
LoL .. had to guess the dude said Horror

even thought at first www thewhorechannel dot com
Geeze....

[SimpleSimon]

Originally Posted by Darkman

hehe - with my English being poor - it sure sounded as "the whore channel" at first...
LoL .. had to guess the dude said Horror

even thought at first www thewhorechannel dot com
Geeze....

It's not your English, or my bad ears - that's what everybody thought!

[James Long]

Originally Posted by Darkman

hehe - with my English being poor - it sure sounded as "the whore channel" at first...
LoL .. had to guess the dude said Horror

Many thought SHE said whore ... I had no trouble figuring out it wasn't a dude.

TVGC tomorrow ... can't wait. Something new to mock.
(And it raises AT60 to 75 channels ... or about 80 +/- if you have locals. )

JL

[Art7220]

BTW, the answer to the Trivia Question was Houston Tracker Systems. I seem to recall what the C-Band rcvrs. used to look like. They used to run ads in STV Magazine (anyone remember that?).

Anyway, I had a good question that wasn't answered so I'll post it here. Why does the Charlie Chat run at 6pm PT when Monday Night RAW airs? Thank goodness for TSN on Expressvu.

-A-

[Darkman]

SHE..? sounded like HE to me

[mindwarp]

At last, Puerto Rico!!!

[Nick]

Oh, Darn, I missed the CC. Maybe I'll catch the reruns.

Thanks for the recap, Chris. I'm glad to hear that E* has more HD "original hours" than Voom - at least the way Charlie figures it. He's sounding more and more like a politician. So far, I have 32 HD channels - 25 from Voom, and 7 from Dish. ESPN-HD, Discovery-HD, and TNT-HD are duplicated.

Originally Posted by Art7220

Anyway, I had a good question that wasn't answered so I'll post it here. Why does the Charlie Chat run at 6pm PT when Monday Night RAW airs? Thank goodness for TSN on Expressvu. -A-

That's a really good question, Art. It's so viewers will have a choice - highbrow intellectual reparté -or- lowbrow violence. It's always good to have choices, don't you think?

Here's something Charlie didn't mention. Rumor has it that the "Wrestling 24/7" channel is coming soon. Thing is, you may have to move because it will only be beamed into Alabama and Arkansas.

Not sure why.

[Mike D-CO5]

Did anyone else notice that the picture was poor during most of the show? It was out of focus on most of the videos they showed and twice the picture turned completely flourescent green . I guess the new studio was having problems with the picture quality.

[TonyM]

Originally Posted by rh26

At first, I was bemused that Dish had never heard of it but then I thought, "If I was launching a new channel, the first thing I should do is call Comcast, DirecTV, and Dish Network and pitch my plan to them!"

Really, how do you plan to launch a network and not secure somebody to carry it?

Ask Victory Sports in MN that...oh, wait...you can't....they ceased operations less than 6 months after starting

[Bob Haller]

Originally Posted by Mike D-CO5

Did anyone else notice that the picture was poor during most of the show? It was out of focus on most of the videos they showed and twice the picture turned completely flourescent green . I guess the new studio was having problems with the picture quality.

They use the same programmers as the 921?

[REK108]

Originally Posted by Chris Blount

[b]Existing customers are entered into a contest to win HDTV equipment in celebration of 10 million customers. 750 systems will be given away; 25 each day until July 13th. Go to Dish Network website for details or CLICK HERE.

Take the DISH Network Customer Survey. Entrants will gain additional entries by going to the DISH Network website (www.dishnetwork.com) and completing the customer survey. Click on the survey button from the My Account area and answer the questions. For each survey completed the entrant will gain 400 entries. One survey per customer.

Customer Survey? What Customer Survey? Can anyone tell me how to get to the Customer Survey on the Dish Website? I looked in the My Account area and can't find any link to any survey. There's no button. I searched the entire site for "survey" and came up blank. It would be nice to get an additional 400 entries for a few minutes time answering questions.

[ThingOne]

E-mail from Scott: Will the phone line connection still be required for pay-per-view? I would like to go wireless if possible.

Answer: Technology has not been developed. The requirement will not change for now.

My household has not had a phone line since 2000. I do not miss it one bit. I have been told D* Tivo would not work without a phone line, and E* charges me extra $5 dollars a month for not having a phone line (522 receiver). I wish there would be a push to get these receivers off the need for a phone line. I have talked to several customer reps, and even emailed Charlie about it. I know I am not the only one in this situation.

[Cholly]

A few thoughts after watching yesterday's chat:
I just wish that Charlie would do away with the gushy promotional videos in the chats. I know that he can't divulge everything that's in the works, but I alredy know that there are HDTV packages available, and that "interview" with the couple that upgraded to the HD package was an insult to anyone's intelligence.Shame on Echostar's marketing department and ad agency for that one.
For the folks interested in international packages, the info provided on that subject was probably useful.
10 million customers -- okay, fine. But to watch 5 minutes of self congratulatory crap, puleeze!
Did you ever notice that Charlie and Jim don't really seem to know just what Dish has to offer?

[Capmeister]

Originally Posted by Chris Blount

E-mail from Miguel: Why does Dish claim to have more HD with Voom out there?

Answer: Voom’s programming is repetitive. We have more “original” hours.

As a Dish customer who also gets VOOM, this answer pissed me off.

It's BS.

[Mike Gavasheli]

Originally Posted by REK108

Customer Survey? What Customer Survey? Can anyone tell me how to get to the Customer Survey on the Dish Website? I looked in the My Account area and can't find any link to any survey. There's no button. I searched the entire site for "survey" and came up blank. It would be nice to get an additional 400 entries for a few minutes time answering questions.

The link for survey I found is

http://www.dishnetwork.com/sweepstakes

It takes you to some third party company but the page says "Coming Soon".

[invaliduser88]

Originally Posted by Chris Blount

Call-in from Chris: What are plans for new HD channels over the next few months.

Answer: First priority is to deliver differentiated content, meaning more true HDTV. Not upconverted from SD content.

Then how the heck to TNT-HD get on Dish!

Hey Chris, tearing apart the summary is getting to be more fun than actually watching CC's now!

[Cyclone]

TNT-HD likely got bundled in with the rest of the Turner channels when they had negotiations in April. While I do have beef with TNT-HD, I'm still glad that Dish at least has it in the line up.

It would be one thing to try to get TNT to improve itself,
Its another thing to try to get TNT to improve itself, and then also have to get Dish to carry it.

The way I see it, we are least half way there. Just need to shame TNT into getting their act together.

[ypsiguy]

Originally Posted by Capmeister

As a Dish customer who also gets VOOM, this answer pissed me off.

It's BS.

Yeah, Charlie seemed to get hammered on HD last night. His answers left a lot to be desired.
1. They are not the leader in HD, Voom is, admit it.
2. Don't disparage Voom's service, it doesn't make you look good doing it.
2. Get off the compelling content crap - its a "red herring".

Charlie just needs to be honest like he almost was and say "Hey, the bandwidth just isn't there right now, we got caught with our pants down on this one and we need another satellite up there. We are working on getting FCC approval for that."

If HD were really that important to me right now, I would have been really upset after last night. Even though I have an HD set, I am happy with SD services for now. Charlie, just shoot straight with us, c'mon.