[SayWhat?]

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Dish Network (DISH) surprising third-quarter loss signals that the satellite TV giant's subscribers continue to leave in favor of alternative cable and wireless contracts. The miss may also put the company in a better position to retry a merger with DirecTV (DTV), according to industry analysts.

After antitrust regulators nixed a 2002 merger effort between the nation's top two satellite TV providers, analysts now say Dish Network's weak third quarter earnings put the company and its chairman Charlie Ergen in a better position to broker a tie-up, which could help both companies develop mobile broadband services to better compete with cable providers and national carriers like Comcast (CMCSA), AT&T (T) and Verizon (VZ).

http://www.thestreet.com/story/11758275/1/dish-networks-earnings-revive-directv-deal-talk.html

 

[dmspen]

DisectTV

 

[Stuart Sweet]

Will there "ever" be a merger? Maybe. But Wall Street analysts look at money, and there is a lot more to this than money. The last time a merger was discussed, there was a lot more common technology and a lot fewer subscribers. The technical issues with merging the two companies are so great, it is unthinkable that any money could be made in the first 5 years with all the redundancy and then replacing obsolete equipment.

If there is to be a merger at some point in the future, the first step would be a technology-sharing plan where DIRECTV licenses SWM technology and Videoguard to DISH, and DISH agrees not to dispute DIRECTV's (currently unused) patents on ReplayTV commercial-skipping. Also perhaps a content-sharing agreement for international customers.

If you see those things, then look 5 years down the road to a merger. Otherwise, this is just a case of bankers not understanding engineering.

 

[mark722]

Saw this article on MSN Money :
http://money.msn.com/top-stocks/post.aspx?post=bfe03406-3fb9-4d8a-a656-f09003ecd7a0
Very Interesting. Not sure if this would be good for customers though. Lack of competition seems always bad for the consumer. If Dish/DirecTV could offer better bundles than cable / FIOS at a lower price this would be good. But since they are also competing against streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime, they would need to add their own improved On Demand streaming service.

 

[StringFellow]

Federal regulators will never allow for a merger. For millions of subscribers, a merger would create a monopoly, something regulators prevent.

 

[Laxguy]

Federal regulators will never allow for a merger. For millions of subscribers, a merger would create a monopoly, something regulators prevent.

Well, "never say never".

 

[Inkosaurus]

I wont say never.

But i will say incredibly unlikely this will happen in our lifetimes xD

 

[garys]

I never thought that XM Radio and Sirius would ever merge, but that did happen. So who knows if Dish/Direct will.

 

[James Long]

As discussed in the September thread (when DirecTV's CEO stated a merger could be pro-consumer) ... the only thing that makes these new "merger threads" worth leaving open is that the company's ceos are commenting.

We have had merger rumors and discussions for literally a decade. Call me when something official is filed.

 

[StringFellow]

I never thought that XM Radio and Sirius would ever merge, but that did happen. So who knows if Dish/Direct will.

And look how that merger went! Higher subscriptions fees, promise of a la carte subscriptions that never happened.

And remember there are alternatives to music and news (conventional radio, HD radio, media players, etc.). It is a grey area but the Sirius XM merger isn't a monopoly.

Regardless, a Dish DIrect merger would be a disaster for consumers.

 

[James Long]

And look how that merger went! Higher subscriptions fees, promise of a la carte subscriptions that never happened.

I have a Sirius a la carte subscription ... $9.38 per month after tax and music fees. (List price $7.99 for 50 channels - more details.) Just as with any a la carte, the more you buy the more a package plan makes more sense. I picked out 35 music channels (most of them just to get to the 50 total) and 13 talk channels. I could not find 50 channels that I wanted.

I did not have Sirius back in the old days pre-merger ... but $10 per month for the few channels I want is not bad. Fortunately with a one provider system a la carte is possible. There is no AMC demanding carriage of We, IFC and Fuel specialty channels to get the more popular channel the have. Or Viacom with their myriad of channels.