Dish Network-related stories
Posted Jan 9th 2008 10:00AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Industry, OpEd, PVR Wire, Hardware
Echostar, the company behind the Dish Network and the Slingbox,
is offering digital TV converters for $39.99. With the
$40 coupon the government is offering for those with older sets that still use rabbit ears, the converters would end up being free.
Originally, the converter boxes were going to be offered between $50 and $70. Echostar is offering the converters at a discount in the interest of obtaining new customers and spreading their brand name.
Obviously, it's a good idea. I can't think of a single person who would pay $50 for something they could get for $40. It is a free-market situation that would warm the heart of most libertarians.
Continue reading EchoStar offering "free" digital TV converters
Posted Jan 7th 2008 1:10PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Industry, OpEd, PVR Wire
According to Engadget,
the Dish Network is bumping up the number of HD channels it supports from 76 to 100 and expanding local service from 65 to 100 markets. Competition from DirecTV has apparently made the company fight for its title of "Top HD provider".
Of course, this is good news for the consumer who gets a larger selection as a result. That is assuming Dish Network doesn't justify an increase in price later as a result of this expansion.
Continue reading DISH Network adding another 100 HD channels
Posted Aug 17th 2007 10:59AM by Brad Linder
Filed under: PVR Wire, Cable/Satellite, Hardware
EchoStar has
upgraded its line of DISH Network personal video recorders. The
ViP722 is a multi-room dual-tuner high definition recorder, much like the ViP622. You can watch HDTV in one room while viewing standard definition programming in another.
In fact, the ViP722 is pretty much exactly the same box as the ViP622 except it's black and comes with more storage space. The new box packs a 500GB hard drive, which is enough to record 350 hours of standard definition or 55 hours of high definition programming. That's compared with 30 hours of high definition recording on the ViP622.
There's no reason to call DISH for an upgrade if you've got the older box though. This week DISH issued an update that lets you plug in an external hard drive for extended storage. The update is good for both ViP622 and ViP722 boxes.
Posted May 26th 2007 10:41AM by Brad Linder
Filed under: PVR Wire, TiVo
Looks like Forgent could be in for another unpleasant court battle. The other day, we told you that Forgent had
lost its patent lawsuit against EchoStar. Forgent claims that pretty much every major personal video recorder on the market is violating its patent for computer controlled video systems that can play and record at the same time.
While a number of companies have reached out of court settlements with Forgent, EchoStar fought it out in court and won. TiVo's going a step further, and suing Forgent before the company can sue TiVo.
On May 17th,
TiVo filed suit asking for a ruling showing that TiVo's technology does not infringe on Forgent's patent. While it might look like the move is a reaction to the EchoStar ruling, TiVo filed its lawsuit about a week before the courts ruled in that case.
Forgent says it's made about $28 million from settlements with other PVR companies, but almost half of that money was eaten up by legal costs.
[via
TiVo Lovers]
Posted May 23rd 2007 3:59PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: PVR Wire, Cable/Satellite
EchoStar/Dish Network has
won a patent lawsuit filed
last year by Forgent. The company had claimed its patents described how to build a computer controlled video system that can play and record video at the same time. In other words, they wanted royalties from anybody who had ever built a personal video recorder.
A Texas jury disagreed, finding in favor of EchoStar and denying Forgent's request for more than $200 million in damages.
Forgent had sued companies including Comcast, Time Warner and the Washington Post company. A number of those companies had reached settlements with Forgent, but EchoStar V.P. David Moskowitz said that he's pleased the jury has upheld the satellite broadcaster's view that the patent was invalid.
Posted Feb 4th 2007 12:07PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: PVR Wire, Cable/Satellite
Sure, Microsoft's built CableCard compatibility into Windows Vista, but what have they done for Satellite television customers lately? Well, apparently, Microsoft is working with both
DirecTV and
Dish Network on cards that would allow home theater PC users to receive satellite signals directly through their computer.
Microsoft and DirecTV first announced they were working on HTPC cards over a year ago, but the first news that Dish Network was involved in similar talks came out of CES this January.
Continue reading Dish working on HTPC cards
Posted Jul 2nd 2006 10:15AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Industry, HDTV, Cable/Satellite, Site Announcements
Our regular roundup of what's on our sister blog, HD Beat.
Posted Apr 16th 2006 5:47PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Industry, Programming, Site Announcements
Posted Jan 4th 2006 3:34PM by Anna Johns
Filed under: Cable/Satellite
Rabbit ears, or television antennas, could soon become a relic
of the past. A new poll, out in time for the CES convention in Las Vegas, finds that 22% of Americans get their
television "over the air". That is, through television waves transmitted by stations. The big powerhouse for
television is cable, with 51% of people receiving their signal that way. Only 26% of American households have
satellites. The report says the findings "are significant, because they indicate that analog services are now the
minority in the TV marketplace." Interestingly, the poll also found that 25% of adults have a DVR hooked up to the
television set.
Personally, I like DirecTV and TiVo
over rather than cable. How do you
prefer to get your television?
[Via
Lost Remote]
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