Items tagged with Dish
DISH has become the very first major pay-tv company to offer users compatibility with Google Assistant. The compatibility launches today for the Hopper, Hopper Duo, Joey, and Wally set-top boxes. The cool part about this compatibility is that you don’t need to go out and buy additional hardware. While Google Home devices are supported, so are most Android phones and iPhones with the Google Assistant app installed. "Since we first introduced voice control technology, we've seen our customers really embrace the hands-free TV experience," said Niraj Desai, DISH vice president of product management. "Our collaboration with Google is an exciting opportunity for us to continue meeting...
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There are plenty of options out there for cable and satellite TV service and while many people are more concerned with cutting that cord and using streaming services, DISH Network is still a big choice for many people. DISH has announced a new feature today that fans of Netflix in 4K will want to know about. While DISH started supporting 4K Netflix streaming via its own app back in April of 2016 for Hopper 3 users, only the main TV with the Hopper 3 directly connected could stream Netflix in 4K. That has changed with DISH announcing today that the 4K Netflix app is now available for its 4K Joey set top boxes. That means streaming of Netflix 4K content in your entire home is now enabled. If you...
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If binge-watching is the name of your game, then Dish has a treat for you. The direct-broadcast satellite service provider just debuted the AirTV, a 4K Android TV-supported device that allows users to stream from one place. AirTV was accidentally leaked last month, before its CES 2017 debut. The AirTV permits Sling TV customers to add live local broadcast stations (OTA) for free through an external antenna. The local broadcasts will be seamlessly added to the list of Sling TV offerings, without having to change the input. Local channels include ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, PBS, CW, etc. Customers can also use Google Play to download movies and TV shows or add useful apps like Netflix....
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With the rise of online services like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and host of others, consumers looking to “cut the cord” have plenty of options to select. However, ditching entrenched series like cable and satellite often means giving up such “luxuries” as network television broadcasts (ABC, NBC, CBS, etc.) and live sports channels like ESPN. Plugging rabbit ears into your HDTV can mostly solve the former, but the latter is a bit more troublesome. Dish Network is hoping to come to the rescue with its new Sling TV service that was announced last month and was available via an invite-only system until late last night. Today, Sling TV is open to all cord cutters and it offers a respectable selection...
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Dish Network is in hot water with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for outright violating the agency's Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR), including the "Do Not Call" registry, by placing tens of millions of unsolicited calls to numbers that appear on the list. In all, Dish Network and its retail partners made some 57 million unauthorized outbound calls. The FTC is holding Dish Network responsible for illegal calls made by its vendors to numbers on the DNC registry since Dish retained the retailers, authorized the retailers to market Dish products and services, and because the retailers violated the TSR by initiating the Dish telemarketing calls to numbers on the registry.Image Source:...
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As if there were ever any doubt that this latest kerfuffle would quickly end, CBS and Dish Network have settled their ongoing dispute over programming and pricing. However, it looks as though CBS came out as the big winner in this latest battle, as Dish’s AutoHop functionality has been neutered as a result. After months of intense negotiations without a deal in sight, CBS channels went dark on Dish Network shortly after 7 PM EST on Friday evening. CBS was quick to point the finger at Dish, stating, “Dish has dragged its feet at our many attempts to negotiate in good faith. Behavior like this is why Dish has a long history of depriving customers of the programing they have paid for. “CBS has been...
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LightSquared has had an interesting (and relatively rough) go as a company. The telecommunications firm launched with a lot of promise, just as North America was starting to embrace mobile broadband and LTE. But it soon realized that building out a network was a costly project, and fell into bankruptcy as bids from Sprint to take it over passed on by. Another company that looked into buying up what was left of LightSquared was Dish Network. In fact, it placed a staggering $2.2 billion on the table last year, but nothing ever became of it. Now, a new Wall Street Journal report suggests that Dish will be pulling that bid altogether. The report suggests that LightSquared's lenders -- the folks who...
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At long last, it seems that this particular saga is drawing to an end. Clearwire, once a hot company in the age of WiMAX, fell off of the map fairly quickly after it became crystal clear that LTE was the future of 4G. But recently, it has become a hot commodity. Both Sprint and Dish have been flinging dirt over who was going to take it over, and after Dish finally got fed up and walked away, Sprint moved in for the kill. And now, Sprint has its most promising sign yet: a stamp of approval from the FCC. The Federal Communications Commission announced this week that it has voted unanimously to approve the applications filed by SoftBank, Sprint and Clearwire related to their transactions announced...
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Rural broadband is becoming a serious issue, and it's not just the government taking notice. Private for-profit companies are as well, with Dish Network and nTelos being the latest two. Following last month's announcement of their intent to co-develop a fixed wireless broadband service, Dish and nTelos have now deployed broadband service in rural Virginia using wireless spectrum in the 2.5 GHz range. Broadband service speeds at the initial test sites are ranging from 20 Mbps to more than 50 Mbps. As part of the demonstration, nTelos and DISH have activated two wireless tower test sites in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Waynesboro and Afton, Va. Ericsson and Alcatel-Lucent have provided equipment...
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Hate ads? Wish you could just skip 'em all, the Super Bowl notwithstanding? Get ready for your DVR. DISH just announced nationwide availability of the all-new Hopper DVR with built-in Sling whole-home HD DVR functionality. Outside of being able to placeshift content anywhere due to the integrated Sling capabilities, users will also be able to tap into DVR'd content through the DISH Anywhere app. With these features customers can watch their live and recorded home television content on Internet-connected tablets, smartphones and PCs at no additional charge. It'll also let users download DVR content to mobile products, and with the free Hopper Transfers app, viewers can move recorded television...
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We haven't heard of too many busy professionals of late that have too much time, and no way to adequately watch all of the great television that's coming out these days. But, if you're looking for a way to soak in even more entertainment, DISH has today introduced the DISH Explorer app for iPad. It's described as a second-screen app for the Hopper whole-home HD DVR platform. It's built to combine program-discovery tools, social media engagement and remote-control capabilities. It'll be available in the App Store tomorrow, and will allow viewers to discover what shows are trending at the moment (including sporting events, across hundreds of live-TV channels, DVR recordings and on-demand programs),...
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Sad days for Blockbuster. The once mighty video rental chain has fallen on hard times in a world where Netflix, VUDU and other video streaming services are proving more affordable and convenient. There was, however, a glimmer of hope. Charlie Ergen had planned to have Dish Network acquire Blockbuster from bankruptcy in April of 2011, and then morph it into a Netflix rival. His master plan was to equip Blockbuster stores with Dish mobile devices that could then be used to stream Blockbuster movies. The plan didn't work out. U.S. regulators weren't willing to immediately approve a waiver for Dish to use its spectrum in new ways, and slowly, time took its toll. Now, according to a Bloomberg report,...
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These days, it seems that wires don't have much of a future. Just as soon as we can figure out wireless power, the future will be upon us. In the meantime, things like LTE have proven that wireless technologies don't have to play second fiddle to wireline technologies. Now, DISH Network is launching dishNET broadband, which aims to bring high-speed internet to rural places in America with slow or no access today. Naturally, they're also hoping to bundle this with DISH TV services all the while. But focused on broadband, it'll go up against HughesNet (a historically slow service) offering "4G-level services." Given that LTE is faster than even some DSL connections, it's quite possible that rural...
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What does DISH Network and Qualcomm have in common? A lot, evidently. DISH today announced a fairly major collaboration with Qualcomm, which will enable support of satellite-based communications in Qualcomm's Snapdragon S4 MSM8960 platform, the world's first dual-core solution with an integrated multi-mode 3G/LTE modem, for use in future DISH wireless devices. The new satellite air interface technology developed by Qualcomm is a 3G-based standard referred to as Enhanced Geostationary Air Link (EGAL). This initiative will enable the development of mobile handsets and devices for DISH that can operate in both terrestrial and satellite modes in the 2 GHz/AWS-4 band. What's that mean, exactly? It...
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Dish Network has a new “PrimeTime Anytime” feature that’s part of a whole-home DVR service called “Hopper”. The service lets you access Fox, NBC, CBS, and ABC primetime content from the last eight days on demand and record up to six programs simultaneously with a storage capacity of up to 2,000 hours of content. However, one little bonus feature called AutoHop has a team of broadcasters hopping mad. Simply put, AutoHop automatically skip commercials on recorded content, unlike typical DVR programming that requires the user to fast forward with the remote control. Apparently, Fox, NBC, and CBS think that AutoHop isn’t so much a handy DVR feature as it is unlicensed...
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Commercials and DVRs don't really mix. Honestly, snagging a DVR is one of the best things you can do if you've no interest in sitting through ads. And somebody in the business knows it. Dish Network subscribers will now get the feature viewers have been waiting for since the beginning of television -- the choice to automatically skip over commercials. The new "Auto Hop" capability for the Hopper whole-home HD DVR system is being activated today, and it allows customers to skip all commercials for most recorded primetime HD programs shown on ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC when viewed the day after airing. It's kind of crazy that Dish is pimping this so hard, and we're pretty sure some flack will be felt...
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DISH Network announced that it closed on two acquisitions today: satellite providers DBSD North America, Inc. and TerreStar Networks, Inc. The company has been working on this since at least last summer, and now the details have apparently been nailed down. DISH has shelled out $3 billion to get the spectrum it wants to launch its own 4G network to compete with the likes of Verizon and AT&T, and perhaps even Netflix on the streaming video front. There’s still a huge hurdle in the form of FCC approval, however. In a press release that we’re pretty sure was penned by a DISH Network lawyer, the company stated: DISH looks forward to working with the FCC on its forthcoming Notice of...
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TV-to-iPad streaming isn't as far-fetched as it once was. Many pay-TV providers have hopped on this bandwagon in a bid to keep customers from cutting the cord, and now even DISH Network is following suit. The company announced today it has enhanced its DISH Remote Access app for the iPad to allow DISH customers to watch thousands of on-demand streaming movies and TV shows. DISH customers who subscribe to the Blockbuster @Home package or select premium movie packages, including HBO and Cinemax, can now watch popular movies, TV shows and kid's programming using the updated DISH Remote Access app on their iPad. Streaming movies and TV shows using the enhanced DISH Remote Access app requires a DISH...
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In April, Dish Network acquired Blockbuster. Since then, there has been plenty of speculation as to what Dish would do with Blockbuster and its assets. We already know Dish will keep 600 Blockbuster stores open, and now we're learning of other possible plans. Word has it that Dish Network is planning to roll out a streaming service using the Blockbuster brand that will compete with Netflix. To offer this service, Dish plans to use an existing infrastructure that currently delivers on-demand movies to its customers. The new service could offer classic and archive movies as well as newer, on-demand titles that are currently available to Dish Network subscribers. The new service is also expected...
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TerreStar Networks started with a big dream. A dream to provide sat-phone communications to all who wanted it. Turns out, not too many people want it, or at leas they don't want to pay for it. Now, the company has selected Dish Network as the opening bidder in an upcoming bankruptcy-court auction. Why? Because Dish offered a whopping $1.375 billion for their mobile communications business. It's a super serious offer. According to the Wall Street Journal, Dish will be hit with a staggering $27.5 million "breakup fee" if TerreStar chooses to sell to someone else at this point, and any other suitor must top the offer by at least $55.5m in order to "outbid" Dish Network. If Dish wins, that sum will...
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Well, it's not exactly the ideal way to add cash to the coffers, but given TiVo's struggles, they'll take it. A release was put out this week noting that TiVo would soon be taking home $500 million courtesy of Dish Network and EchoStar, who have agreed to pony up half a billion dollars to settle ongoing patent litigation. Under the terms of the settlement, DISH Network and EchoStar agreed to pay TiVo $500 million, including an initial payment of $300 million with the remaining $200 million distributed in six equal annual installments between 2012 and 2017. As part of the deal, TiVo, DISH Network and EchoStar agreed to dismiss all pending litigation between the companies with prejudice and to...
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Would you invest any time or money into Blockbuster at this point? It would take a really bold (or really rich...or really bored) person to say "yes," but Dish Network must fit that criteria. The company has just decided to broaden their scope when it comes to Blockbuster, and that apparently means taking over around 500 Blockbuster leases. Dish will soon by BB's parent, and they're agreeing now to take over 500 physical stores as they consider ways to turn things around in a world obsessed with digital downloads. The report was spotted in Dish's recently filed papers with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court Southern District of New York, coming around a month after Dish won an auction for BB valued at...
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