As in the Internet of Everything comes closer and closer with lamps, refrigerators and TVs all connected and sharing data, it’s only natural for the media-first companies to look to dip their toe into this growing sector.

Home service isn’t dead — as Blockbuster Video has claimed — it’s just changing, and the constantly changing tech organizations are no doubt going to be most prepared to fill the void.

DISH Network has been pushing the frontier ahead here in this regard. The idea all started within Dish’s in-home service and manufacturing department, the group who was managing going into customers homes every day, in thousands of households across America.

Carlson explain his idea in the Denver Post:

“The aha moment for me was several years back. We touch thousands of TVs every day, and I didn’t think we did a good job cleaning those,” recalled Carlson, Dish’s executive vice president for in-home service and manufacturing operations. “The idea of the screen cleaner was born.”

Today, Dish technicians wipe their fingerprints off TVs with a Dish-branded HDTV Cleaning Kit and then ask customers if they’d like a kit of their own. The $15 kit is one of the most popular items sold by technicians, who, besides installing satellite dishes, can set up a home’s wireless network, hang big-screen TVs on the wall and even untangle a mess of cords.

Smart Home Services has become a “multimillion-dollar business,” Carlson added. Last year, technicians completed 1.5 million installations beyond the satellite dish.

“Not only do we add a little revenue to the company, but it provides a great service and an opportunity for our technicians,” he said.

Dish has been growing in the arena ever since, and it’s evolved into more than just selling cleaning supplies, but also into “Geek Squad”-type computer home repair, install, and even wireless networks.

In this sense, DISH already has a double head start up on competitors in the home-services area, not only do they already have the infrastructure on the ground from their installation crews, but they’re naturally built to forray into the digital world, and DISH is already a pioneer here with their latest Sling TV.

As the internet of things grows, there’s going to be even more disruption to this industry, but one thing seems to be certain, it’s the tech and web providers like DISH that will be there.

Categories: DISH & TV news