January 21st, 2014
A new global network of sports channels, beIN Sports is making its name as the premiere source for worldwide football (i.e. soccer), joining Dish Latino and Dish Network in bringing first rate sports with an alternative style to more traditional sports broadcasting.
Displaying mostly international soccer events, beIN broadcasts famous European leagues such La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1, and the English Championship (the division below English Premier League in Britain). Not to miss out on tournament football, the Copa del Rey, World Cup qualifying, and even Barca TV will be shown throughout sporting seasons. Read more
Categories: DISH & TV news • Specials & Deals
December 30th, 2013
World governing bodies for soccer like FIFA and UEFA have been giving away gold for years with soccer, and recently they’ve been asking to get some of it back. FIFA, which famously gives out a golden trophy every four years in the FIFA World Cup, along with UEFA, which runs the Champions League competition between international club teams in Europe, have become much more aware and interested in their TV rights around the world, as they can earn huge fees for the television broadcast contracts for the World Cup scheduling in Brazil in the summer of 2014.
As reported by Emily Torres on CannonSatelliteTV.com earlier this year, TV broadcast rights are set to explode in 2014, and the 2010 cup brought in billions in revenue for FIFA.
The two organizations battled in the European Court of Justice this year and last over whether European countries would be able to broadcast the entire world cup schedule free-to-air to their citizens over common channels. The countries consider the games “of national interest” and believe they should be seen by anyone and everyone. FIFA/UEFA however, see the issue as a long term problem for grassroots soccer, which FIFA says the TV contracts eventually trickle down to.
“This decision not only distorts competition in a free market, but also reduces the possibility to generate income that can then be distributed to the amateur game via solidarity payments. And it is such a solidarity distribution that allows the development of football at all levels, including women’s and grassroots, and is crucial for the well-being of football at the base of its pyramid,” an official for UEFA said.
FIFA had been gearing up to sell the cup on a Pay-for-TV basis in Europe at least in 2018 for television channels.
The UK and Belgium, among others, argued that the knock-out portion of the tournament represents a national interest to their citizens, and therefore couldn’t only be sold to premium channels.
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The larger issue at hand is one of TV rights as digital media plunges ahead into the twenty-first century. There is much concern over where traditional media (like big time sporting events) is headed as technologies change and evolve.
For instance, say the digital market and landscape is beginning to move TV Drama to Netflix and HULU subscriptions instead of normal network TV. For most watchers, the technology change is of no issue. But what if it involves an elderly customer who isn’t as tech savvy? Or has never purchased anything online?
Users are still much less likely to pay for online content, even if it’s the same content at the same quality. Content providers can risk losing massive amounts of dollars, and views/customers, with a change in technology that doesn’t alter the content, but how it’s consumed. Many users want all their content on different digital outlets, while more old school customers want just the opposite. And this has huge effects on the profits of those providers.
Cultural events like the FIFA World Cup transcends sports, but they also need to be paid for. It will be interesting to see how the “pay by subscription” model could work with large cultural events like soccer in the future as media consumption moves towards newer (i.e. younger) technologies that aren’t as ubiquitous as television has been.
Info in this report from BBCÂ and CNBC.
Categories: DISH & TV news
December 11th, 2013
As always, here is your channel and info guide to all the NFL games on Dish Network for week 15 in the National Football League. You’ll find information on when and what channels on Dish you can find each game, and of course we’ll let you know which Dish Network markets carry which matchups. Be sure to check CannonSatelliteTV.com each week for updated and flexed schedule changes.
San Diego (+10.5) at Denver – Thursday – 8:25PMÂ NFL Network (56.5 +/-)
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Categories: DISH & TV news
December 6th, 2013
According to a London-based research firm, Dish Network’s 15% increase in customer service ranking over the last six months — the largest increase in the study — has propelled Dish into the top two of all TV providers in the United States.
Dish Network’s score is even more telling when compared to cable companies. The older form of home television consumption performed very poorly when compared to newer technologies like satellite and Dish Network. Comcast, Cablevision, Time Warner Cable and Cox all scored low.
The rankings and comparisons between the cable and satellite providers was based on a -100 to +100 scale — meaning a zero is a neutral score, and a +100 would mean 100% of a companies feedback was positive. Comcast scored a very low “1” and Time Warner Cable scored an abysmal -10, down from their negative -7 just a few months ago. Dish Network was one of the highest with +16%.
The study was based on extensive phone interviews and scientific polling surveys.
Categories: DISH & TV news
December 4th, 2013
Below is your channel and info guide to all the NFL games on Dish Network for week 14 in the National Football League. You’ll find information on when and what channels on Dish you can find each game, and of course we’ll let you know which Dish Network markets carry which matchups. Be sure to check CannonSatelliteTV.com each week for updated and flexed schedule changes.
Carolina (+3) at New Orleans – 8:30PM NBC (45.5 +/-)
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Categories: DISH & TV news
November 25th, 2013
Season 4 of The Sing-Off premieres on NBC December 9th on Dish Network this late fall, breathing some fresh life into the offseason lineup for those of us not interested in what Tom Brady is modelling or whether college football has a playoff.
Some in the entertainment business were surprised NBC green lit a fourth season considering they already have the ultra-successful The Voice, but with artist Jewel on board as a new judge, The Sing-Off looks to be going strong — something one might not have predicted throughout 2013.
There are two reasons for this doubt, albeit a tad contradictory: The first being the obvious fact that TV “reality singing competitionsâ€-type shows have saturated the market ever since American Idol dominated the ratings and took Reality TV down its current path — in other words, how long can the bubble last? And wouldn’t The Sing-Off probably be one of the first ones out?
The second is, this show actually has some substance, and (GASP) that doesn’t seem to matter much in Reality TV. (Unfortunately, Reality TV has proven quality isn’t necessary for ratings. And, as we’ve seen customers switching from cable and DirecTV to Dish Network to follow their favorite reality shows, with the same level of loyalty of sports fans — something no one ever saw coming — and it’s proven how powerful ratings can be, substance or not. It can shift entire modes of creative thought in TV writing.)
But, of course, this is why anyone who cares about quality television (not just the next fad), and (again, GASP) might even mildly care about the quality of the singing they watch on television — in the same way that old guys watching the NFL probably care about the impression it’s making on young football players around the country — should be excited that NBC kept the show going. There have been rumblings for a solid year or two that the bubble of singing competitions is ending, and they’re certainly not headed towards higher-quality competition/talent, but just whatever grabs ratings.
For instance, ABC just green lit an Israeli singing competition show. The main draw? Up-to-the-second voting in real time with an “app†on your smartphone or tablet.
Speed and coolness? Check. Will the show/talent actually be good? Well, I can’t answer that, but you don’t need a translator for my guess.
What’s so great about the continuation of The Sing-Off is that it does represent an actual quality look at singing and technique. Sure, it was probably created to go along with the singing competition fad, and the Reality TV spike in general, but at least it has some chops.
If you didn’t know, the whole show is a cappella, and all of the shows analysts and on-stage staff have solid a cappella backgrounds. If you know anything about singing, you know a cappella takes serious skill and practice. You can’t auto-tune your voice in a cappella. Duh.
Unlike ABC’s new Rising Star, The Sing-Off at least portrays a decent portrait of becoming a better singer — as much as a television show ever could. And, again at the very least, it’s a sign that good TV (or just quality content in general) that may not be a #1 ratings value, still has value nonetheless. And, most importantly, it has value that people will respond to.
If you’re into any of the competition singing shows, be sure to check out The Voice-Off this fall and winter, and remember that every time you watch a show, you’re voting with your clicks.
Categories: DISH & TV news
October 22nd, 2013
High definition television used to be something that was seen as a luxury as technology continued to develop. More HD TVs sat on the shelves of stores as passers-by simple looked at the sample images in complete jealousy and shock and the high prices back then. This isn’t quite the case anymore as HD viewing at home has become more of a regular feature than something you come across once in a while at the store or at a family/friend’s house.
Categories: DISH & TV news
October 17th, 2013
Listen to the music that you love can be difficult to come by these days with radio stations that are littered with commercial after commercial. What can be even more frustrating is not having as much control over what kind of music you want to dig into. Forget about the radio stations in your car for a minute, and take the time to learn about how music channels on DISH Network can bring you the best of all of you favorite music in a simple way.
Categories: DISH & TV news
October 7th, 2013
Maybe you’re already a residential customer of DISH Network and already know the wonderful advantages of being part of the DISH experience. While your home gets cutting-edge technology and hundreds of channels for everyone to enjoy, you can also bring the same level of entertainment into your own business.
Categories: DISH & TV news