DISH Network's New Promotion Comes With A \\\"Catch\\\"

DISH Network's New Promotion Comes With A "Catch"


Now, here's the catch! (Yes, Madeline, there's ALWAYS a catch!)


The 3 months of free programming come with a 24 month term agreement. (I cannot stress the importance of it enough: read your Customer Agreement!)


Understanding your Customer Agreement will lessen the misunderstandings and headaches.


A credit of $39.99 will be applied to customer’s 1st, 10th, and 20th month of service for a total value up to $119.97.


* Applicable to qualifying new customers with a 24-month term agreement,
* Customer must maintain AT100 or higher, DishLATINO or higher, or qualifying DishINTERNATIONAL programming,
* Offer is not available with DishFAMILY


Expiring Promotional Offers - The following promotions will expire January 31st, 2008


* DishHD Free for 6 Months
* HBO and Cinemax Free for 3 Months
* DishLATINO $10 for 10 Months
* DishINTERNATIONAL $10 for 10 Months


Good News, Bad News


While the longer contract of 24 months versus 18 months may not be to your liking, it is actually, dollar for dollar, a lot better than the old contract. Think about this a minute and do the math.


The good news is that with the 24 month committment, DISH Network will waive the $49.99 Activation Fee. While this looks good on the surface, remember also that new accounts won't see a credit for the same amount on their first month's bill. Okay... zero going in, zero going out. It's final, and it's even.


Overall, DISH Network has a much better repertoire of entertainment packages than DirecTV. Viewing a few comparison charts can give you a quick overview of the differences between DISH Network and DirecTV.


From local channels to cultural and international channels, DISH Network has a much better - and economical - set of packages from which to choose. DISH Network, truly, beats the competition "hands down." When it comes to package pricing, again, DISH Network beats the competition on price.


Do you like SIRIUS Music? Well, you can get that with DISH Network, but you can't get it with DirecTV. Order online? DISH Network, yes. DirecTV? Contact a dealer.


DISH Network will still deliver, install, and maintain their equipment for free. And now, with the 24 month contract, there will be no deposit. Not so with DirecTV. Last time I checked, DirecTV was still wanting almost $400 deposit for their equipment. Maybe I just called the wrong call center; who knows.


Funny I should mention this, but about a year ago I received a flier in the mail from DirecTV claiming to beat the competition on price. Well, the only competition DirecTV has is DISH Network. I also received an ad from DISH Network on the same day, and laid the two ads side by side on my dining room table. I didn't have to cock my head to see a glaring difference and quite a lot of untruth in DirecTV's ad. They weren't cheaper. As a matter of fact, they were $10 more expensive on their basic package, and as much as $20 higher on their premium package.


Needless to say, when I started pointing this out in my marketing campaigns, I saw subsequent ads come in with a "corrected" price and ad copy.


Hmmm... I don't think my marketing campaigns had anything to do with their sudden price change, but it would be nice to think so.


Overall, J.D. Powers still rates DISH Network Number One in customer satisfaction and service. Not to be prejudiced, while DISH Network has a lot of positives going for them, DirecTV has their strengths, too. Ordering online with both services is pretty much a "given" in that you can do it 24 hours a day. However, if you call in your order to a call center, Cannon DirecTV does not have a 24 hour call center. Their call center shuts down at midnight Eastern Standard Time Zone.


DISH Network at http://www.QuestarSatellite.com operates their call centers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. You can configure your order online with Questar Satellite, whereas with Cannon DirecTV you cannot.


And there is the "catch"... the consumer benefits with DISH Network is much better. But, you take your pick. Do it before February 17, 2009, because that is when broadcasters go 100% digital. If you don't have satellite or cable by then, you could be without TV.

Ernest O'Dell is a freelance writer and can be contacted at http://www.QuestarSatellite.com or http://www.QuestarCommunications.com, or by phone at: (806) 297-3241