MOONVES MAY YANK CBS OFF DISH NETWORK

CBS chief Les Moonves vowed on Wednesday to yank his network’s programming off DISH network if the satellite distributor continues to offer its Hopper DVR to subscribers. “Hopper cannot exist,” Moonves said at an investors conference in Beverly Hills. “If Hopper exists, we will not be in business with [DISH] — it’s pure and simple. […]

REPORT: DISH TO OFFER HIGH-SPEED INTERNET SERVICE

For years, satellite services have been held back by a significant handicap in their competition with cable providers: they have been unable to offer customers high-speed Internet services. That may be about to change. According to published reports, DISH Network plans to launch its own satellite-based broadband service by the end of the year using […]

DIRECTV’S STRATEGY IN VIACOM DISPUTE SLAMMED

DirecTV may have blundered when it began telling subscribers on which websites they could find content from Viacom’s channels, after the channels went black on the satellite provider this week. BTIG analyst Richard Greenfield noted on Wednesday that DirecTV had only succeeded in calling attention to the fact that, unlike its cable competitors, it cannot […]

BSKYB MAY DEAL COUP DE GRACE TO NETFLIX

In an apparent bid to land a preemptive strike against Netflix just as the online movie renter ramps up its service in the U.K., News Corp-controlled BSkyB said today (Tuesday) that it plans to launch an Internet version of its Sky Movies package. Customers will be be able to pay for a monthly subscription that […]

DISH MAY LAUNCH NETFLIX-LIKE STREAMING SERVICE

Taking to heart the old adage, If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em, the DISH satellite company is planning to launch an online video streaming service to rival Netflix’s, CEO Joseph Clayton has told Bloomberg News. The service would presumably be an extension of the one Blockbuster already offers. (DISH acquired Blockbuster in a bankruptcy […]

NEWS CORP (FOX), DIRECTV MAKE PEACE

In a rerun of the ending of similar battles between broadcast networks and satellite and cable distributors, News Corp and DirecTV have reached an agreement that will keep Fox-owned networks on the satellite broadcaster without interruption. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but DirecTV has claimed that Fox had been demanding a 40 percent […]

CANADIAN CABLERS, BROADCASTERS UNITE OVER NETFLIX

Representatives of Canadian cable-TV and satellite providers, local broadcasters, film producers and unions are scheduled to hold “crisis” talks in Ottawa today (Friday) to discuss the entry of Netflix into their territory. Last year, the online video rental company launched a “streaming only” service in the country for $7.99 a month, but unlike other outlets, […]

U.S. PAY-TV SHOWS TO AIR ON NEW SATELLITE CHANNEL IN U.K.

Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp-controlled BSkyB has reached deals with Time Warner and CBS Corp. to bring content from their HBO and Showtime pay-TV channels to its Sky Atlantic satellite channel in the U.K. beginning next month. In an announcement today (Wednesday), Sky Atlantic said that the channel will showcase U.S. programs, including such original fare […]

“CORD CUTTING” NO SIGNIFICANT FACTOR, SAYS CBS RESEARCH CHIEF

CBS’s chief ratings tracker David Poltrack has dismissed concerns by some pay-TV analysts that TV viewers are likely to drop cable-TV and satellite service and opt for downloading or streaming shows via the Internet. In fact, Poltrack told the 38th annual UBS Global Media and Communications Conference in New York, rather than cutting the cords […]

DISH WILL DISH OUT TV SHOWS ONLINE

The DISH satellite network said Tuesday that its subscribers will now be able to watch live TV shows and those they recorded on their DVRs via the Internet. DISHOnline.com will also offer thousands of additional movies, TV shows and clips from numerous cable-TV networks — all without charge to paying subscribers the company said. Dave […]

Next Page »