DIRECTV is countering the new Dish Network Free HD for Life program with their own offer. The new program which started on June 5th gives the green light to new customers who sign up for the Choice package or higher, throwing in the high definition channel content at no extra charge.
New DIRECTV subscribers who want the free HD channels will have to meet terms similar to the Dish Network Free HD program. First off, a two year agreement is required, with substantial penalties if you do not keep service for the full term. Next, you have to agree to Auto bill pay, meaning your monthly payment will be directly debited from your bank account or charged to a credit card about the same time each month. DIRECTV is not requiring customers to enroll in paperless billing, so you can still get a hard copy of your statement with their Free HD program.
DIRECTV is touting several advantages of their Free HD program that supposedly beat Dish Network, such as lower monthly receiver fees and no pre-payment for service, (Dish Network recently began charging for the first month’s charge) but there is one massive problem with the offer. It is only available to NEW CUSTOMERS!
Ahhhh yes….the old “Give the new customer a better deal than the existing customer” game. DIRECTV has no provision at this time to offer Free HD to those who may have paid thousands, if not tens of thousands of dollars to them over the course of the past ten years. While the Dish deal is primarily targeted at new subscribers as well, there is a provision in place for existing Dish Network customers to get in on the offer.
I don’t expect the current DIRECTV HD deal to stick for long. As DIRECTV subscribers who are paying $10 a month for HD find out that new customers are not being charged, they will call and complain. DIRECTV will probably soon move to a model similar to the Dish Network Free HD plan, enroll in Auto Pay and you will get the standard HD channels free with your package. The current Free HD program is scheduled to run through July 21st, while the Dish Network plan is set to run a few months longer.
As a side note, DIRECTV is not including the HD Extra Pack into the promotion, which includes some of the best HD channels like Smithsonian HD and HDNet Movies.
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{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
I work for DISH Network, so I spend a lot of time staying up to date on other providers plans, and offers. Why only offer HD free for life on certain packages? or just to your new customers? DISH Network HD free for life, is EVERY HD package, from the smallest to the largest for free, already a customer? With Directv that’s a problem you can only ahve it for 2 years for free, but with DISH, you got it.
While DirecTV is now trying to countermand DISH’s HD Free for Life offer, they fall short in a few categories. First, DISH Network (my employer and TV provider) offers HD Free to all customers. In addition to this, DISH does not require any sort of programming in order to be eligible. DirecTV chooses to force it’s customers to sign up for a more expensive programming package (running around $115/mo) in order to qualify. This, plus the additional receiver fees and up to $25/mo in hidden equipment charges, leave DISH standing alone as the leader in Satellite HD. Offering the most channels and the best rates, take a look at Dishnetwork.com to find out more!!
Wow Erik, it looks like you are taking the lead of Dish Network management and spreading lies about the competition.
It may be true that Dish Network offers free HD to all customers, though there are certainly strings attached to the deal. Next up and absolute lie about Direct TV requiring customers to sign up for the $115 a month package for free HD. The Premier package is what I assume you are referring to, but you can get Free HD for life with the Choice Xtra and Choice Ultimate packages as well, which are anywhere from $60 to $70 a month, or around $40 during the first year.
Finally, are you saying that Dish NEtwork doesn’t charge for extra equipment? What $25 a month in hidden equipment charges are you talking about. Dish Network hiked equipment fees significantly in 2010, charging as much as $14 a month for a second HD DVR. All providers, whether cable or satellite are going to charge you for extra boxes, so get off of your high horse and admit you are in the same boat as Direct TV.
Oh and I would love to hear your explanation of Dish Networks 200 HD channels. With more than 70 of them being PPV movies, thats probably one of the biggest lies in HD out there today. They even put it right here on their website:
http://www.dishnetwork.com/200hd/default.aspx
Look on the bottom right corner where it says: “Plus 74 DISH Cinema HD channels”
Well Clark, let me add a little to this, their were error is that previous post, HD free for life is available for Directv new customers on all packages except the choice package, which now is 60.99, there free HD starts on the next package up choice+ 64.99. Which is 20.00 more then the basic package of DISh which you still get free HD on. And sine my post on this site was about the HD free for life, let me reiterate that part before we move on. As per the article, the only thing that was worht mentioning different about the companies (IN THIS POST) was the fact that Directv does not offer free HD for life to its existing customers, they only get it for 2 years.
So moving on to the HD channel count, yes, their PPV channels in our list, as you said it is right there in the list, and it goes into the whole HD content, it is on a channel, and you make it sound like DISH is the only company that does this, I was comparing HD lists today between both, and Direct has the same thing on their list except they only have 36 PPV channels, and on that note, Xfinity claims on all its commercials is has thousands of hours HD content, there they do it just as hours instead of channels, but in that you are right, and Directv does the same thing as well.
So I do hope you loved my explanation of it. Every company adds in “CONTENT” into their total, whether its their channels of PPV, or their online portal.
Now the 14.00 for the second receiver, you do know that is a DUO receiver that controls two tv’s correct? And the first receiver that control 2 tv’s as well would be free. So if you have 2 tv’s and only need 1 HD tv, you get a duo receiver, which works 2 TV’s, and has no extra charge per month. With Direct, the second TV is 6.00 a month now that they gone through their price increase. If you have a 4 TV setup, and you needed 2 HD tv’s and 2 SD tv’s, you receiver fees for DISH would be 14.00 where as Direct would be 15.00.
And finally, the 25.00 in fees, this one I had to look for, but I did find it and that was going over the fees for DVR $7.00 Whole home DVR $3.00 2nd Receiver $5.00 and HD package $10.00. Of course if you get HD free for life, that would change.
I am glad I got to see you point of view in this, and I hope that I was able to clear up anything left in the clouds, but if I didn’t let me know and we will get in answered for you.
Dish Network is a scam, you see all over the TV and INTERNET about how they offer HD free for life.
This in fact is not true they only offer free HD for life if you sign a 2 year agreement and/or pay a one time fee of $100 so were does the FREE come into it.
They are a joke their false statements alone make me stick with my local cable company, at least if I am not satisfied with it I can call and cancel without having to pay a huge payo out fee.