Post by dkennedy on May 9, 2007 6:23:13 GMT -5
EchoStar Blasts Comcast On HD Ads
The satcaster says cable op is losing credibility.
May 9, 2007
By Phillip Swann, tvpredictions.com
One week after the launch of a Comcast ad campaign saying that dish owners prefer its high-def picture to satellite, EchoStar has finally offered a retort.
In a shareholders meeting yesterday, EchoStar CEO Charlie Ergen said Comcast's boast hurts the cable operator's credibility, according to an article in The Rocky Mountain News.
"That's not what our customers tell us," Ergen said, referring to Comcast's contention that satellite customers by a 2-1 margin picked Comcast's high-def picture over both DIRECTV and EchoStar.
In the ad, Comcast cited a Frank N. Magid Associates study conducted in March 2007 that said respondents were shown high-def signals from Comcast, DIRECTV and EchoStar. and asked to rate each screen.
According to the Magid study, Comcast was the preferred choice of the three.
Ergen charged that Comcast is making the claim because the cable operator is losing customers to satellite TV services.
"Most cable executives have satellite (TV) in their homes," he said, according to the Rocky Mountain News.
In other remarks Tuesday, Ergen said he was not surprised that News Corp.'s Rupert Murdoch swap his stake in DIRECTV with Liberty Media.
"Murdoch loved DIRECTV, but he loves News. Corp. more," Ergen said, according to the newspaper.
The satellite executive also that EchoStar this year will introduce a Digital Video Recorder that can store up to 500 hours of programming.
The satcaster says cable op is losing credibility.
May 9, 2007
By Phillip Swann, tvpredictions.com
One week after the launch of a Comcast ad campaign saying that dish owners prefer its high-def picture to satellite, EchoStar has finally offered a retort.
In a shareholders meeting yesterday, EchoStar CEO Charlie Ergen said Comcast's boast hurts the cable operator's credibility, according to an article in The Rocky Mountain News.
"That's not what our customers tell us," Ergen said, referring to Comcast's contention that satellite customers by a 2-1 margin picked Comcast's high-def picture over both DIRECTV and EchoStar.
In the ad, Comcast cited a Frank N. Magid Associates study conducted in March 2007 that said respondents were shown high-def signals from Comcast, DIRECTV and EchoStar. and asked to rate each screen.
According to the Magid study, Comcast was the preferred choice of the three.
Ergen charged that Comcast is making the claim because the cable operator is losing customers to satellite TV services.
"Most cable executives have satellite (TV) in their homes," he said, according to the Rocky Mountain News.
In other remarks Tuesday, Ergen said he was not surprised that News Corp.'s Rupert Murdoch swap his stake in DIRECTV with Liberty Media.
"Murdoch loved DIRECTV, but he loves News. Corp. more," Ergen said, according to the newspaper.
The satellite executive also that EchoStar this year will introduce a Digital Video Recorder that can store up to 500 hours of programming.