DirecTV and EchoStar bringing WiMax service to US?
By Paul Miller 
posted Jan 30th 2006 5:10PM
posted Jan 30th 2006 5:10PM
It used to be that all the cool kids had to
have their own triple play services, but now it seems as if
you're hardly a player if you can't offer voice, data, and TV to your subscriber base. According to TheStreet.com,
satellite rivals DirecTV and EchoStar are partnering up to roll out a wireless broadband
network that would allow them to compete with the cable companies and telecoms for data and voice. Seems like WiMax
would be the logical choice for technology, and the word is that upwards of $1 billion could be poured into a domestic
rollout, with plans forming over the coming months.[Via Techdirt]
Bring on the comp, more=better.
Though I'm not sure I'd trust DirecTV, it'd be hard for them to do worse than Charter.
I know that if DirecTV can compete (price wise) with my Comcast service, I would be more than willing to switch. DirecTV has better selection for the $$ but Comcast gives me a great deal by bundling the services.
BTW, I this month's bill is $69.58 and that gives me Limited Basic cable TV, HDTV Digital Cable box rental, and CHSI Speed Tier Service (8 megabit down, 368 megabit upload). Hard to beat!
I had Dish Network for years and my only complaint was when bad weather struck my signal either sucked or didn't exist. Exactly what wireless or tower deals are they striking and how reliable would phone service be in foul weather?
I only switched to cable because the deal for bundled tv/data/voice service was so much more affordable. Cable is also the only choice for broadband (not even loop qualifed for dsl herein the boonies). If I could drop cable and go back to dish I'd do it in a heartbeat, I'll keep my eye on this one...
WiMax
::drooool::
This is sweet i live down the street from Charlie Ergen (CEO of Echostar) and broadband is not available in our neighborhood, this means that I will have the opportunity to get this, This makes my day!!
Well there's no secret in the way they run their business - IT IS ALL ABOUT MONEY. Unless it is funded by tax payers service cannot be cheap.
Don't expect anything from a public company - all it matters for them is a stock price. Just look at Howard Stern and his sweet stock option deal with Sirius...
#3 - in the boonies you still have access to satellite internet. It's come a long way over the last several years. Wildblue provides me with a consistent 1.5 Mb down and 256Kb up. Not as good as cable, mind you, but WAY faster than dialup. It's gone down about 3 times in two months due to weather and I live in a place where we get lots of rain and frequent heavy storms.
Now WiMax would be grand but I won't expect it for a while, if ever. It's fun to think about though!