Dish will install your smart home gadgets for a flat fee
You don't need to be an existing customer.
Dish is having another go at the smart home. The satellite TV provider has been offering smart technology installation services to its own customers for years, but today it launches OnTech, a service that will set up a whole range of devices for you, whether you're an existing customer or not.
OnTech technicians can help install everything from smart locks and video doorbells to mesh WiFi networks and multi-room audio. Most installations cost a flat $99 and can be booked for the same day, although bigger jobs will cost slightly more. Partner brands include the likes of Google Nest, WeMo, Yale and Klipsch, and if you don't already have the gear ready for installation you can purchase it through OnTech and the technician will bring it along with them.
It's not an unsurprising move from Dish. Its pay-TV business hasn't been doing particularly well so it's been in the market for new revenue streams. It makes sense that Dish would leverage its ongoing relationships with products such as the Amazon Alexa -- as well as its existing presence inside customers' homes -- to provide a service that falls somewhere between contract-based subscription services and "concierge services", such as Best Buy's GeekSquad. OnTech will initially launch in 11 regions, including areas in Missouri, Texas, Utah, Georgia, California, Colorado and New York.
