I am getting a satellite dish...now a little advice please

I will give you the information for Dish network. Somebody else will have to give the info for Directv.

Univision and Galavision and - starting May 29 - telefutura are available in one of Dish's basic programming packages - America's Top 100 (http://www.dishnetwork.com/content/..._100/index.asp?viewby=1&packid=10041&sortby=1 ) - which costs $33.99/month OR in the Dish Latino package ( http://www.dishnetwork.com/content/...tino/index.asp?viewby=1&packid=10092&sortby=1 ) which costs $21.99/month (if you go with the Latino package, you'll also get Telemundo, Fox Sports Espanol, and - I didn't see this until just now - GolTV). There are other Latino packages which also include these channels plus some English channels. You should check the Dish site for more info.

Fox Sports World is only available in the America's Top 150 package ( http://www.dishnetwork.com/content/..._150/index.asp?viewby=1&packid=10045&sortby=1 ) which costs $42.99/month and requires a "Dish 500" dish (which I think is almost standard equipment these days anyway).

RAI International is available on Dish (I know this channel is not on DirecTV) for $9.99/month.

Dish has not made any announcement that they will carry ESPN Deportes. I believe Directv has announced they WILL be carrying it. Dish has a habit of playing hardball in network negotiations to try and drive their costs down, but this means things like this sometimes take time to happen. I think Dish will probably carry ESPN Deportes - eventually - but I'm not making any bet on when.

 

Options for DISH Network

First off, soccertv.com usually has good information


I can't really speak for DirectTV but for DISH:

Univision and Galavision are on the Latino packages and Top 100 or 150. I think I heard Telefutura will be added in late May, in time for Confed Cup.

Supposedly DISH and DirectTV are in negotiations to get ESPNDeportes on the regular packages. I think its on a DirectTV Latino package already.

RAI is $10 extra/month and lots of other international channels are available too. But you need an extra dish (no, not just the dish 500) to get the internationals.

If FSW is that low on your priority list then you might just want to go with one of the Latino packages and get FSW Espanol. I can't remember exactly what leagues it covers - mostly South America, no EPL, maybe Spain. The Latino package also gets you GolTV so you can see every other South American league.

If you want Fox Sports World (regular) on DISH - and alot of us do - you've got to shell out the $42/mo for the Top 150 package. (I need my EPL fix, personally.) If Telefutura and ESPN Deportes get added then it has everything you want except RAI.

The cheapeast Latino package is $22, and they might add ESPN Deportes to that - it already has FSWE, GolTV, Univ, Gala, and might get Telefutura added. If you don't need FSW this might work. Another option is to start with the cheap Latino package (to meet your Confed and Gold Cup needs) and then upgrade later if you need FSW. Package upgrades are free, downgrades cost $5.

I hear somewhat better things about DISH service compared to DirectTV, though DirectTV is the cheapest way to get just FSW. And DirectTV looks like getting bought by Rupert Murdoch, who owns Fox, and that might signal good soccer things in the future for people on his system, or bad things for people with a DISH. (A much longer term concern.)

You'd get the DISH 500, dunno about receivers.

Hope this helps.

 

I guess we were posting at the same time, supersoft. One correction - RAI does not require an extra dish. I get it fine on my Dish500. They have threatened to move it in the past, but for whatever reason (huge existing install base among Italian-Americans is my guess), it has never happened.

 

Excellent. That scared me away from it before, maybe I'll have to reconsider ...

 

When I had Direct TV before (can't receive it here),
I found that despite what some will say, they will "bargain" with you on the package for individual stations especially if they know you have not decided on them or Dish yet.
You may be able to get Fox Sports World and Fox Sports World Espanol (largely different programing) at a much lower rate than getting all the packages that would be required to get most of the soccer available.
If they know your main interest is getting as much of the sport as possible, they will bargain with you.
At least they did in my case.

 

For DirecTV, here is what you would need.

Basic package - either "Total Choice" or "Total Choice Plus" with or without "Local Channels", will run you from $34-40/month.

Univision and Galavision are part of all of these basic packages.

There is also the "DirecTV Para Todos" package, which appears to be priced the same as the "Total Choice" packages listed above, with some extra Spanish-only channels. You need a multi-dish satellite to get these extra channels.

I don't see Telefutura on the list for any of these packages. Or ESPN Deportes, but that hasn't started yet, right? When ESPN Deportes starts, it will most likely only be available as part of the "DirecTV Para Todos" package instead of any of the "Total Choice" packages.

For Fox Sports World (in English), you need to add the "Sports Pack" at $12/month (maybe less if you also add additional premium services, like the HBO pack, the Starz pack, etc.)

For Fox Sports en Espanol, it's in the "DirecTV Para Todos" package.

For RAI, I don't think you can get it on DirecTV. My understanding is that DISH Network is much better for random foreign stuff like RAI than DirecTV.

 

Taken from www.soccertv.com :

***
ESPN Deportes to launch full time in Q3
September 23, 2002 (updated March 26, 2003)
...

ESPN Deportes is currently available to about 13 million US TV households on Sunday nights via analog or digital cable in selected areas, as well as via DirecTV Para Todos direct broadcast satellite TV. A "DirecTV Multi-Satellite" dish capable of receiving programming from both the 101 and 119 degrees longitude orbital positions, in addition to a DirecTV satellite receiver (manufactured after 1999) capable of receiving programming from multiple satellites, are required to receive DirecTV Para Todos programming.
***

 

The DirecTV site (link) does not list ESPN Deportes as one of the channels in the "DirecTV Para Todos" package.

Is it only on Sunday nights right now? Maybe DirecTV puts it on a channel which is only active one day per week or something screwy like that. When is it scheduled to go full-time?

 

DirecTV Para Todos subscribers currently get ESPN Deportes on Channel 426 on Sunday nights.

ESPN Deportes is scheduled to go full time in September if enough cable outfits sign on to carry the service. Otherwise, ESPN may delay the launch for a few months.

 

To build off of Jon Pall's query, I was wondering a few things:

1.) Which of the international channels offer the most "bang for the buck" when it comes to soccer?

2.) Do any of the int'l channels show European basketball?

3.) This is probably a silly question, but I've never quite understood why buying the sports packages is necessary. If you have a satellite, don't you get all the local FoxSports channels? If so, don't you automatically get virtually all of MLS/NBA/etc beamed to your house?

 

The local FoxSports channels black you out for many major sporting events (i.e. games that you can acquire through ppv or a subscription package like Shootout) if you are non-region.

I had the same idea, but . . . those satellite people are too clever by half.

 

Adding a question to this maelstrom:

Which channel is the better deal for soccer: Fox Sports World (I realize they have the EPL and Scottish leagues) or FSW Espanol (I realize they don't).

 

About the same. FSE has the Copa Libertadores, which is the only difference soccer-wise. FSE shows all the soccer FSW does but in spanish.

 

Was this down at your local Best Buy or over the phone or someplace else all together?

I want to get rid of my cable service which is too damn expensive.

 

Thought there were some leagues FSW carried such as the EPL that FSWE did not. Incorrect?

What about Gol TV?

 

Nope FSE shows EPL, just in spanish.

 

If there was any bargaining going on regarding programming packages, it was probably with the DirecTV customer service reps over the phone.

The local stores can offer packages (e.g. two rooms plus free installation for $99 or stuff like that) but the programming is all dealt with when you call DirecTV after you get everything installed and you can see channel 100. You call them, give them the serial numbers, your credit card, etc. and they set up your programming package.

This is where you *might* be able to say "hey, I really want to see Fox Sports World because I'm a big soccer fan, but I don't care about the rest of the sports pack, and *maybe*, if you get a CSR who is feeling particularly independent, they will be able to make you a deal. More often than not, however, you will be speaking to a drone who cannot tell you anything other than what is on the computer screen in front of them, and you will wind up with the full sports pack for $12/month even though you will only watch one of the 40 or so channels in the sports pack.

After you have had the service for a while, some people call up to say "hey, your service is bad, I want to cancel" and then they get transferred to "Customer Retention" -- these are the guys who can make you deals. "No no, don't go back to cable, let's see what we can do for you here."

There are other places on the Internet where you can get information. I have seen good stuff in the DirecTV forum of the Tivo Community (www.tivocommunity.com). There is probably a DirecTV or satellite TV forum out there where the real experts are.

 

billreeves

Thanks for the information, it is much appreciated.

Maybe this is the weekend I will finally get around to canceling my cable...

 

For the German Bundesliga, you'll have to stick with FSW. Even with the EPL, I've seen FSW broadcast a match that didn't play on FSWE. The difference is not just English vs Spanish. FSW has more of a European flavor while FSWE tends to focus more on Central and South America.

 

And remember, FSW/E tweaks its programming from year to year. The leagues it shows on each station could change by August.

 

FSE's EPL is no match to FSW's EPL. As far as I know, there are at least 3 EPL games that's on FSW but not shown on FSE.

- the occasional 2nd EPL game on Saturday (the one that's shown at 15:00 ET or 12:00 PT)
- the Sunday delayed game
- the Saturday PPV game that would be shown on FSW on Wednesday

In other words, you can get as many as 5 EPL games on FSW while you can only get 2 on FSE: the Saturday game and the Monday game.

And I haven't even mentioned the EPL highlight show on FSW that you don't get on FSE.

No EPL fan would be satisfied with the EPL coverage on FSE.

 

It was over the phone. I played the "I just can't decide" person and let them know my main concern was getting as much soccer as I could for as little as possible and the winner would be the service that gave me that.

 

hey guys
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i've got digital cable with the high-speed internet right now. however, the price for these two just went up to $85, and i think that's ridiculous (especially considering the only channels i get that ever show soccer are espn and espn2).

so, since the high-speed connection is $40 per month (without the cable tv), would you recommend getting the dish 150 so i can get fox sports world and the other soccer channels? (i'm most interested in seeing the EPL and La Liga, but i'll watch anything.)

i live in a 4 family condominium, so i'm not even sure if this is an option. (does anybody know how this will affect me?)

well, i suppose that's it. please give me some feedback if you know anything about this stuff. thanks.

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christopher