[opendtv] News: DTV Converter Box announcements
- From: Craig Birkmaier <craig@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: OpenDTV Mail List <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 8 Jan 2008 08:38:57 -0500
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6517714.html?display=Breaking+News&referral=SUPP&nid=2228
EchoStar, Sling Media Unveil $39.99 DTV-to-Analog Converter
By John Eggerton & Glen Dickson -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/7/2008 11:30:00 PM
It looks like the price of a digital-TV-to-analog converter box just
went down to essentially nothing for those with government-subsidized
coupons.
EchoStar Communications announced Monday that it teamed up with Sling
Media to brand a converter box that it said will comply with the
National Telecommunications & Information Administration's
specifications for devices that can be covered entirely by the
NTIA's subsidized $40 coupons.
And at a price of $39.99 at retail, according to EchoStar, it will
cost only the price of the sales tax, if any, on the box. And in the
handful of states without sales tax, the government could even save a
penny.
The news came as the the 2008 International Consumer Electronics Show
opened in Las Vegas, where the NTIA is unveiling its coupon -- more
like a gift card with magnetic strip and security hologram -- which
households could start applying for -- up to two per household --
Jan. 1.
The boxes have been expected to retail for $50-$70, but EchoStar may
have just changed those price points.
EchoStar said it would also market a higher-end box
with digital-video-recorder functionality (DVR boxes do not qualify
for the coupons).
EchoStar chairman Charlie Ergen agreed that the TR-40's price point
is "a dramatic announcement," considering LG Electronics' price point
of $59.95, and conceded that EchoStar would lose money on the
product. But he said that if the product is successful, it will free
up broadcast spectrum, which is of benefit to everyone, and perhaps
buy EchoStar a little goodwill when a free-over-the-TV viewer decides
to step up to a pay TV service.
"No company has really stepped up to make this transition happen," he
added. "We're saying that we will make a product available for
$39.99, and there's no reason the digital transition can't take
place."
The TR-40 -- which will be sold under both the EchoStar and Sling
brands -- will be sold at online, at EchoStar retailers and at the
5,000 brick-and-mortar retailers that currently sell Slingboxes,
Sling chairman, founder and CEO Blake Krikorian said.
The higher-end TR-50 won't be eligible for the NTIA coupon, as it has
an internal hard drive for DVR functionality. EchoStar hasn't release
pricing for that model, but Ergen said that product wouldn't lose
money and speculated that at "$59.95, maybe we make a little money."
The NTIA-compliant TR-40 converter box will be available "in limited
quantities" starting in March, said EchoStar, with "unlimited
quantities" starting in June.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6517843.html?display=Breaking+News&referral=SUPP&nid=2228
NTIA OKs 19 DTV-to-Analog Converter Boxes, 250-Plus Retailers
QVC Among Retailers Approved to Sell DTV-to-Analog Converter Boxes
By John Eggerton -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/7/2008 11:08:00 PM
The National Telecommunications & Information Administration told a
2008 International Consumer Electronics Show audience in Las Vegas
Monday that it certified 250 retailers, including QVC, and 19
digital-TV-to-analog converter boxes.
The NTIA Jan. 1 began handing out government-subidized $40 coupons
toward the purchase of the boxes -- up to two per household -- and
said Monday that it had already received more than 1 million requests
for more about 2 million boxes
QVC, the TV retailer, said it will provide a toll-free number for
viewers who want to use the coupons toward the boxes.
Others certified included Best Buy, Circuit City, Kmart, RadioShack,
Sam's Club, Sears, Roebuck and Wal-Mart.
The NTIA will begin mailing the coupons Feb. 17, one year out from
the DTV-to-analog switch, but some viewers may want to wait depending
on whether the anticipated $60 price point for the boxes comes down
in the wake of EchoStar Communications' announcement Monday of a
$39.99 box.
That box won't widely available until June. Unless someone steps up
with a similarly priced box before that, the coupons of the earliest
adopters could expire before the cheaper boxes hit most shelves.
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