How is Satellite tv these days? Comcast is scr*wing me!

[paperfist]

I have a question about Direct TV if anyone can answer. Best Buy & Circuit City are running that 'sale' where you get the dish and 3 room receivers basically for free. In the fine print though it says you get charged $5 a month extra for each receiver you have over the first one unless they are on separate phone lines. Can anyone elaborate on this? What is the phone line for anyway ordering pay per view movies and can you just hook up your cell phone for the other receivers to avoid the extra charges?

 

[Hyperfocal]

If you don't have all three receivers on the same phone line, you will be charged for a complete programming package for each box. The $5 per box fee is the better option. It's better than my cable company which charges $8 per month rental for each cable box.

They use the phone line to check that the boxes are properly authorized and that the user hasn't put in a pirated access card. They also use the phone line to check the pay per view usage, etc.

They require all the boxes to be on the same land line phone so you don't take one box to your brother's house and the other box to your grandmother's house and pay for only one account. Each box calls an 800 number once a month to upload the info and confirm that it is still authorized and they use the caller ID to make sure it is where it is supposed to be.

 

[paperfist]

Originally posted by: Hyperfocal
If you don't have all three receivers on the same phone line, you will be charged for a complete programming package for each box. The $5 per box fee is the better option. It's better than my cable company which charges $8 per month rental for each cable box.

They use the phone line to check that the boxes are properly authorized and that the user hasn't put in a pirated access card. They also use the phone line to check the pay per view usage, etc.

They require all the boxes to be on the same land line phone so you don't take one box to your brother's house and the other box to your grandmother's house and pay for only one account. Each box calls an 800 number once a month to upload the info and confirm that it is still authorized and they use the caller ID to make sure it is where it is supposed to be.

Cool thanks for the info. Seems like there is more fine print that I didn't see about not using the same phone line. hehe they get you one way or the other.

 

[Adul]

Originally posted by: Hyperfocal
If you don't have all three receivers on the same phone line, you will be charged for a complete programming package for each box. The $5 per box fee is the better option. It's better than my cable company which charges $8 per month rental for each cable box.

They use the phone line to check that the boxes are properly authorized and that the user hasn't put in a pirated access card. They also use the phone line to check the pay per view usage, etc.

They require all the boxes to be on the same land line phone so you don't take one box to your brother's house and the other box to your grandmother's house and pay for only one account. Each box calls an 800 number once a month to upload the info and confirm that it is still authorized and they use the caller ID to make sure it is where it is supposed to be.

I need to hook up my phone line soon then :X

 

[MGMorden]

Originally posted by: Hyperfocal
Each box calls an 800 number once a month to upload the info and confirm that it is still authorized and they use the caller ID to make sure it is where it is supposed to be.

Strange. Our DirectTV receiver was disconnected from the phone line for quite a while(the wires got pulled out of the connector and it took 3 or 4 months before I got around to crimping on a new connector), and service never stopped. Only thing that changed was we couldn't order Pay Per View events without the line connected. I eventually fixed it just so we could order again, and it started right back up.

 

[Hyperfocal]

They give you a few months before bad things happen. Pay per view is the primary thing that stops w/o a land line.

Theoretically, they could cut you off if you missed one call, but they don't do that. It's a competitive business cutting people off is bad for business. Eventually the receiver would be de-authorized if it was disconnected long enough. I never made an effort to find out how long it would take. Directv was great service, I wish I still had it.

 

[Wingznut]

Originally posted by: Hyperfocal
They give you a few months before bad things happen. Pay per view is the primary thing that stops w/o a land line.

Theoretically, they could cut you off if you missed one call, but they don't do that. It's a competitive business cutting people off is bad for business. Eventually the receiver would be de-authorized if it was disconnected long enough. I never made an effort to find out how long it would take. Directv was great service, I wish I still had it.

My setup in the living room wasn't plugged in for over a year. (It is now, because we got TiVo.) When we got TiVo about six months ago, we setup the regular receiver in the bedroom. The phone line has never been plugged in up there. shrugs

It's been years since I've ordered any PayPerView events. But you still don't need a phone line... You can order it either through DirecTV's website, or via the phone. You just can't order it with your remote.

 

[Vortec4800]

Hm, well I've had DirectTV w/ TiVo for probably about 6 months now, and I love it. I never used to watch tv at all when we had cable, but now that the picture is perfect and I can watch the stuff I want when I want to a la Tivo, I watch it all the time. The signal never fades, even during storms (I live in Arizona so storms are non-existant) and the picture is amazing. Downstairs we have an HDTV receiver hooked up to a Plasma TV and the picture is spoogarific.

My vote is for DTV or Dish, both of which are very good networks.

 

[mikable]

Originally posted by: Hyperfocal
They give you a few months before bad things happen. Pay per view is the primary thing that stops w/o a land line.

Theoretically, they could cut you off if you missed one call, but they don't do that. It's a competitive business cutting people off is bad for business. Eventually the receiver would be de-authorized if it was disconnected long enough. I never made an effort to find out how long it would take. Directv was great service, I wish I still had it.

LoL, my recievers have NEVER been hooked up to a phone line, and I've had them for years.

So much dis-information and incorrect assumptions in this thread it boggles.

 

[Alkaline5]

Wow, I can't believe this thread is still active.

Originally posted by: klah
A 4x8 splitter is only $70.

What are you referring to with the HDTV comment? DirecTV has about 12 full-time HD channels and is the only place you are going to get a HDTV-Tivo.

I said these options were expensive, not impossible. $5 for 7 additional receivers would be an extra $35 a month above programming costs.
I'm not familiar with DirecTV's policies, but with DishNetwork HDTiVO would cost $900 for the receiver alone (when I signed up last year, HD receivers could not be purchased with any package deals) plus they only have 4 cruddy HD stations (no local there either).

 

[Skibby9]

We love our Dish network service. We've been subscribers for several years, and have only had the phone line connected a few times to order ppv. Other than that, it is never connected.

Also, when you do have to call, the CSRs anwer quickly, and are very helpful and friendly.

Furthermore, we have seen two rate increases in the last like 4 years, for a total of $4. And each time they add a load of channels to the service.

There aren't too many businesses that are so nice to deal with as a customer... I'd say that Dish Network and Costco are my favorites.