I have been a DirecTV customer since 1997, shortly after they rolled out the service, and have remained loyal and dealt with many of their growing pains. I recently decided to drop DirecTV after 15 years for several reasons.
When DirecTV was new, they would bend over backwards to help their customers, and always spearheaded the rights of the consumer above anything else. They were able to get laws passed that made it illegal to deny any consumer the right to put up a satellite dish on their house or apartment building.
They also lobbied for the right of consumers to receive programming from networks, and I was involved in several letter-writing campaigns begging for the right to watch national network feeds rather than local channels that DirecTV couldn’t carry at the time. It was a fight that the new provider couldn’t win, and in response spent millions of dollars to launch new satellites to carry local feeds in every major U.S. city so that customers had a real choice in their programming.
Times have changed since DirecTV has grown to be a big player in the communications industry. They are frequently engaged in contract disputes with network providers, which sometimes causes a temporary programming blackout and in some cases forces a channel to be dropped, such as G4 (a Comcast-owned channel).
Earlier this year, DirecTV had a dispute with Viacom, so consumers could not watch 17 channels, including Comedy Central and Nickelodeon. DirecTV again went with the angle of “fighting for the rights of the consumer”, and the CEO claimed that it wasn’t right to force consumers to pay for channels that they didn’t watch (Viacom’s contract was an all-or-nothing deal).
I feel that it is rather ironic to say this, as no cable provider offers an “a la carte” programming plan. Many subscription plans are put together in such a way that consumers must pay for a new tier just to view one or two channels that don’t exist in a lower tier.
Several years ago I was forced to use cable because there was no feasible place to put a satellite dish in an apartment. I couldn’t wait to get back to DirecTV because they were so much better. A lot of Comcast’s bandwidth was eaten up by the analog channels that they offered, and thus their high-definition digital lineup was so highly compressed that it was unwatchable.
Things have changed now, and most cable providers are 100% digital and/or have increased their bandwidth. Now, nearly all channels have excellent quality with a lot of high-definition offerings. DirecTV may have led the way in terms of signal quality, but now most cable providers can provide the same or better.
When DirecTV was the new kid on the block, you owned the equipment you purchased, as they were manufactured by third parties. You could purchase a TiVo or Sony receiver and could make your money back by selling the equipment. Hughes Electronics (which owned DirecTV) started making their own equipment and now the only DirecTV receivers you can get are owned by them. Since I was used to previously owning my equipment, I was flabbergasted when I purchased a new HD-DVR at Costco only to discover that the receiver was “leased” by DirecTV. If I ever leave, then I have to return the DVR to the company.
The quality of their receivers is another issue. The third-party TiVo lasted for over 10 years, but the “new” DirecTV DVR has been replaced twice in one year, which is a worse track record than my first-generation Xbox 360. I have to wait a week to get a new receiver shipped while I am without service.
Multiple dishes
Satellites can only carry so much bandwidth, so DirecTV has launched more satellites in order to grow their lineup. The last time I checked, there were at least 12 satellites in orbit used to get their entire lineup. Because the satellites are far apart, some installations require two satellite dishes on your roof facing different directions. In our situation, we have a tree blocking one of the satellites, and the signal is spotty during heavy rain or snow.
Your service can also be affected by weather. It happened on more than one occasion that technicians had to re-adjust the satellites due to heavy winds or poor installation.
The entertainment industry has changed in the digital age, and more companies offer “On Demand” channels, and DirecTV had to adapt and offer the same. Comcast’s On Demand programming is practically instant, but DirecTV’s On Demand service uses your existing Internet connection to download programs, but is still severely lacking even if you have a fat pipe.
At home we have a full-duplex 50 Megabit fiber Internet connection, but “On Demand” programs are nowhere near instant. It can take hours to download a 30-minute show, so it is more of a “download and come back tomorrow” deal. It is so unusable that it is worthless. I can’t imagine how bad it is for those that have “regular” internet service.
Cable can be much more nimble. When you order a pay-per-view movie, you get it immediately as it is pushed to you. DirecTV broadcasts to the entire nation at once, and doesn’t have the ability to individualize a TV or movie stream. With DirecTV you have to wait until the movie starts, which is usually every 15 minutes.
DirecTV likes to say that when you add everything up, that they are the clear winner in terms of price. If you look at the base price on their website, you might be inclined to agree. Where they get you is all of the hidden fees. You have to pay a fee for HD service, a separate fee for each receiver in your house (on top of the HD fee), and another separate fee for DVR service. These fees can easily equal the base price of your package, depending on your level. This doesn’t even cover the equipment that you pay for upfront but don’t own. If you are a new customer then they may cut you a deal, but they weren’t willing to work with me when new equipment came out because I was an existing customer.
Having only one DirecTV HD DVR costs over $90 a month for the privilege of their mid-line package. For this price I can get DVR service in four rooms with an upgraded service package and true On Demand. To “upgrade” my DirecTV service to this same level would easily cost over $150 a month.
DirecTV also has Direct control of you. They can cut off all of your equipment remotely, and do so if you are a few days late paying your bill. While you are cut off, you cannot watch anything on your DVR, even programs that you have previously recorded.
Cloud Services a wash
There are some neat Internet features that you can do such as program your DVR from your Smartphone, watch DVR programs on another receiver (or even your PC), and stream shows on your tablet. Comcast also provides these same feature at no additional cost. The program to watch TV on your PC is cumbersome and buggy, so it’s really not worth using.
It’s not all bad. As far as the interface goes, DirecTV wins against other providers. Their interface is much prettier, easily searchable and provides the most meta-information. You can also see programming two weeks in advance, which makes searching for and scheduling recordings much easier.
If you’re a sports fan, then DirecTV has few rivals. Their exclusive sports packages can be pricey, but you can watch every game from every team of practically any sport, regardless of where you live.
If you’ve never been a DirecTV customer before, then you can get in on some great deals that may make you re-evaluate your existing cable provider. Just as I mentioned previously in this article, they treat you like royalty at first. But when you want to upgrade to their newest technology you’ll end up paying for the new equipment. Since I am an existing customer, they want me to pay hundreds of dollars to upgrade to their new Genie HD DVR.
In spite of some of these issues I pointed out, DirecTV is the iPhone of entertainment services, but like the iPhone comes with a premium price. If you don’t mind increasing your monthly bill, then the polish of DirecTV can be impressive.
There was a time when DirecTV offered much better quality and service that just couldn’t be rivaled. Other providers have caught up and offer the same quality and service for less money. In some cases, cable providers can offer more and better services, such as true On-Demand programming.
DirecTV has forgotten their humble roots and in my opinion has gotten too big for their britches. Loyal customers such as myself are treated like second-class citizens when it comes to negotiating price, and customer service has gotten steadily worse over their years of growth.
DirecTV became a big player because they offered a lot of choice. Now other companies can offer the same or better technology for less, without the blackouts due to weather or contract negotiations.