Currently, DirecTV has an exclusive deal with the NFL, making them the sole provider of NFL Sunday Ticket in the United States until the contract expires in 2010, though past history suggests DirecTV will renew the contract by then in order to maintain one of its key marketing pitches to potential subscribers. [1] Prior to the NFL's latest television deal, other satellite and cable providers were allowed to bid on the rights to carry NFL Sunday Ticket if they agreed to carry the NFL Network. However, DirecTV still won exclusivity for the package, bidding over $700 million a year to do so.
DIRECTV Sued Over HDTV Picture Quality
... DIRECTV spokesman Robert Mercer yesterday said the lawsuit was without merit.
"We believe the plaintiff’s underlying claims are completely without merit because DIRECTV’s High Definition service is high quality, true HD service under accepted definitions for satellite TV," Mercer said. "If it were otherwise, we doubt the plaintiff would continue to subscribe to and pay for DIRECTV HD programming."
Whether DIRECTV purposely squeezes the HD picture quality to create room for more channels has been a hot topic on Internet message boards for two years. The alleged practice has been dubbed DIRECTV's 'HD Lite.'
However, DIRECTV has consistently maintained that its high-def picture is comparable to or better than any other TV provider. ...
DirecTV's (DTV) plans to offer 100 national HDTV channels by the end of the year may be in doubt. Its plans to orbit a new satellite later this year are up in the air after the launch company had a rocket blow up on its sea-based platform Wednesday. Eric Savitz quotes an analyst at Bernstein Research saying that the accident will delay DirecTV's launch.
The concern is that without the satellite, DirecTV won’t have the capacity for the new HDTV channels. But Phillip Swann’s TVPredictions.com says the satcaster is speaking cautiously. While a spokesman said the explosion would not impact the high-def plans, he did say DirecTV is "evaluating our options."