The satcaster's decision to drop 10 Voom channels came just hours after it added 20 other high-def channels.
The satcaster did not issue a press statement announcing the decision, but the channels were suddenly dropped last night. Dish's web site and programming lineup now lists just five Voom HD channels: Monsters, Rush, Equator, Kung Fu, and Rave.
And on Dish's channel 9472, the following statement appears:
"As of result of these additions (20 new HD channels), we removed some channels that are less popular with our customers. These channels are not available with any other satellite provider."
The decision to reduce the number of Voom channels is not unexpected. The Supreme Court of New York last month denied Voom's request for a preliminary injunction to block Dish Network from terminating its agreement to carry all 15 high-def channels.
The satcaster informed Voom last year that it would move the 15 HD channels to a less watched programming tier. Voom objected to the plan, saying it would reduce its programming fees and jeopardize its business. Following a series of negotiations, Dish informed the programmer that it planned to terminate the agreement entirely, which led to the court battle.
Although the Voom channel reduction is not unsurprising, the timing is. Dish Network yesterday announced it was adding 22 high-def channels this week, starting with the 20 on Monday. In the announcement, the company said the new channels means that Dish would now have "over 95 HD channels."
However, the Voom reduction now would appear to lower that number to the mid-80s.
Dish Network last week would not comment on its plans for Voom -- and Voom would not comment as well, saying the court fight is continuing.
While Dish has not commented, it's possible that the satcaster needed to drop the Voom channels to make room for the 20 new high-def channels. Dish had planned to lease space on a new satellite launched this spring to expand its high-def capacity, but the satellite has been declared a failure because it failed to reach its proper orbit.
The satcaster says it has two more satellites scheduled for launch later this year.
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