Dish Network Ups Netflix Access

14 Apr, 2015 By: Erik Gruenwedel

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Satellite TV operator expands direct access to SVOD pioneer on branded Joey DVRs

Dish Network April 14 announced it is making available direct access to Netflix and music video service Vevo to subscribers using the broadband-connected Joey DVR. The satellite TV operator’s second-generation Hopper subs should see the Netflix app on connected Joey clients, including Joey, Super Joey and Wireless Joey, within the coming weeks.

Dish in December became the first major domestic multichannel video distributor to offer direct access to Netflix through an app embedded in its Hopper DVR. Direct access, which still requires a separate Netflix subscription, enables subs to link immediately with Netflix rather than an alternative Internet connection such as a streaming media device, laptop or computer.

Long advocated by Netflix founder Reed Hastings as a conduit linking the pay-TV ecosystem with over-the-top video, the effort continues to be rebuffed by No. 1 cabler Comcast, which views the SVOD pioneer as a threat.

"Our great partnership with Dish has helped expand the number of places where you can see and easily view great content,” Bill Holmes, Netflix global head of business development, said in a statement.

Indeed, the app enables Dish subs to start streaming in the living room, pause and pick up right where they left off in the bedroom or elsewhere in the home.

The Vevo app gives viewers access to a library of more than 140,000 HD music videos. Users can also access Vevo TV to watch music videos playing 24/7 on three different channels — popular hits, country, rap and R&B.

“We’ve received a great amount of positive feedback from our customers since the launch of Netflix on Hopper,” said Vivek Khemka, SVP of product management at Dish. “Today, we’ve taken this integration one step further.”

 

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