What happened to the Weather Channel?

Bubba1235

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May 25, 2008
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First time I've actually watched it in quite awhile and seen it's a completely new format, not even sure its the same outfit. I think its called weather nation or something.
 

gm280

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Jun 26, 2011
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Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

First time I've actually watched it in quite awhile and seen it's a completely new format, not even sure its the same outfit. I think its called weather nation or something.

Not having any access to actually see the Weather Channel anymore, I've heard that Direct TV had a contractual dispute with the Weather Channel and they are no longer available to watch on Direct TV anymore now. So what you may be seeing is another weather type channel instead of the original Weather Channel.

My wife and I made the decision a little over a year ago to cannel our Dish TV do to the fact that out of 500 channels (mostly radio stations) we hardly watched five channels total. So we cut the Dish TV and seriously don't even miss it even a little. But we saved tons of serious money in doing so...
 

alldodge

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40,581
Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

I use wunderground.com to get weather info.

Also have dish but only reason is do to can get next to nothing else. Manage to be able to pick up a couple education channels from TN and KY, but no national channels.
 

roscoe

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Oct 30, 2002
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Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

Weather Nation has been providing forecasting to local tv stations for 5 years.
They plan to expand services now that they have a contract with Directv.

The weather channel just wanted way too much $$, and Directv wasn't willing to pay.

Don't miss weather channel, or their politics/propaganda.
 

kahuna123

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Jun 2, 2011
Messages
703
Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

Bubba

I can't speak for you but I am 75 miles from the nearest transmission tower and get 42 channels clean. If you google Grey Hoverman you may find your answer. Stay out of radio shack.
 
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redneck joe

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Mar 18, 2009
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10,198
Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

Dear DIRECTV Customer,

I wanted to respond to some of the comments you may have heard lately about our attempt to renew our contract with The Weather Channel.

Frankly, I don’t like talking about internal contract discussions, but given TWC’s aggressive, and very public stance, please allow me to set the record straight.

Contract talks with any channel are always extremely complicated and difficult. TV Networks feel it’s their absolute birthright to be paid more and more each year for the same content they offer, regardless of how many customers actually watch their channels. But in each negotiation we represent the interests of all of our customers, and try to strike the best possible deal we can, so it in turn has less impact on your monthly bill.

As with all TV providers such as Comcast, Dish and Time Warner Cable, we are forced to raise our prices annually due to programmers like The Weather Channel, demanding to be paid more and more each year. In 2014, DIRECTV will be forced to pay 8% more for the channels you enjoy, yet, the average increase we passed on to our customers was 3.7%, which was lower than the increase in 2013, and also lower than many of our competitors.

We work extremely hard each day to deliver the best possible service and keep your monthly costs down. One of the ways we can do that is to negotiate a lower rate for an existing channel, or replace that channel with a better alternative at a lower cost. That’s what we’re doing for our customers in this situation. Giving them more weather coverage, 24/7 around the clock, and all at a lower cost.

Let me explain why The Weather Channel or an alternative service should cost less:

The manner in which people access weather-related information has changed dramatically and is increasingly available from a wide variety of online and offline sources, for free.
Our customers tell us The Weather Channel is their fourth choice when looking to access weather information. They first turn to mobile devices and computers for instant weather information and then to local news sources that have a better grasp on local conditions.
Because of these first two points, The Weather Channel has lost about a third of its viewers over the last two years. Why should DIRECTV customers pay more for a channel they are watching far less?
A growing number of customers have complained that The Weather Channel devotes 40% of its programming day to reality shows, preempting the hard weather news they really want. Why should you pay for 100% weather information, and only receive it 60% of the time?
We have a variety of ways to keep customers informed about weather, including WeatherNation, a channel that provides weather detail 24/7, at a much lower cost; and we have you covered with weather information from your local news channels, national news networks and special emergency channels we will launch in times of severe weather.
We conducted a very thorough evaluation of the usage and value of The Weather Channel, and we determined it was worth one-quarter of the price The Weather Channel is demanding for their programming.
In every other industry, when the demand for any product is reduced, prices go down, they don’t go up. That is the heart of this issue.

We’ve heard from a small number of our customers that WeatherNation is not an exact substitute for Weather Channel. We recognize that, but it does solve the number one complaint you have with their channel — WeatherNation provides weather information 100% of the time.

WeatherNation offers our customers what they want at a fraction of the price, and it will only get better in the coming months. Tune in to WeatherNation on channel 362, and I’m confident that you will find a suitable replacement. The Weather Channel may not appreciate the competition, but it’s our job to offer you the right content, at the best price.

I would like to set the record straight on another issue. The Weather Channel, which is owned by hedge funds and one of our competitors, is claiming that millions of customers are leaving DIRECTV as a result of this impasse. I know you are only concerned with your household, but I can assure you 99.9995% of our current customers have voted to stay on the DIRECTV platform, because they understand what we are trying to accomplish in these contract talks. I only bring this issue up because you should know that you’re not alone in being willing to take a stand on these out-of-control content price increases.

Finally, I’m sorry that The Weather Channel has taken this public. You should not be pulled into the process. I’m disappointed that a group who used to be such great partners in the past, have resorted to nasty “Chicken Little” scare tactics in an attempt to achieve their financial goals. A public mudslinging campaign and expensive newspaper ads are not going to solve the problem.

I encourage you to look beyond all the drama and hyperbole and ask yourself a simple question: Do you think you should you be paying more for their service? If you feel you should pay more, then I respect your opinion, but I am confident that nearly all of our customers will vote with their pocketbook in mind.

In closing, I apologize again that you’ve been drawn into what is increasingly becoming a nasty public dispute. We deeply appreciate your loyalty and patience, and I thank you for the opportunity to better explain the situation. In the end, after knowing the facts, I am confident you will understand that DIRECTV is fighting to deliver the best possible value for our customers.

Yours Truly,

Mike White
Chairman, President and CEO
DIRECTV
 

QC

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Mar 22, 2005
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Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

I use wunderground.com to get weather info.
I love Weather Underground. I can set up may things just the way I want them. And I have started to be able to call rain hitting the house within 5 minutes. Great for NASCAR tracking. I know when and if a race is going to get underway. Very cool tool.
 

MTboatguy

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Jul 8, 2010
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Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

I have my weather station set up with Weather Underground, so when I am traveling, I can check in to see what is going where I live, we have used them for many years now and I also like, that I can set it up the way I like it.
 

DayCruiser

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Sep 24, 2004
Messages
953
Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

I do miss WTC reporters on the streets during big storms. I liked it when they chased Tornado's last Summer. I think they ended Tornado chasing because their reporters got injured and killed doing it. Otherwise I don't miss it. I do not want my DTV bill to go any higher due to WTC. I use Wunderground and Accuweather.com. Both, like WTC are terrible at long range forecasting
 

JaSla74

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Oct 14, 2008
Messages
506
Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

I haven't watched TWC in years. My phone pretty much ended that relationship. As far at DTV I cut that awhile ago. I was suspending it for spell, but after it was back on for over a month without the kids even noticing I finally let it go. No regrets.
 

Mud Puppy

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Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

We gave up satellite 2 years ago because we were getting jerked around on the billing. Two tiers of programing + SPEED (for the NASCAR stuff) and it was running a cool C note every month. I had wanted to funnel that into the "Fix The Boat" fund but I am beginning to think that fund is being mismanaged!

I had been afraid of putting up an antenna with all the maintenance they require. We moved closer to a larger city, and we ended up buying a HD flat indoor antenna for under 20 bucks. We are now able to watch 11 channels; 5 are the major networks, 3 PBS type programing, 1 weather channel similar to a local cable company, and one is METV witch is like TV Land only better.

Best money I ever spent and I can now watch F-Troop and Hogan's Heroes. I was just to afraid to have done it sooner. Call me stubborn!
 
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mla2ofus

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Dec 30, 2008
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Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

I use NOAA on the web. They seem to have more accurate forecasts than any other weather info site. I never developed a liking for TWC because of all the drama. It's like they're a wannabe reality show.
Mike
 
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WIMUSKY

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Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

I use NOAA too for the forecast and Intellicast for radar....
 

phillyg

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Jul 26, 2007
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Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

I think Jim Cantore blew away during the last major storm and TWC never recovered from their loss.
 

Starcraft5834

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Jun 2, 2013
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1,677
Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

Weather Channel- I call it the "hysterical channel".. naming snow storms? really?
 

DECK SWABBER 58

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Aug 14, 2009
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Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

I'm a directv customer, I watched the "showdown" with amusement, this happens every year. The sat/cable company's always give in. Surprise, surprise directv didn't back down.

Good for them. TWC evolved from a weather channel into......??! :facepalm:

If I want to know what the weather is going to do nothing beats the National Weather Service website.
 

southkogs

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Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

... but Jim Cantore standing in a hurricane coming on shore so we know it's windy. Ya' can't beat that for entertainment. :crazy:
 

GA_Boater

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Messages
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Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

I think Jim Cantore blew away during the last major storm and TWC never recovered from their loss.

Cantore is tracking Storm Pax (really, a storm named peace? :doh:) from his Weather Channel office. Doesn't even have to leave home this time. :lol:
 

sam60

Captain
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May 21, 2011
Messages
3,189
Re: What happened to the Weather Channel?

Just now on the weather channel, they were talking about how weather underground added a feature to the app called crowd reports. :rolleyes:

I love wundermap and updated it this AM. Good tool.
 
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