DirecTV Review

DirecTV is a direct broadcast satellite provider offering television subscription and internet services.  Customers pay a monthly fee and can choose from a wide range of entertainment packages.  The company also offers video on-demand and pay-per-view movies and events. DirecTV offers services to both residential and commercial subscribers.   It also provides entertainment on some Boeing aircraft and is a subsidiary of AT&T.  Subscribers can access DirecTV services anywhere on phones and tablets via the Live TV on-the-go app.

DirecTV Pros

DirecTV offers more HD channels than any other service provider and it has the highest number of shows in 4K Resolution (Ultra HD).   Its set-top box, The Genie DVR can hold 200 hours of HD storage and allows you to rewind up to 72 hours so you can watch shows and events that you missed. DirecTV also offers the exclusive NFL Sunday Ticket which allows you to stream games on any web-enabled device.  DirecTV’s all included pricing policy means that you always know how much you are going to pay. There are no hidden charges.

DirecTV Cons

The minimum subscription period for any DirecTV package is two-years and the company applies an early termination fee of $20 per month for customers who cancel their contract before this time.  Subscription charges for all packages increase after the first year, for example, the monthly charge for the Entertainment package rises from $40 to $90. The 72-hour rewind feature is not available for all channels or shows. Some customers have complained about bad weather affecting the reception.

DirecTV Bottom Line

DirecTV offers you the greatest variety of packages and the largest number of HD channels along with Internet, Phone and DirecTV bundles. It also provides an excellent range of on-demand and pay-per-view movies and events. DirecTV has an all-inclusive pricing policy which means that the price you see is what you’ll pay.  You can watch your favorite shows anywhere by using the DirecTV app on phones and tablets. DirectTV’s Genie DVR will hold up to 200 hours of HD recording and allows you to watch TV in up to four rooms at once.

History of DirecTV

DirecTV has something of a fascinating history. The company can actually trace its lineage back to famed eccentric aviator and businessman Howard Hughes. When Hughes passed away in the 1970s, he left a vast business empire, including Hughes Aircraft. Hughes Aircraft was sold to General Motors in the 1980s, which merged it with its own subsidiary Delco Electronics and thus became Hughes Electronics.

At the time, Hughes Electronics was a multifaceted company working in aviation, communications, space, and networks. However, its satellite television division, which it called DirecTV (short for direct broadcast satellite television) became one of its most successful in the 1990s.

After News Corporation acquired Hughes from GM in 2003, Hughes announced that it would focus solely on its satellite television services. As a result, the company was renamed The DirecTV Group, Inc. The company grew considerably over this period, with subscriptions rising from just over 10 million in 2001 to over 20 million in 2014.

In 2014, after receiving approval from the Federal Communications Commission, DirecTV was acquired by AT&T, which had initially stated it would phase out the DirecTV brand. However, instead, the DirecTV brand expanded further, with the digital streaming service DirecTV Now launched in 2017.

In 2016, AT&T announced that it was going to buy Time Warner for $80 billion, which would have brought DirecTV under the AT&T-Time Warner umbrella. However, the deal has encountered backlash over anti-competition concerns, and it is unclear whether the merger will actually go through. Additionally, in recent year DirecTV has run into trouble over its telemarketing and marketing practices, with the Federal Trade Commission imposing a $5.3 million penalty on the company for telemarketing violations in 2015.

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