able to tap into this customer base well before the satellites built. AOL also said to be considering additional investment in Spaceway.InteractivityEchoStar appeared to have the jump on DirecTV when it came to interactive services. EchoStar still will be first to market with an interactive offering. High-speed, interactive Web-like channels are much more alluring than semi-high-speed cable modems.Brad Beale, DirecTV's vice president of advanced products, says interactive services fit his company's strategic aims: "With the introduction of our interactive services, we're taking television entertainment to the next level by bringing varying levels of interactivity to a consumer's television viewing experience."SimilarityExampleEchoStar plans for DirecTV's Internet product, EchoStar's offerings are similar enough so that many subscribers will not really decide based upon any differences. The money and the marketing clout behind the DirecTV-AOL partnership will put EchoStar at a disadvantage once AOL TV/DirecTV gets rolling, unless EchoStar can find a similar partnership.Sell outAOL's DirecTV investment in the form of $1.5 billion placed in an interest-bearing GM security that is convertible into GM Class H common stock in three years will be used for marketing, public relations and to subsidize entry into the new services. These services will be sold under several brand names: DirecTV, DirecPC, AOL TV and AOL-Plus high-speed Internet service.The marketing expenditures planned for the venture are in the neighborhood of $1.6 billion. This amount includes $500 million to market AOL-Plus through DirecPC; up to $500 million for DirecTV marketing, including $100 million to market to AOL members; $400 million for combined AOL TV/DirecTV services, and $100 million for DirectDuo, a single dish for both TV and Internet access.6.Market Share and GrowthThe tremendous growth of DBS as a video provider was a reason to consider that industry a threa...
