Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, July 30, 1994 TAG: 9408010030
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By MELISSA CURTIS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
At least that's how Bill Gibson, manager of Curtis Mathes Home Entertainment Center in Roanoke, described RCA's new Digital Satellite System, an 18-inch satellite dish that retailers claim rivals cable and 10-foot-wide dishes in performance and size.
"It's a leap forward in technology," said Tom Mitchell, vice president of merchandise at Holdren's in Roanoke. "It's light years ahead of cable."
The new dish was rolled out Friday by RCA executives at Holdren's appliance stores in Roanoke, the seventh city in the nation to have stores selling the product.
And demand for the dish has been big.
Mitchell said Holdren's Valley View Boulevard store already has sold about 100 units, or half of his initial inventory.
"We've had a tremendous amount of demand," he said. "The rest will probably be sold within a week, if not sooner."
Gibson said between his two stores in Roanoke he has sold about 80 dishes and probably will sell out next week.
"I'm almost out already," he said. "If I have any by Wednesday, I'll be real surprised."
Matt Whitcomb, owner of ACS Home Entertainment Gallery in Roanoke, called his response to DSS "overwhelming" and said he faces two weeks of work installing the systems he's already sold.
"Before RCA rolled the product out, 2,000 people in my database were waiting for information on the dish."
So why are people acting like the 18-inch dish is the biggest thing since color TV?
Many retailers said the smaller size appeals to consumers who don't want hulking 7- to 10-foot diameter dishes taking over their lawns.
Others said the price attracts buyers. At $699, RCA's dish may be more appetizing than the C-band satellite systems that carry $2,000 to $3,000 pricetags. "To a lot of people, $699 is nothing," Mitchell said. "It's a price range a lot of people can afford."
RCA merchandising manager Dennis Rosiak agrees.
"When you think of how much money people spend on entertainment today, this is a very small investment," said Dennis Rosiak, an RCA merchandising manager.
RCA executives look to the quality of the dish to explain its popularity. With compact disc quality sound, laser-disc quality video and 150 channels to choose from, Rosiak said it's "like having your own little minitheater."
Retailers said disgruntled cable owners may be the dish's biggest customer.
"Everyone always complains about cable TV's picture and sound," Mitchell said.
Whitcomb said he believes people have a "larger appetite for programming variety" than cable has to offer.
"The variety of programming far exceeds what cable can deliver," he said. "There will be a strong interest by the cable owner, simply because he's dissatisfied."
One thing is certain, all the hype surrounding the dish has caught people's attention and whetted their entertainment-craving appetites.
"This week we've had unbelievable interest in it," Gibson said. "We haven't seen anything advertised like this in a long time."
Mitchell said he believes the 18-inch dish will be the next entertainment product people "have to have."
by CNB