DSS/DirecTV users,

I wanted to share some of what I have learned after talking with DirecTV, two different satellite receiver vendors, and a lot of different DSS/DirecTV customers.
A lot of people have been complaining about poor picture quality (digital artifacts) and it has been hard to get any answers as to the problem(s).

What I found out (although I can not 100% prove) is that DirecTV has effectively altered the signals they are sending to customers. The channels (transponders) are being jammed (overcompressed) to accommodate newer Dolby and all the recent local channel additions. As a result, this is degrading many other channels. It is typically NOT the fault of the DSS receiver. Apparently DirecTV is going to alleviate this problem by off-loading the local channel overload onto another satellite (which will require a special dish that adjusts for dual positioning). Once this occurs, the problems should be resolved. However, beware, the implication here is that DirecTV will be pulling the rug out from underneath a lot of people who may have suscribed to local channel support in the interim. In other words, if a customer suscribes to local channels on DirecTV, they may be getting a notice in the not-to-distant future that in order to continue to receive the local stations, they will need to upgrade their DSS system to the newer multi-satellite system.

Beware that DirecTV is being EXTREMELY evasive about telling customer what is really going with the picture problems - and how they plan to "manage" solving it in the near future.

I am not claiming 100% accuracy of the above comments, but I have spend almost 2 weeks calling a lot of individuals/companies and I confident that there is quite a bit of truth in the above.

Any additional responses/clarity welcome.

Bob W.