Dish Could Score With Super Bowl Ad Rejection

CNET was to give Dish a pair of awards at the Consumer Electronics Show for the latest iteration of its Hopper, but CBS HQ stepped in and put a stop to it. CBS and other networks have been enraged by the AutoHop feature that allows the automatic removal of all commercials in a show and are suing Dish hoping to thwart it.

Dish swiftly sent out a release saying it was “saddened” by CBS’s tactics and isn’t “afraid to stand up for consumer rights.” Loads of coverage followed.

CBS will reject the ad and Dish will have its press release screaming about the network’s heavy-handedness while touting its efforts to keep fighting for you. The statement is already written: “We at Dish embrace the consumer, embrace change and embrace technology. We believe that giving the customer what he or she wants is always a formula for success.” Dish CEO Joe Clayton delivered it in the fall after Moonves suggested CBS would drop its programming from Dish unless the Hopper was banished.