Dish Network To Launch Netflix Competing Service This October

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And now we get a glimpse at just what all the fuss was about, as reports emerge that the folks at Dish Network are looking to offer up a service that’s going to take on Netflix. It’s set to keep the Blockbuster name, and there’s another, even better, surprise to come with it.

Remember how, just yesterday, our own Kevin Schram dropped the dime that Netflix and Starz had pretty much given up and Starz was looking to fly the coop? Well, it seems that the direction Starz is looking to go in, according to no less than the crew out at Bloomberg, is to the revamped Blockbuster. Now, that’s still pretty early stage stuff, so it may fall through before ever going live, but the current word says Starz is looking to Blockbuster and Dish for their offerings. This makes some sense, as Dish and Starz have a very good working relationship. Dish Network subscribers (of which I’ve been one for the last five years or so) have been enjoying an entire year of Starz channels gratis as part of a recent promotion, which is going to carry on until February of 2012.

Exact details of the service are still, as yet, somewhat sketchy, though considering it was one of the things I recommended back when the deal was finalized, it’s gratifying to not only say I saw it coming, but also that I suggested it in the first place. Bloomberg further suggested that Dish could be offering up Blockbuster on-demand films through the Dish service, which would be a great option. About the only way that could be much better is if, like Blockbuster (and like Netflix used to be) you could pay one price for all the on-demand you can stand. Hopefully also, Dish will keep Blockbuster Online’s disc-renting capabilities, which were already a bit ahead of Netflix in that they allowed for game rentals.

There are a lot of great possibilities here, and since the service is looking to launch this October, we’ll likely be getting more specifics directly. But what do you guys think about this? Are you one of the many disgruntled looking to leave Netflix? Or are you just fine with your current provider? Either way, head on down to the comments section and tell us what you think!