I don’t usually publish these press releases,, after all most people don’t care too much about staff changes and relocations and stuff. You, my Solid Signal faithful, usually care more about the technical stuff, the hardware that makes your service work better. But it seems to me that you might be interested in the following press release:
DISH and Sling TV Expanding to Downtown Denver with Software Development Office; Expect to Add 100 Tech Jobs
• Effort marks DISH’s 11th major operation in Colorado
• DISH hiring up to 100 to optimize its software development capabilities
• DISH renovating historic Grand Central Building in Union Station neighborhoodENGLEWOOD, Colo.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Today, Colorado-headquartered DISH Network announced plans to open a software development office in downtown Denver and expects to add up to 100 new technology jobs at the location. The initiative is part of DISH’s expansion of its in-house software development capacity to support its products and services including the award-winning Hopper DVR platform and Sling TV, the industry’s first live and on-demand Internet TV app.
“DISH has continued to invest in Colorado since its founding in 1980, employing more than 4,000 employees across the state today,” said Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper. “This step not only helps expand their presence, it gives another meaningful boost to Colorado’s thriving tech community as we welcome a new neighbor in downtown Denver.”
“DISH is a homegrown company, and it’s very encouraging to see one of our area’s key employers choosing to expand right within the heart of LoDo and our regional transit hub,” Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock said. “We’re proud to welcome them to Downtown Denver for their next stage of innovation and growth.”
Renovations are underway to transform approximately 20,000 square feet of the historic Grand Central Building, located at 1615 17th Street, into an open work environment. Additionally, the space will include a private technology demonstration space to feature DISH’s award-winning technology, products and services.
“DISH is a global innovator founded in our state, and is already collaborating with Colorado technology companies large and small on projects ranging from data management to the new Sling TV service,” said Erik Mitisek, CEO of the Colorado Technology Association. “DISH has a world-class tech organization that will lend its expertise and leadership as it expands its relationships into the heart of Denver’s emerging tech community.”
DISH has begun recruiting for the Grand Central office which is scheduled to be fully operational by June 2016.“As one of the largest companies in Colorado and the U.S., DISH’s selection of Downtown Denver as the location to expand its technology products and services perpetuates the brand of our strong culture of innovation and signals the economic vitality of the center city,” says Tami Door, president and CEO of the Downtown Denver Partnership. “We are pleased that Downtown Denver will serve as the launch pad for state-of-the-art ideas and products that will benefit consumers across the country.”
The hiring process is underway and interested applicants can learn more at DISHGrandCentral.com.
“DISH and Sling TV are driving a consumer market that is changing in real-time, and we’re developing innovative ways to deliver video and connected services to millions of customers,” said Rob Dravenstott, DISH senior vice president and Chief Information Officer. “From the heart of the thriving Denver tech community, this office will utilize collaborative software development models to expand our world-class IT group and play an integral role in creating next generation services.”
DISH has been headquartered in Colorado since the company’s founding in 1980. Soon to celebrate the 20th anniversary of its Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) service, DISH operates 10 other locations in the state including its Douglas County Meridian headquarters, a customer service, sales and installation location in Littleton, a customer service center in Thornton, and In-Home Services and Manufacturing offices in Denver, Englewood, Loveland, Grand Junction and Colorado Springs.
If you don’t feel like the long read, here it is in a nutshell: DISH is opening up a development facility where they’re going to place 100 programmers. That means they put a lot of value in the software and services side of their business, and that’s smart. It also shows they’re interested in investing in American jobs, meaning the software they’ll be developing is probably intended for customers and not for the engineers within the company. That’s a big part of why you hire American programmers… so that the finished product looks comfortable to American users.
The press release doesn’t say what these programmers will be working on, but it’s pretty obvious where the world of entertainment is going, and that’s to tablets and smartphones. DISH has gotten recognized several times for its DISH Everywhere app and I’m sure they want to keep developing that. At the same time, Sling TV hasn’t quite been the blockbuster success that the company hoped, and perhaps working on the user experience might help fix that and take Sling TV to the masses in a much more comfortable way.
