Clark, Texas, may be ready to “dish” its name as part of an EchoStar Dish Network promotion.
Council members in the little spot near Fort Worth are expected to vote tonight to change the town’s name to Dish, or maybe DISH, said former Mayor L.E. Clark.
In return, an estimated 125 residents will get 10 years of free satellite TV from Douglas County-based EchoStar Communications Corp.
Clark, who named the town after himself, is bitter about the deal.
“I think it’s terrible, it’s dirty, it’s cheap, it’s under the table,” Clark said. “I just don’t like the way he (Mayor Bill Merritt) has done this.”
Merritt could not be reached for comment.
Marc Lumpkin, an EchoStar spokesman, declined to comment Monday.
The company has scheduled a Wednesday announcement regarding the promotion.
“We came up with a new campaign that is ‘Better TV for all,’ and we issued a release (in August) to ask any town to rebrand itself,” Lumpkin said. “Several towns inquired about it.”
EchoStar previously estimated the value of the promotion at $31.99 per month per customer. For Clark, Texas, that might add up to nearly $500,000 over 10 years.
It’s ingenious to kick off a marketing campaign by renaming a town, said Heather Dupre, president of the Egg Strategy marketing agency in Boulder, which does not work for EchoStar.
“It’s the kind of move that generates national attention and national goodwill, so in my mind it’s a breakthrough, a standout,” Dupre said.
Staff writer Beth Potter can be reached at 303-820-1503 or bpotter@denverpost.com.
