Latest News

EchoStar Files Application for Rooftop Weather Station Patent

By Jeffrey Hill | August 27, 2012

[Satellite TODAY 08-27-12] EchoStar filed a patent application for weather stations that could be installed on roofs of satellite TV subscribers to compete with the local weather programming services supplied by cable operators, according to federal documents filed late last week.

   The patents state that the weather stations would monitor how storms impact satellite TV reception while delivering hyperlocal weather reports to subscribers. The weather stations could allow a subscriber to access live weather information though a set-top-box, with weather reports stored on a DVR. Subscribers also would be able to receive weather alerts from their personal weather stations.
   “Weather information may be shared with a local newscaster for inclusion in a weather report broadcast. As another example, the weather information may be shared with a social networking organization. In some applications, the weather information may be provided as a revenue generating service for the media content provider,” EchoStar said in the patent application.