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What's in a name? For town of DISH, free TV

Here's a crazy bit of news coming out of Texas: they renamed one their towns Dish in order to receive free Dish TV. Formerly Clark, Texas, Dish will be getting free equipment and service in their town for the next 10 years, as the whole name change was apparently for a bit of advertisement. What some people will do for free TV!!!

Back in the 1950s, Hot Springs, N.M., was renamed Truth or Consequences, N.M., after a popular quiz show. During the dot-com boom of 2000, Halfway, Ore. agreed to become Half.com for one year. This week, Clark, Texas, morphed into DISH, Texas. Residents in Santa, Idaho, meanwhile, are weighing the pros and cons of changing to Secretsanta.com, Idaho. Across the nation, small communities are being courted by large corporations who say renaming a town provides a marketing buzz that can't be bought in television ads. Though some worry about corporate America's increasing influence in local government, most towns seem eager to accept.In a deal unanimously approved by the two-member town council Tuesday evening, Clark agreed to be renamed DISH, effective immediately. It's part of an advertising campaign for Englewood, Colo.-based EchoStar Communications Corp., which operates the Dish Network satellite TV system. In exchange, the 55 homes in the bedroom community a half hour's drive north of Dallas-Fort Worth get free Dish satellite equipment and basic service for the next decade. Company executives pegged the deal at about $4,500 per home. Signs bearing the town's name are being changed to DISH as well.

MSNBC Technology News

Posted by | Fri, Nov 18, 2005 - 10:52 AM