There’s no question that the internet is changing the way consumers consume video entertainment. Being from an older generation, I still find myself most comfortable in front of my television when I want to watch something, although I have watched a few TV shows and movies online. My kids are an entirely different story, however.

I think it’s safe to say that my kids spend far more time watching video on the internet than on TV. They spend hours watching YouTube videos and TV programs on sites like Hulu.com. Since they practically grew up with a mouse in their hands, they feel pretty natural parked in front of a computer monitor as opposed to the glowing tube I spent countless hours watching when I was a kid.

This move to online video entertainment is not lost on DISH Network. Today they have launched a brand-new website that will allow viewers to watch DISH Network programming online. As soon as I learned about DishOnline.com I went to the site and was able to log in easily using the same username and password that I use to access my DISH Network account online.

I took a few minutes to browse through the programming that was available and it appeared to be a pretty impressive amount of programming, including popular programs like 24, Big Brother, House and many more. At the moment the new service is in “Beta,” and the number of programs available seems to vary quite a bit from program to program.

Personally, I’ll still be doing most of my TV viewing in front of my 51” HDTV, but where I see this service really coming in handy for me is if I happen to miss an episode of one of my favorite programs. Even with my DVR, I sometimes screw up and manage to miss something I really wanted to see. DishOnline.com will be a very welcome resource during those times.

I’m not quite sure if I am ready to tell my kids about this yet. I’m a bit concerned that they will start using outrageous amounts of bandwidth and get us on the “naughty list” with Comcast who we depend on as the only broadband internet provider available in our area.

I’m a bit unclear so far on whether or not all this new content on the DishOnline.com site will be accessible from my DVR. If that’s the case, I’ll be able to catch those missed shows in all their 51” HDTV glory.

Obviously DISH Network subscribers will have the most to gain from the launch of the new site, although there is supposed to be some free content available for everyone, so at least it will give DISH a chance to showcase some of their features.

As soon as my wife is done watching “her shows” for the evening, I will go up and give the features of my DVR a thorough going-over to see if there are any new ones that give me access to all that programming on DishOnline.com.

Attention fantasy football enthusiasts: The Gridiron Games will give all DISH Network subscribers access to two fantasy football games which can be played for cash prizes.

Both fantasy football games that make up the Gridiron Games are exclusive to DISH Network and will be available throughout the 2010 NFL season. “DISH Network Team Pick’em” allows fans to pick a winner for every NFL game in a given week.

For more hardcore fans, “SnapDraft on DISH Network” delves deeper into the strategy behind the game by giving players the opportunity to graft new teams every week using salary caps.

Both of these new games are powered by Fanball, a recognized provider of fantasy sports products and contests.

Every week of the 2010 season, DISH Network will award $500 to the player that has earned the most points in each competition. When the 2010 NFL season comes to an end, the winners of both games will each win $20,000; players in second and third places will each receive $5,000 and $2,500, respectively.

Each of those prizes would certainly pay any subscriber’s DISH Network bill well into a number of future NFL seasons.

A new application called “DISH Remote Access” has been announced and is the first and only one of its kind. No other pay-TV provider has released an app specifically for the iPad.

DISH Remote Access for the iPad is a fully-featured remote DVR scheduler offering DISH Network subscribers total access to all DVR functions and features. Subscribers may schedule DVR recordings events on more than one receivers, erase timers, browse and search through nine days worth of program listings, manage their DVR events by setting record priorities, resolving recording conflicts and erasing recorded programs.

The DISH Remote Access application is compatible with most DISH Network SD and HD DVR receivers, including the ViP922, the only DVR with built-in Sling technology.

At DISH Network, we are excited about the potential of tablet computers – like the Apple iPad – to enhance the TV viewing experience and enable consumers to remain connected to their TVs everywhere," said Vivek Khemka, vice president of Customer Technology for DISH Network.

The iPad-optimized DISH Remote Access app also boasts a unique feature that transforms an iPad into a remote control for TVs connected to compatible DISH Network receivers. By using the iPad as their remote control, subscribers can change channels, browse the program guide, watch recorded programs and take advantage of all the standard remote navigation features including fast forward, rewind and pause.

The DISH Remote Access app can be downloaded free from the iTunes Store.

The Associated Press is reporting that DISH Network has unveiled plans that will allow subscribers to stream live satellite television to their mobile devices.

This means that they will be able to watch programming that is delivered to their mobile device via their home DVR systems and even change channels. It will also allow someone at home to watch a different channel at the same time if the DVR is equipped with two tuners.

Users will also be able to access and view programs that have already been recorded and stored on the DVR.

The new features are scheduled to be introduced this fall and will be available on Apple’s iPhone, Ipod Touch and iPad, as well as the BlackBerry and Google’s Android devices.

DISH Network customers wishing to take advantage of the new features will require special hardware at home, such as Sling Media’s SlingBox or a Sling-capable DVR such as the ViP922. Sling Media is owned by EchoStar Corp., the company that was once the parent company of DISH Network and is chaired by DISH Network CEO Charlie Ergen.

New technology and fierce competition among pay-TV providers will likely bring more new innovations from DISH in the future.

We’ve known for a while that DISH Network and Google have been collaborating on a plan that will bring web content to DISH Network subscribers through their DVRs. Although it may be something that is hard to wrap your head around without actually seeing it, the press release that announces that the plan “seamlessly integrates multichannel television with rich web media content.”

The new features of GoogleTV will allow DISH Network subscribers with the right equipment to simultaneously seek out content across DISH Network, the Internet and their own DVRs. It will also allow users to overlay internet content related to TV programs, movies, actors and more, and it will also link web content back to multichannel TV.

Like most new technologies that are announced, it probably doesn’t sound as cool as it actually is. DISH Network subscribers with HD DVRs will be able to take advantage of this new service when it is brought online. Currently, the companies are expecting it to be available sometime in the fall.

Google CEO Eric Schmidt had this to say about GoogleTV: “We are excited to bring the web to television and enable developers to innovate on the Google TV platform. With DISH Network’s contributions, Google TV delivers a richer user experience and a compelling product for consumers.”

I can think of a number of instances where functionality like this will be useful to get answers to questions that come up while watching your favorite program. I do not understand the exact details of GoogleTV yet, but I can envision a scenario like this:

You’re watching one of your favorite TV programs and an actor appears that you recognize but you cannot figure out where you have seen him or her before. You can probably check the name of the actor just by pressing the “Info” button on your DISH Network remote control, but if not, you will likely see it in the credits at the end of the show.

You could then access Google or Imdb.com and find out what other television programs or movies this actor has appeared in. All without leaving the comfort of your favorite TV-watching chair.

One of the most recognizable games in video game history will be accessible on DISH Network. Oberon Media has teamed up with DISH to bring Tetris TV to subscribers.

I’m not much of a gamer myself, but I certainly recognize the name Tetris. I cannot swear to it, but I think I may have even played the game a few times a number of years ago.

Tetris is described as one of the most addictive video games in history and will probably result in a number of DISH Network subscribers being glued to their televisions playing the venerable video game favorite.

The availability of Tetris TV will allow DISH Network subscribers to play two versions of the game. The first being Marathon and the second one known as 40-Lines.

Marathon features 15 challenging levels of game play, and 40-Lines is a mad race to clear 40 lines as quickly as possible.

Coming with future releases of Tetris TV, subscribers will also be able to go head-to-head with other DISH Network subscribers by posting their names and scores up on national leader boards that will be managed by Oberon Media’s iTV community and service management technology, JIVE(R).

Oberon Media’s JIVE technology will allow for the management of Tetris tournaments in future releases. Tetris TV will take advantage of this technology by offering prizes to top players later in the year.

Yeah, well what the heck does that mean? That was the thought that went through my mind when I saw that headline. Turns out that this is some really great news!

This promises to put an end to one of the most annoying experiences I’ve ever experienced while watching television. Those ridiculous changes in volume when a commercial comes on, or when you switch from one channel to another.

In my experience, the problem is with commercials the vast majority of the time. I always wondered if it was intentional, and wished that someone could do something about it. Well, it looks like DISH Network has stepped up to the plate and it set to put an end to the problem once and for all!

I have not seen the details of exactly which receivers and DVRs will be able to utilize this new feature, so it’s hard to say how many subscribers will have access to it. I’m hoping my ViP622 will be eligible, as it sounds like this will be rolled out as part of a software upgrade which DISH periodically sends out to receivers and DVRs to introduce new features and make corrections to various problems. Subscribers with older receivers may not see the benefit of this new feature, but again, I’m not sure of the details.

Anyway, the folks at SRS have developed this new technology called TruVolume which can equalize the volume level on your TV no matter what channel you switch to, or which annoying commercial comes on.

DISH Network is the only pay-TV service set to offer this new feature, which the company says will be rolled out to subscriber DVRs and receivers sometime early this year. Not surprisingly, a survey revealed that nine out of ten TV viewers noticed volume changes while watching TV, and 89% of them found volume fluctuations annoying. Frankly, I’m surprised that the number was not 100 percent! How the heck could someone not find that annoying?

Personally, I’m quite fed up with grabbing for the remote when the volume shoots up on its own when a commercial comes on, and my wife is yelling at me and saying “It’s too loud!” I surely don’t like it, but my wife is even less tolerant of it than I am.

This announcement, coupled with the announcement yesterday regarding “TV Everywhere” places DISH firmly at the top of the pay-TV service providers where technology is concerned. Sure, DISH might have some work to do in the customer service area, but if they can bring that up to match their technology, they will be the pay-TV provider to beat.

I guess this is why DISH Network has reversed the trend they were enduring as they lost customers to other providers, and they are now gaining customers once again. This one feature alone might be enough to convince me to try DISH if I were not already a customer!

A new announcement from DISH Network reveals some cool new features that allow subscribers to watch TV just about everywhere they go. And when I say “watch TV",” I mean watch DISH Network TV.

TV Everywhere is what they are calling it, and it makes getting your TV entertainment easier and more accessible than ever before. Among the features are:

- Access to live and recorded programming on a laptop, mobile device, or anywhere in the home – without wires.

- The DISH Network WiFi Monitor. A new device that is capable of transmitting a high-definition video signal from a set-top box to any place in the home over a WiFi network.

- The DISH Remote Access App, which offers satellite TV customers total control of their television from just about anywhere. It is now available free for both the iPhone and iPod touch.

I don’t have access to all these features with the equipment I currently have, but I have used the internet to access my ViP622 DVR from other locations via the internet and it is a very nice feature.

I once used an iPhone to access my DVR while traveling home from a visit to my relatives, and was able to record a program that I had forgotten to set the timer for earlier in the day. Doing that while traveling down the road in a car (I was not driving) was pretty cool.

I also tested using the iPhone as a remote control, which does in fact work with my DVR, but since I am the type that rarely loses or misplaces things, it probably won’t be all that useful to me unless my remote control is broken. Although I don’t often lose things, I am actually pretty good at breaking stuff, so you never know!

I had wondered what kind of useful features DISH Network might be introducing when they announced a while back that we could not connect our DVRs to the internet. Due to the amount of work involved, I put it of for quite a while, but I finally got around to getting it connected via my home network a couple of months ago.

The big benefit I noticed right off the bat was that I had access to a lot more on demand content. Some of it was from channels I did not even subscribe to, so that was kind of cool. All you need to do is select one of the on-demand programs from the list and it will be downloaded via the internet for you to watch.

A while later I discovered another nice advantage to having my DVR connected to the internet. I could access and control my DVR from anywhere I could access the internet. I can sit in my office and browse the program guide on my PC and set up programs to be recorded while my wife is sitting in the living room watching TV.

Check out the story of how I managed to save the day by borrowing my son’s iPhone to access my DVR while riding in the car on the way back home one night after I realized I had forgotten to set the DVR to record something. Now that was cool.

In an interesting experiment conducted by the people at Sound & Vision magazine, they set up a test to directly compare a movie on Blu-ray disc to the same movie playing on a DISH Network ViP722 DVR using the 1080p HD format.

Currently, 1080p is being offered by DISH on a limited basis and only for video-on-demand programming. However, the proof that they are able to deliver 1080p content that is almost as good as a Blu-ray disc may be a sign of good things to come.

In the article, Sound & Vision had this to say: “Flipping back and forth between the two sources while sitting at a normal viewing distance, I could detect only subtle differences. In fact, I couldn’t be sure I was seeing any difference at all, since the movie’s frantic action made it hard to judge picture quality. Even if I was seeing a difference, I wasn’t sure which source was better.”

DISH is clearly ahead of the pack with this development. Their top competitor, DirecTV has no specific plans in place to offer any 1080p content, other than to say they plan to do it sometime later this year.

The top three cable companies, in true clueless cable industry form, said they would offer 1080p when their customers demanded it and when it was available. As the Sound & Vision author pointed out, all major movies are now mastered in 1080p, but I suppose we cannot expect cable TV executives or marketing people to be aware of anything like that. After all, they aren’t involved in any way with video, right?