• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, December 1, 2006

As the number of Americans subscribing to cable lineups hits a ceiling, satellite-service DirecTV is looking to boost its customer base within various ethnic markets.

Its latest push includes a targeted effort in the sizable Polish communities in Chicago and New York. The DBS carrier is adding three Polish-language channels, hoping to pry customers away from competitor Dish Network, which offers a different slate of networks aimed at this population.

The combined population in the two markets (Chicago has more Polish speakers than any city except Warsaw) is estimated at 2.4 million. And the addition of even a few hundred thousand customers would be a revenue boon for DirecTV, which has 15.6 million customers.

Moreover, Dish is facing increased competition from cable operators to attract customers from a pool that might be topping out.

DirecTV's strategy--which it previously used to entice Russian, Ukrainian and Italian speakers in the U.S. to sign up--includes offering channels in native languages and promoting those with ad campaigns in ethnic media.

In Chicago and New York, DirecTV is promoting its additional channels in Polish-language print and radio outlets. And banner ads viewable only by those living in the U.S., done via IP targeting, are running on Polish-based Web sites and blogs that expatriates visit.

DirecTV's ethnic-marketing efforts are conceived by New York agency Global Advertising Strategies, which sometimes veers away from traditional media as it seeks to burrow into a particular community. For example, in its Ukrainian campaign, it installed DirecTVs in community cultural centers.

The campaigns have a dual challenge--to differentiate DirecTV from Dish, which has been a trailblazer in offering foreign-language channels, and to convince consumers to pay the additional costs that come with the "home language" channels. In DirecTV's case, that is estimated at an added $29.99 a month.

The challenge is "to be able to explain all the differences of DirecTV and the advantages versus Dish Network," says Yuriy Boykiv, senior manager for business development at Global Advertising Strategies.

In the new dynamic, Boykiv says that while Dish offers Polish-language channels with local adaptations of hits, such as "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" and "American Idol," not all consumers are looking for that type of "commercial" fare.

Some want channels that "bring cultural values to a family that can be passed on to other generations." Other immigrant parents worry that their children are assimilating into American culture too rapidly, losing touch with their parents' language and roots.

The new Polish channels will be available nationwide via DirecTV to the estimated 3 million Polish speakers, although 80% are believed to be in the Chicago and New York DMAs.

Global Advertising Strategies, which also conducts market research for DirecTV about ethnic markets it should target and channels it should launch to reach them, identified the potential growth in the Polish market.