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                <p>SALMON, Idaho (Reuters) – A chain of electronic stores in parts of the states of Idaho and Montana are offering free guns to first-time subscribers of satellite TV services.</p>
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The new promotions by combination RadioShack and Dish Network dealerships in western Montana and another in southwest Idaho have attracted crowds that range from the merely curious to the firearm-friendly.</p>
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John Marshall, owner of a RadioShack store in Mountain Home, Idaho near Boise, said the flagging economy was behind the program he began advertising this week.</p>
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"There's no problem with it here; this isn't New York City," he said about a gun giveaway that has sparked criticism on blogs by gun-control advocates elsewhere.</p>
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Under the arrangement, new subscribers to a Dish Network package are given a coupon for $135 to purchase a single-shot shotgun at a local sporting goods store.</p>
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The guns-for-subscriptions offer is the brainchild of Steve Strand, owner of a RadioShack store in Montana's Bitterroot Valley.</p>
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Strand said the promotional campaign he crafted last fall has proved a sure-fire strategy to target satellite subscribers in a region that favors firearms. Subscriptions for Dish Network packages have increased threefold since he began offering freebies on pistols or shotguns.</p>
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Strand said women make up the majority of his growing customer base.</p>
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"All I can tell you is, grandma is packing a gun in Montana," he said.</p>
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A RadioShack official questioned the promotion but the corporation has not prohibited it by franchise owners like Strand.</p>
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"I might not even consider such a program if I were in Detroit city but we have a different demographic out here," Strand said.</p>
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(Editing by Dan Whitcomb and Tim Gaynor)</p>
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