The dispute between DirecTV and Disney over a brand new broadcast contract has escalated in its second week.
DirecTV filed a grievance with the Federal Communications Commission on Saturday night, accusing Disney of negotiating in bad faith.
Disney channels, including ESPN and ABC-owned channels in nine markets, were not with DirecTV This meant that DirecTV customers couldn’t watch most college football games and the ultimate week of the US Open tennis tournament, including the boys’s and ladies’s finals.
According to Leichtman Research Group, DirecTV has 11.3 million subscribers, making it the third-largest pay-TV provider within the country.
ABC and ESPN will broadcast the opening game of Monday Night Football between the New York Jets and the San Francisco 49ers. ABC may also produce and broadcast a presidential debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump in Philadelphia on Tuesday.
ABC-owned stations in Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, Fresno, California, New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Houston and Raleigh, North Carolina should not available on DirecTV.
In addition to all ESPN network channels and ABC-owned channels, the Disney branded channels Freeform, FX and National Geographic Channel are also switched off.
DirecTV alleges in its 10-page grievance that Disney is violating the FCC’s good faith principles by requiring it to waive all legal claims related to anticompetitive practices, including ongoing packaging and minimum penetration requirements.
DirecTV has asked Disney for the chance to supply consumers cheaper, stripped-down programming packages relatively than larger packages that include shows that some viewers might not be fascinated about.
The grievance states: “In addition to these anticompetitive demands, Disney has also insisted that DirecTV agree to a non-litigation and non-complaint clause, both of which are designed to prevent DirecTV from taking legal action against Disney’s anticompetitive demands, including filing good faith complaints with the Commission. However, less than three months ago, the Media Bureau clarified that such a demand itself constitutes a violation of the anticompetitive demands.”
DirecTV CEO Ray Carpenter said during a conference call with business and media analysts on Tuesday that the corporate wouldn’t conform to a brand new broadcast cope with Disney without package changes.
“We’re not playing a short-term game,” Carpenter said. “We need something that works for the long-term sustainability of our video customers. The determination is there.”
Disney has maintained for the reason that lockout began that mutual waivers of claims are common practice after licensing agreements are negotiated and agreed to by the parties, including one such agreement with DirecTV as a part of previous renewals.
A Disney spokesperson said: “We continue to negotiate with DirecTV to restore access to our content as quickly as possible. We urge DirecTV to stop creating distractions and instead put its customers first by entering into a deal that allows their subscribers to watch our strong upcoming lineup of sports, news and entertainment programming, starting with the return of Monday Night Football.”
Last yr Disney and Charter Spectrum – the country’s second-largest cable television provider – were locked in an almost 12-day impasse until an agreement was reached just hours before the primary NFL game of the season on Monday night.
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