The Walt Disney Co. (NYSE:DIS) has pulled its television channels from Charter Communications”™ (NASDAQ:CHTR) Spectrum cable television system over an unresolved carriage dispute between the companies.
Spectrum viewers became aware of the severity of the dispute yesterday when the live broadcast of the U.S. Open on Disney”™s ESPN abruptly went dark for several minutes, only to be replaced with an on-screen message announcing that Disney”™s program has been taken down from Spectrum. Other Disney channels impacted by the decision include ABC, FX, Freeform and National Geographic, along with local affiliate stations.
“We”™ve been in ongoing negotiations with Charter Communications for some time and have not yet agreed to a new market-based agreement,” said Disney in a press statement. “Disney Entertainment has successful deals in place with pay TV providers of all types and sizes across the country, and the rates and terms we are seeking in this renewal are driven by the marketplace. We”™re committed to reaching a mutually agreed upon resolution with Charter and we urge them to work with us to minimize the disruption to their customers.”
The Stamford-headquartered Charter responded with its own message, stating that it “offered Disney a fair deal, yet they are demanding an excessive increase. They also want to limit our ability to provide greater customer choice in programming packages forcing you to take and pay for channels you may not want. The rising cost of programming is the single greatest factor in higher cable TV prices, and we are fighting hard to hold the line on programming rates imposed on us by companies like Disney.”
Charter has 14.7 million subscribers and is the nation”™s second largest cable TV provider.
