Satcaster Dish and its live streaming service, Sling TV, early this morning lost the entire suite of Disney-owned channels, including ESPN, and ABC local affiliates in eight markets, due to a carriage dispute with Disney. (The loss of ABC does not affect Sling TV which has not carried the network’s affiliates.)
Update: Dish and Disney strike new deal.
Dish said Disney declined a contract extension offer that would have kept the channels on the two services while negotiations continued. Disney countered that the satellite TV company rejected carriage terms that were similar to what other TV providers have accepted.
“Disney has exploited its market position to increase fees without regard for the public viewing experience,” Brian Neylon, Dish’s executive vice president and group president, said in a statement. “Clearly, Disney insists on prioritizing greed above American viewers, especially sports fans and families with children who watch their content.”
Can Sling TV Survive Without ESPN?
“After months of negotiating in good faith, Dish has declined to reach a fair, market-based agreement with us for continued distribution of our networks,” Disney said in its statement. “The rates and terms we are seeking reflect the marketplace and have been the foundation for numerous successful deals with pay TV providers of all types and sizes across the country. We’re committed to reaching a fair resolution, and we urge DISH to work with us in order to minimize the disruption to their customers.”
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Besides ESPN and ABC, the list of affected channels also include:
Disney Channel, Disney Jr, Disney XD, ESPN 2, ESPN 3, ESPN OnDemand, ESPNEWS, ESPNU, ESPN Deportes, ACC Network, ACC Network Extra, Longhorn Network, SEC Network, SEC+, Freeform, FX, FXM, FXX, Nat Geo, Nat Geo Wild, Nat Geo Mundo, ABC News Live, Jimmy Kimmel Live, BabyTV, BabyTV Arabic, BabyTV French, BabyTV Latino, BabyTV Mandarin, BabyTV, Polish, and BabyTV Portuguese.
Can Dish Survive Without Disney?
Dish, which has slightly less than eight million satellite subscribers, including many in rural areas, complained that the removal of the Disney channels “will have an have an oversized impact on rural consumers who rely on satellite television as a primary means of entertainment.”
Sling TV, which has around 2.2 million streaming subscribers, has relied heavily on its carriage of ESPN to attract new customers, particularly young cord-cutters who love sports.
Both services have struggled to attract and keep subscribers over the last year with Dish losing nine percent of its net base during that time while Sling lost 10 percent. If the Disney fee fight lasts for an extended period, it could do serious damage to both TV services.
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— Phillip Swann
@tvanswerman
Disney is a Dick! I watch FX for Welcome to Wrexham and FXX for Archer and Little Demon. And now they take those channels off of Sling?! This makes me wanna sting that damn mouse wit a taxi cab!
You Tube tv. A lot of subscribers and big enough to be able to make a deal with the large greedy company.
Mr. Swann this is just one more example of the disaster awaiting Directv customers if/when Mr. Ergen gains control.
He certainly has a bug up his you know what about sports broadcasting (yes it’s expensive but people pay for it, mostly).
He also has tantrums when he doesn’t get his way. Sooner or later his satellite and streamer won’t be carrying any channels people want to watch.
I know you think this is a good idea? How about the reverse, Directv takes over DISH? It could work if Ergen cashes out and isn’t a pig (small chance of that, but miracles do happen).
Directv relinquished much of its debt (not all) when AT&T partially sold its shares. It might just work!
We Sports fans would certainly approve.
Well over 5 million subscribers and a lot of leverage to be able to make a deal with the large greedy company. They are trying to make up for tax status and recoup losses. It’s all about the bottom line for Disney. No regard for the little guy trying to survive in a world of greed and inflation.
It is time for the US Government to Crack Down and STOP TV providers
from allowing them to curtail Americans from watching TV.
I know this is a free society,
BUT TV is a BASIC Utility, just like Electricity, Heat, Water, Phone and Internet.
Letting these THIEVES screw the American public
for some GREEDY OLIGARCH’S is just WRONG.
TV needs to be Regulated. We cannot Trust them to play fair.
The FCC needs to set Limits on prices they can charge.
The prices for TV have Sky rocked to the point of Insanity.
TV has been around for a LONG time
and people expect it to be reliable without BLOCKING.
Think how people would react
if every time they made a Phone call
someone had to negotiate the price of the call.
Streaming was a Good idea that BACK FIRED
Walt Disney is Rolling around in his Coffin.
How did Micky Mouse get mixed up with Sports ?
DISNEY is an AWFUL company and ANTI-AMERICAN to the max
I’m not exactly sure why people are signaling out Disney as the “bad player” in this particular feud?
Both Disney and every other Producer/Supplier of programming and DISH, along with every other Cable/Satellite TV Distributor are all responsible for the situation we find ourselves in.
They are both greedy, monopolistic companies that for years have been able to charge whatever to customers. Except now reality has struck. Consumers can no longer afford the product. Period!
As with all Monopoly in the past it needs regulation and oversight. Don’t be confused by “on-line” distributors, they are the same players just using updated equipment. The difference is they have moved the transmission of the product from their equipment to the internet suppliers who charge for this separately.
Don’t be surprised as more people move from Cable to Internet protocol, the price of Internet Service will increase drastically. Don’t be surprised when they charge per MB usage much like the Electric suppliers do per Kilowatts.
So there are no good guys, they are all in for the gold!