Posted on 12/31/2009 10:37:53 AM PST by My Favorite Headache
The impasse between FOX broadcast network and Time Warner Cable continues with less than a day remaining before the cable provider knocks the network and its cable outlets off the dial.
And as each side ratchets up the rhetoric, neither seem willing to show compromise. Could Fox really be gone from homes with Time Warner Cable tomorrow?
The Wall Street Journal explains where things are at right now:
The crux of tensions is a $1 monthly fee News Corp is seeking for local Fox TV stations it owns from each Time Warner Cable TV household. While several owners of broadcast stations have had some success seeking such fees in recent years, amid declines in ad revenue, the Fox network is seeking a much higher fee…People familiar with the matter said Time Warner Cable, one of the country’s biggest cable operators, has offered to pay Fox a similar level of fees as other owners of local TV stations: roughly 25 cents. The price Fox is seeking would set a new bar, and potentially open the floodgates for other media companies that own broadcast TV networks.
And the Los Angeles Times‘ Joe Flint has some specifics on what may happen if no deal is reached:
Besides Los Angeles, where Time Warner Cable has more than 1 million subscribers, other cities that would lose the Fox signals include New York, Dallas and Tampa, Fla. Locally, Time Warner Cable subscribers wouldn’t be able to get KTTV-TV Channel 11 and KCOP-TV Channel 13 as well as FX, Fox Sports West and Prime Ticket. Fox News Channel has a separate agreement with Time Warner Cable and is not affected by these negotiations.
News Corp. President Chase Carey is bracing employees for the probability no deal will be reached, writing in a memo to staff, “it looks like we will not reach an agreement and our channels may very well go off the air in Time Warner Cable systems at midnight.”
As shocking as it sounds, both sides are still holding firm, and the effect will be seen immediately. On New Years Day night, one of the biggest NCAA football bowl games, the Sugar Bowl between Florida and Cincinnati, takes place – and airs on FOX. There will be many angry fans of both teams and sports fans in general if the deal is not reached. The possibility of a last minute deal looms – but as each side remains unwavering, there’s a chance that, for at least a few hours, FOX and its cablers are headed off Time Warner Cable.
Either way, the clock is ticking…
Brighthouse Networks in Central Florida says no deal with Fox either...Fox will go dark in Central Florida as of 12:01 AM. I remember last year it was Viacom doing this with MTV, CMT, VH1, Nickelodeon etc...
Clock Ticking As Bright House-Fox Talks Continue
Thursday, December 31, 2009 1:14:37 PM
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Chris Fenger of Bright House Networks 12/30/2009
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Reported by Dave D’Marko
ORLANDO — Negotiations are continuing between Bright House Networks and News Corporation, the parent company of the Fox network.
Fox is threatening to pull many of its channels from your Bright House Networks cable lineup if a deal isn’t reached by the midnight New Year’s Eve deadline.
Starting with the Sugar Bowl, popular events and shows on Fox’s family of 11 networks might be pulled off Bright House Networks cable by Fox beginning Jan. 1.
Bright House is working with Fox to keep them from pulling their programming, but Bright House’s Central Florida Division President Chris Fenger said Fox is being unreasonable.
“We have seen dramatic increases in the demands made by owners. This is the latest round, and it’s pretty egregious,” Fenger said.
Fox owns local affiliate WOFL. WOFL sends its programming signal over the air for free. Now Fox wants cable companies – like Bright House Networks and Time Warner - to pay for re-transmitting that over-the-air signal.
That’s in addition to the payment Fox is already receiving for their cable programming.
A News Corporation spokesman e-mailed us the following statement:
“Our position in these negotiations is entirely reasonable — we are simply asking for fair compensation for the impressive value our FOX programming offers.”
The statement also said that Fox will continue to negotiate.
Fenger said Fox’s demands put cable subscribers’ pocketbooks in peril.
“This is a precedent setting negotiation if Fox can get what they are seeking then its going to give license every other programmer out there to make the some sort of demands, and cable bills will skyrocket,” Fenger said.
Since Bright House regularly negotiates dozens of re-transmission agreements each year — most without issue — the issue this time with Fox, could be, according to the Wall Street Journal, that Fox is asking for more than twice what other broadcast networks receive.
Bright House Networks is the parent company of News 13.
They’d better have it back on before Idol and 24 debut, or there may be riots.
But, I’m on Comcast, so what do I care?
SnakeDoc
Good riddance Time Warner Cable..we have been loyal Adelphia, then Time Warner Cable customers for years, then they pull this crap. First they take away The Weather Channel, Family Channel, and Oxygen Network, now they are taking away Fox from me..I am through with them, we are just going to keep Time Warner Internet since I don’t have any available DSL in my area, but we are switching to The Dish Network(My sister has dish so she would get a 50 dollar credit) What do you all think, is Dish better then Directv?
I have already lost several of my favorite channels recently because of this kind of thing... if I lose fox I will cancel immediately.
Time Warner is about to lose a lot of customers.
Ping.
I would be losing Fox 11 Los Angeles, KCOP 13, Fox Sports Net(No more Laker games, this means WAR!), Fox Sports Prime Ticket, FX, Speed, Fuel TV, Fox Soccer Channel, and Fox Sports in Spanish(Which I dont even have)
I have Mediacom and they are having the same trouble with Sinclair that owns a bunch of TV stations. Maybe I need to start thinking about Direct TV.
I’ve never had DirectTV but I have had Dish for 14 years and have had no problems with them.
43% say no.
FR thread on it:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418397/posts
The CEO of Time Warner, Jeff Bewkes, donated to Obama, Schumer, Dodd, Reid and the late Ted Kennedy.
My TWC bill is high enough.
FOX can eff off.
But what we really need is cafeteria cable. I’m paying for MTV and other useless channels I don’t want.
I need the right to pick and choose what networks and channels I want. And I will pay for them.
Well this is going to be the biggest boon to DirecTV in history. Now if Murdoch still owned DirecTV there would be a federal anti-trust investigation going. But he doesn’t and maybe this story explains why.
I dont watch the shows on THEIR time that they tell me.I just download the shows for later viewing by bittorrent.
[[“Our position in these negotiations is entirely reasonable — we are simply asking for fair compensation for the impressive value our FOX programming offers.”]]
‘Impressive Value’ Eh? I get more enjoyment out of watching Turner Classics than I do any of Fox’s lame stations which repeat mindless material ad nauseum. as for the news- Meh- plenty of conservative sites o nthe net will update our family just fine, and we won’t have to endure windbags like O’Reilly apologizing for the obama administration and making excuses for the left as the left tramples our constutional rights.
Fox keeps braggign about how they re stomping hte competetition, but if they keep tryign crap like htis- they will be trailing hte competetion before long- So yeah fox- keep screwing the public who are already paying WAY MORE than they ought to for crappy TV
All Fox channels EXCEPT Fox News are involved here.
[[Time Warner is about to lose a lot of customers.]]
You bet they are- and Fox is also cutting off their noses to spite their faces as well
[[What do you all think, is Dish better then Directv?]]
Fox isn’t just goign after cable, they are goign after satelite too- this iwll affect satelitye as well
Well, another good reason to get rid of Time Warner..because of idiotic polls like that run by Time Warner Cable
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