FiOS, Newport TV Disconnect in Retrans Dispute
Stations in Upstate New York, Harrisburg, Pa., Now Dark on Telco's Video Service
Mike Farrell -- Multichannel News, 1/13/2012 4:22:15 PM
Newport Television-owned stations in Syracuse and Albany, N.Y. and Harrisburg, Pa., went dark on Verizon FiOS TV systems in those markets on Jan. 12, after the parties could not reach a deal.
The stations are WXXA (FOX) in Albany, WSYR (ABC) in Syracuse and WHP (CBS) in Harrisburg, Pa.
The impasse comes just as viewers were gearing up for the NFL divisional playoffs. FiOS customers in the Albany market were in danger of missing the New Orleans Saints vs. the San Francisco 49ers on Jan. 14 and the New York Giants vs. the Green Bay Packers on Jan. 15 on Fox. FiOS customers could be shut out from the Jan. 14 divisional playoff between the Denver Broncos and New England Patriots and Sunday's matchup between the Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens on CBS.
In a statement, Verizon spokesman John Bonomo said the telco continues to negotiate with Newport and has reached other retrans deals with stations in all other Newport markets.
"Verizon has repeatedly offered Newport fair fees consistent with the marketplace, but so far Newport has refused our offers," Bonomo said in the statement. "It is unfortunate that Newport has decided to remove this programming from our FiOS TV lineup, harming our customers in these three areas."
He added that customers can receive the channel over the air. For football fans, Verizon Wireless, through its agreement with the NFL, offers a live audio broadcast of NFL playoff games on select mobile devices.
According to Bonomo, this is the first time that a local broadcaster has removed its stations from FiOS after the expiration of a retransmission-consent agreement. Cable network The Tennis Channel removed its programming from FiOS in September, and the parties continue to negotiate on a new agreement and hope to return the channel to the FiOS lineup.
Newport TV, based in Kansas City, owns about 60 stations in 22 markets across the country.
Newport vice president of operations and associate general counsel Michael DiPasquale said last Friday he had submitted an offer to FiOS for the stations the evening of Jan. 12, but had yet to hear a response at press time. While he said the impasse concerns pricing for the stations, the two are also apart on other issues including channel placement and the length of the deal.
Bonomo acknowledged Newport's Jan. 12 proposal, but said it was "unreasonable."
Newport has encouraged customers concerned with missing out on its programming to switch from Verizon to alternative providers in the areas like Time Warner Cable in New York, Comcast in Harrisburg, DirecTV and Dish Network, as well as obtaining the signals over the air. "The bottom line is that Newport TV wants to get a deal done," Pasquale said. "We are ready, willing and able to negotiate, but negotiations are a two-way street."
While a resolution is still possible with FiOS and Newport before kickoff time, Time Warner Cable's impasse with Cordillera Communication NBC and Telemundo stations in Corpus Christi, Texas continues. The broadcaster asked the Federal Communications Commission to intervene last week, claiming TWC is not negotiating in good faith, an accusation the cabler denied. Separately, TWC's carriage dispute with regional sports networks MSG in New York continued into through its second week.
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I have to really wonder what the REAL story is here. I think this calls for an investigation by our Attorney General. The timing around NFL playoffs and the return of American Idle is too convenient. Newport and Verizon are both at fault... unless there is something more going on behind the scenes with Newport and other carriers.
Edward Conway - 1/15/2012 12:26:43 PM EST -
This is nothing more than an illegal attempt at stealing customers away from Verizon. I wonder what kind of deal the other carriers signed? Kind of funny that even in this article it states... Time Warner Cable in New York, Comcast in Harrisburg, DirecTV and Dish Network are alternatives to switch to in lieu of staying a Verizon FIOS customer!! I will be cashing in my stock on Monday in personal protest against Newport Television! Thanks, and I hope you enjoyed taking away my ability to watch the NFL playoffs. Sincerely, Disgruntled and Disabled Veteran!!
Russell C Aasen Sr - 1/15/2012 11:44:48 AM EST -
Verizon breached their contract with their customers, by not giving us proper notice before dropping Fox - WXXA. I also called Verizon and got no where . Not the way to do business, when Time Warner is offering really great deals to come back to them, including reimbursing a portion of the penalty Verizon will charge with early cancellation. Verizon - Wake up you are going to loose more than you will gain by holding out on signing with Newport TV.
JoAnne Leak Hellijas - 1/15/2012 9:32:22 AM EST -
Hey,
I live in Albany, ny and guess what? Time Warner Cable is no better. In fact, I just switched to Verizon. I'll have Time Warner until after the playoffs, Then Verizon is scheduled to handle my installation. I could definitely do without FOX. I can handle not being able to watch my Knicks on MSG or the LEAGUE PASS. At least with FOX I can watch that over the Air signal on my flat screen. Verizon is a lot cheaper than time warner but the truth really is that both companies suck and are all about money. The trick is figuring out which one is going to stick it to you more.
Pissed off in Albany - 1/15/2012 12:43:41 AM EST -
Verizon doesn't seem to respect their customers and they don't seem to care one way or another what happens if we see the playoffs or not. I thought to myself what does companies in the tv industry care about...AD REVENUE DOLLARS. I am contacting every company that airs ads (on Fox in my case in Albany, NY)...MCDONALDS, SUBWAY, DOMINO's etc. stating: " I noticed you are a sponsor on Fox. I am a customer of Verizon FIOS as well as a customer of yours. Currently Verizon FIOS and Newport Television are in a dispute to carry Fox. Verizon FIOS and Newport don't seem to care about their customers, but what they both care about is revenue, specifically Ad revenue. I will be boycotting your products until this contract dispute is settled. I am going to urge other Verizon users to do the same via the social networking sites. I appreciate anything you can do on your end so we can stop boycotting your product on our end". If enough people contact these companies maybe Verizon and Newport will feel the pressure from people they really care about. It takes a village to get things done so I sincerely hope other customers will join in and spread the word.
William Gariepy - 1/14/2012 11:01:25 PM EST
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