Talks Resume Between Cox, Allbritton
By Linda Moss -- Multichannel News, 10/8/2001 2:00:00 PM
Cox Communications Inc.'s Cox Cable of Northern Virginia and WJLA-TV have resumed their retransmission-consent talks, agreeing that the ABC affiliate and its sister cable service, NewsChannel 8, will remain on the 240,000-subscriber system until at least the end of the month.
Cox and Allbritton Communications Co. have also agreed that if there is no resolution to their bitter dispute, Cox's subscribers in Fairfax County, Va., will lose both WJLA and NewsChannel 8 -- both owned by Allbritton -- midnight Oct. 31.
Contract talks between Cox and Allbritton erupted in a nasty public battle last week, with Allbritton telling the cable operator Oct. 1 that it would not longer have permission to carry WJLA as of midnight Oct. 6.
WJLA's retransmission-consent deal with Cox expired nearly two years ago, continuing under monthly extensions while both sides worked on a renewal. The MSO's deal for NewsChannel 8 expired Oct. 6.
The feud escalated Friday when Cox said it was refusing to drop WJLA, arguing that Allbritton had not given it proper notification -- as mandated under federal regulations -- in ordering that the station be pulled. Cox maintained that it would not be able to give its subscribers proper notice that they would be losing WJLA.
Allbritton responded by threatening that Cox would liable for theft of service, copyright infringement and federal sanctions if it kept WJLA on past the Oct. 6 deadline.
But Friday night, both sides agreed to resume face-to-face talks, with Allbritton extending its contracts with Cox until the end of the month.
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