Dish Network subscribers in seven states could lose access to programming from 16 News-Press & Gazette stations if a retransmission consent deal is not reached by 6 p.m. tonight (Feb. 23).
News of the dispute was first reported by TVPredictions.com.
News-Press Gazette owns ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox affiliates in California, Oregon, Idaho, Colorado, Missouri, Texas and Arizona. Cities involved in the dispute include El Paso, Texas (KVIA-CBS); Yuma, Ariz. (KECY-Fox), Bend, Ore. (KTVZ-NBC); Colorado Springs, Colo. (KRDO-ABC) and Santa Barbara, Calif. (KEYT-ABC). The company has set up a website for viewers to find additional information regarding the negotiations.
The dispute appears to be over the amount of money NPG wants to be paid for its content, as well as re-broadcasting some stations in HD rather than SD.
“Only News Press & Gazette Company can force a blackout of its channels,” Dish said in a statement. “Dish has successfully negotiated agreements representing hundreds of stations in recent months that benefit all parties, including our viewers. We are unsure why News Press & Gazette decided to involve customers in the contract negotiation process at a point when there is still time for the two parties to reach a mutually beneficial deal.
“Dish is actively working to finalize a deal before the contract expires,” the company continued.
