Washington, D.C.
(August 17, 2012)
-- Cablevision had a up and down day yesterday, adding the
long-awaited NFL Network in the morning but then losing several
Tribune-owned local stations late in the day due to yet another
industry fee fight.
Let's start with the NFL Network.
After several years of holding out, Cablevision announced
yesterday that it will add both the NFL Network channel and the
NFL Red Zone channel. The NFL Network will make its Cablevision
debut today and will be available in both standard-definition
and HD.
The NFL Red Zone, which features in-game coverage of regular
season games when an offensive team is inside its opponent's
20-yard line, will also be available in SD and HD, Cablevision
said.
With Cablevision signing on, Time Warner Cable becomes the last
major TV provider who has not signed a deal with the NFL
Network. The two sides have negotiated privately and publicly
for years but have failed to reach terms. Yesterday, the public
negotiations continued with Time Warner Cable saying it's
hopeful of landing a deal before the start of the 2012 regular
season, but cautioning that it's been hopeful before.
Now, as for Cablevision's fee fight with Tribune:
Tribune pulled WPIX and three smaller local stations
(CW station WCCT, seen in Hartford; CW
station KWGN Denver, seen in some of Cablevision's Optimum West
markets; and MyNetwork station WPH, seen in New Jersey.)after
midnight last night when the two sides could not reach a new
programming agreement.
As usual, Cablevision, as the TV provider losing the channels,
blamed the programmer for asking for excessive fees to carry
their networks. Tribune had not issued a statement as of 5:57
a.m. ET on Friday.
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