Categories
News

Disney-Spectrum Dispute Results In Charter Facing Class-Action Lawsuit

This post may contain affiliate links and we may earn a commission. Learn more

The dispute between Charter and Disney over Spectrum carriage fees for Disney-owned channels has now led to legal action via a class-action lawsuit.

Advertisement

Last week, a number of channels, including Disney and ESPN, were dropped from Spectrum TV. Charter was quick to jump to its own defense by putting the blame not only on Disney but the industry as a whole. Disney responded with its own argument, firmly placing the blame on Charter.

It now seems as though the courts are getting involved. In a recently filed class-action lawsuit published by The Hollywood Reporter, customers argue that Charter failed “to fulfill contractual obligations” by not consistently providing access to Disney-owned channels, and opted to use Spectrum consumers “as a pawn in a clear money grab.”

Advertisement

The lawsuit additionally claims that Charter “engaged in unfair or deceptive acts or practices by consistently billing the plaintiff for access to channels owned by Disney while failing to provide those channels as contracted.”

As a result, the class-action is looking to get an order in place that requires Charter to “fulfill its contractual obligations by providing the Disney channels” or reimburse Class Members for channels not provided.

In fairness to Charter, the company has already started issuing $15 statement credits to affected customers. Although, getting the credit is a little harder than most people might expect, considering it requires the customer to get in contact with Charter first.

Advertisement

In addition to the statement credit, Charter has also been encouraging customers to temporarily try a live TV streaming service like Fubo, Sling TV, or YouTube TV. Basically, live TV services not owned by Disney.

However, it would seem those taking part in the class action are not too happy with Charter’s live TV provider recommendations, claiming the process to be inconvenient, while continuing to be charged for services not received.

Disney has also been using the dispute as an opportunity to promote Hulu Live TV, even going on a marketing blitz to bring attention to its live TV streaming service. A move which, according to Deadline, appears to be working after resulting in an uptick in more new Hulu Live TV subscribers than expected.

Advertisement
John Finn

By John Finn

John started Streaming Better to help consumers navigate the live TV streaming and subscription service landscape. John has been editing and writing about technology and streaming for online publications since 2014, and believes the best streaming approach is to rotate between services as needed.

John's preferred live TV streaming service right now is YouTube TV although he does tend to switch live TV services multiple times each year to keep up to date with their changes. Outside of live TV, John also actively streams HBO Max (for the shows), Peacock (for Premier League), and Paramount Plus (for Champion's League). However, John is also currently subscribed to Apple TV+, Discovery+, Hulu, Starz, Showtime, and Shudder.

Contact John via email at john@streamingbetter.com or say hi on Twitter

Leave a Reply

Streaming can be frustrating but please be respectful and avoid personal information. All comments are moderated according to our comment policy.

Advertisement