DirecTV and Nexstar Media Group have now reached an agreement which finally brings their dispute to an end. The new deal guarantees the return of a number of local channels, as well as NewsNation, on a permanent basis.
The Nexstar-owned channels involved in the dispute were actually returned to DirecTV and DirecTV Stream yesterday. At the time, the return of the channels was advertised as a temporary solution while the two companies continued negotiating.
Today, both companies confirmed that they’ve finished negotiating and that a new long-term deal is now in place. According to the announcement, the two reached a new multi-year distribution agreement that covers 176 Nexstar-owned local television stations and NewsNation, the company’s national cable news network.
Similar to yesterday’s announcement, the confirmation of an agreement came in the form of a very short announcement which didn’t provide any details, including the terms of the deal. As a result, it remains unclear whether one or both conceded more, or whether the return of the channels will lead to a price increase that’s eventually passed on to the subscriber.
During the dispute, DirecTV accused Nexstar of holding channels hostage in an attempt to get more money. According to DirecTV at the time, Nexstar wanted “to secure double the rates for the same programming that’s free over-the-air today.”
Regardless of how a deal was ultimately reached, the existence of a new agreement will be good news for DirecTV, DirecTV Stream, and U-verse customers that have missed having access to NewsNation and the various Nexstar-owned local channels.
While DirecTV has now reached a long-term agreement with Nexstar, and Charter having recently agreed a new Spectrum TV deal with Disney, Dish still remains locked in a dispute with Hearst Television, resulting in the loss of 37 local channels in 27 markets.
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