As a cinephile with decades of experience navigating the complexities of the TV and film industry, I find myself deeply troubled by this ongoing saga between Disney and DirecTV. It seems like we’re witnessing a modern-day version of Romeo and Juliet, but instead of star-crossed lovers, it’s two media giants locked in a bitter feud.
As a passionate movie enthusiast, I’m finding myself caught in the middle of a bitter feud between DirectTV and Disney, with their contract dispute showing no signs of resolution. It seems increasingly likely that the blackout of Disney-owned networks on my DirectTV service will stretch into its second week.
Over the weekend, Directv lodged a grievance with the Federal Communications Commission, accusing Disney of not conducting negotiations in good faith. Directv contends that Disney has breached the FCC’s requirements for good-faith negotiations by making any licensing agreement contingent on Directv waiving its rights to legal action against Disney’s allegedly anticompetitive practices, such as their continuous packaging and minimum market penetration demands.
Due to a lack of an agreement reached before their contract expired on September 1st, Disney’s channels such as ESPN, ABC, FX, SEC Network, ACC Network, Disney Channel, NatGeo, Freeform, among others, were removed from DirecTV’s lineup. Despite the current weekend offering a multitude of sports events on ESPN and ABC like college football and the U.S. Open tennis finals, both companies are still at odds in resolving their dispute. The upcoming events include ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” returning on September 9 with the New York Jets facing off against the San Francisco 49ers, and ABC News hosting a debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump on September 10.
In a statement addressed to EbMaster, a Disney representative responded to DirecTV’s FCC complaint, expressing that they are still in negotiations to reinstate access to their content as swiftly as possible. The representative implores DirecTV to abandon unnecessary distractions and instead focus on their customers by concluding an agreement that would enable subscribers to enjoy our robust upcoming slate of sports, news, and entertainment programming, beginning with the resumption of ‘Monday Night Football.’
In simpler terms, DirecTV’s grievance states that the talks have hit an impasse because Disney is pushing for bundling deals and conditions that a New York court judge recently deemed illegal, anticompetitive, and harmful to consumers in another case. Essentially, Disney wants DirecTV to carry a large package of less popular Disney content while offering smaller, more preferred packages themselves. It’s a situation the Commission has never addressed before, and DirecTV might consider filing a complaint about Disney’s practices in the future.
As a film enthusiast, I’m expressing my concern over Disney’s persistent tactics. Alongside their anticompetitive requests, they’ve proposed a ‘clean slate’ provision and a non-suit agreement to DirecTV. These terms aim to hinder DirecTV from pursuing legal action against Disney’s anticompetitive demands, such as submitting genuine complaints to the Commission. Just recently, the Media Bureau clarified that such a demand is unacceptable and represents bad faith.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Directv Informs Clients About Price Increase Scheduled for Next Month, Announced During a Time When ESPN, ABC, and Other Disney Networks are Unavailable
As a passionate cinephile, I find myself in a pickle, for it seems DirectTV is pointing fingers at Disney, alleging their disagreements have led to a stalemate in negotiations. This unfortunate situation has left more than 11 million of us missing out on early college football games already and potentially missing the first ‘Monday Night Football’ game. If this impasse persists, it appears we might also miss the presidential debate, an event produced and hosted by ABC.
In response to DirecTV’s mention of Disney requiring a waiver of legal claims, Disney states that such mutual release of claims is a common practice following the negotiation and agreement of licensing contracts. They further explain that they have had “clean slate” agreements with DirecTV in every previous renewal, implying that this is a standard procedure for them as well.
As a devoted fan, I find myself in a bit of a pickle due to the recent blackout. Unfortunately, this has disconnected me from accessing my beloved ABC local stations in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Houston, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Fresno, California, and Raleigh, North Carolina – all owned by Disney – on my DirecTV satellite subscription. Moreover, the blackout has also affected the streaming services of DirecTV across the nation, leaving me without access to ABC-affiliated stations that aren’t owned by ABC.
(Shown above: Quarterback Aaron Rodgers of the New York Jets, playing against the Buffalo Bills in a September 11th, 2023 matchup broadcasted by ESPN’s “Monday Night Football.”)
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2024-09-08 19:16