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DirecTV has been pulling out and shedding many favorite channels in recent years due to unfavorable positions they have taken in new carriage deals with media houses. Some of the most notable channels that DirecTV has recently lost or is at risk of losing include
HBO and Cinemax: The two major satellite pay-TV internet services that first introduced HBO and Cinemax in the United States, AT&T’s DirecTV, and DirecTV Now, dropped the two brands in 2018 for the first time after Warner Media, HBO’s parent company, and they could not agree on a deal. Over 20 million Directv and Directv Now customers had their HBO access cut off, leaving them without Game of Thrones, Westworld, and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. Although the channels were back after a couple of days, it proves that none of the stations are immune from being pulled if DirecTV cannot negotiate for a better carriage agreement.
Univision Channels: For instance, in March 2021, Direct TV removed over forty Univision-owned stations across major cities due to the side’s inability to reach new terms for carrying the station. This includes Spanish language channels that are well-known such as Univision, UniMAS, as well as Galavisión channels. This is quite a big blow given that one out of every five homes in the United States are programmed to receive Univision channels, and many DirecTV users rely on the channels for news and Spanish entertainment.
NBC Regional Sports Networks: This change, a part of the contractual fight between NBC’s parent company Comcast and DirecTV’s parent company AT&T, occurred in 2020, reducing DirecTV’s NBC Regional Sports cable network list to seven. The regional sports networks offer a local platform for popular teams in various states across the United States of America, thus a loss to the DirecTV sports fans when these networks are removed especially during a season of baseball, basketball, and hockey due to the outbreak of COVID-19.
Altice Cable Channels: In July 2021, 120 channels owned by Altice transitioned off of DirecTV affecting Optimum and Suddenlink customers. The Altice channels include MTV and BET, HGTV, ESPN, and several broadcast stations with local relevance. Altice claimed that AT&T was overbearing and imposing unreasonable demands during the bargaining process. Should an agreement not be reached, the Altice channels could remain off-air indefinitely, as has been the case with some networks.
Mission Broadcasting Stations: The negotiations between DirecTV and Mission Broadcasting came to a halt in January 2022, making it impossible for DirecTV to air 164 local TV stations. The impacted stations of the Mission Broadcasting company are located in 30 states for mid-sized markets including Waco, Texas, and Duluth, Minnesota. Local stations are missing from DirecTV and this means that their subscribers cannot get local news, weather forecasts, and other programs that inform and affect their communities.
Root Sports Regional Networks: Due to businesses failing to agree on a new deal, AT&T DirecTV users no longer had access to Root Sports branded regional sports networks in particular, in September 2022. Regarding the well-known teams, aside from the Seattle Mariners, the network possesses the exclusive rights for the broadcasts of the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball club, the Utah Jazz basketball team, and the Vegas Golden Knights ice hockey team. Losing them would mean that there would be fewer games for supporters to see their preferred teams play, therefore hindering the expansion of the betting sector.
The Weather Channel: That year DirecTV declined to renew its contract with The Weather Channel and it was one of the biggest shocks. Some of the weather news and forecasts that the subscribers relied on for their day-to-day, especially during the period of hurricane season were unavailable to them. Fortunately, the channel was later provoked, but not after causing outrage and negative feedback from its regular subscribers who rely on them for updates during emergencies.
These recent incidences depict a trend that suggests that DirecTV has become more aggressive toward the channels and content suppliers. With each conflict, millions of average television audiences become captives in a negotiation war until one party caves in or an agreement is reached. What was once a rarity with short blackouts is now experienced by any type of channel, be it a popular sports network or a local news station.
Why is this happening? The AT&T parent company of DirecTV says that these media companies are demanding nearly double the usual fees, thus such demands would mean higher costs for consumers in case DirecTV agrees to them. On the other hand, the channel owners explain that AT&T is willing to pay less to realize greater profits on their side.
Who is right or wrong is immaterial, however, the ones who have to suffer are regular customers who just want to watch their favorite programs but all they get to see is the shrinking package they are paying for day by day. Having watched streaming services grow in popularity, this climate of hostility and insecurity has seen many disillusioned DirecTV customers fed up and ready to sever their cords for the final time.
If those trends persist, DirecTV might accelerate their loss of subscribers and channels, further endangering their business. They already had a customer loss of more than 3 million in 2019-2021. These endless disputes will of course up the speed of such occurrences. What may start to make more sense for some of the channels that are losing valuable distribution and viewers is to withdraw their content completely and focus even tighter on acquiring streaming deals.
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