United Communications locals off Dish amid a dispute

[Mr Tony]

Looks like Dish seems to rather drop channels than keep them. Now they dropped the United Communications locals. Its only 4 stations in 2 markets but still

stations affected
Mankato, MN (the only locals in the market)
KEYC CBS 12
KEYC-DT2 FOX

Watertown, NY
WWNY CBS
WNYF Fox

From KEYC
The following is a news release from KEYC News 12 and FOX 12 Mankato in cooperation with United Communications Corporation:

(Mankato) – KEYC News 12 and FOX 12 Mankato have been dropped from the DISH Network lineup over a contract dispute between DISH and the stations.

United Communications Corp., owner of the stations, reached agreement with DISH on the financial terms of the carriage in late July. Since then, DISH has demanded that our stations accept contract language that would violate our contract obligations to our programming sources, including CBS and FOX networks.

General Manager Marvin Rhodes noted that the local stations had remained on the DISH lineup under terms of a temporary extension for over two months.

UCC Vice President Ken Dowdell said “Wednesday DISH rejected our offer to continue under the terms of the existing agreement so DISH subscribers would be able to watch their local news and other programs.” Dowdell urged DISH subscribers to call DISH customer service (at 1-855-318-0572) to express dissatisfaction and to urge DISH to resume negotiations.

“Our viewers depend on the hometown news and weather that only stations like KEYC News 12 and FOX 12 Mankato provide,” Rhodes said. “We live here, we work here and we provide significant community support.” DISH is based in Englewood, Colorado, a Denver suburb.

Rhodes also urged DISH subscribers to call DISH customer service (at 1-855-318-0572) to request DISH return the stations’ signals.

The stations’ programming remains available over the air, and on DirecTV, Charter, Mediacom, and Hickory Tech (now called “Enventis!”).

 

[Mr Tony]

from WWNY

DISH Network dropped WWNY TV/7 News and WNYF/Fox 28 from its service, effective Thursday.

DISH stopped carrying the two stations after a nine day extension of an agreement between DISH and WWNY's parent company expired early Thursday morning.

DISH and WWNY's parent company haven't reached agreement on a new contract to replace an agreement that expired at the end of July.

The financial part of the deal was settled some weeks ago; the companies are at odds over contract language.

DISH is demanding that WWNY/WNYF accept contract language that would violate contracts for the programming the stations carry from various sources including the CBS and FOX networks, said Ken Dowdell, vice-president of United Communications Corp., the Kenosha, Wisconsin-based company that owns WWNY.

DISH is seeking terms that would put WWNY at odds with CBS and Fox, its networks, Dowdell said.

"We have contracts with network partners that DISH wants us to trample. DISH doesn't provide the programs you want, those partners do," Dowdell said.

Dowdell emphasized that it was DISH's choice, not WWNY's, to pull the stations from its service. It is not what the stations want, he said.

DISH's customers can call the company's customer service line, 1-855-318-0572, to ask that DISH restore their local channels.

As well, DISH customers have other options, including DIRECT TV, Time Warner cable and other cable companies, and for free, using an antenna.

"DISH would have some people believe we've folded up our tent and left the North Country," Dowdell said.

"We're on the air doing the community service we've done for 50 years. We're on cable, We're on DirecTV. DISH is what's wrong with this picture."

 

[Deadlocked]

Anyone thinking Dish is focusing on Disney then once that is done will deal with the smaller fish?

 

[Laddyboy]

Maybe it's the autohop stuff when they refer to contract language.

 

[Mochuf]

Maybe it's the autohop stuff when they refer to contract language.

It could be, but if the networks were inserting language into affiliate contracts forbidding them to have re-trans agreements with a provider who has auto-ad skip technology, I think we would have heard about it. The only thing that would otherwise make sense is that since this is a small station group, they need to get every little bit of revenue it can. Thus it's scared about losing any ad revenue at all.

To be honest, I'm kind of torn with re-trans disputes. Local stations, IMO, have gotten progressively worse over the last 20 years. It would be great to directly get network programming from a pay-tv provider and skip the local crap content such as Maury, "if it bleeds, it leads" newscasts or infomercials that masquerade as legitimate consumer news shows. But I sure don't want to lose ota stations that allow people to watch tv without paying for it. The law that allowed re-trans agreements is what is at the heart of this problem. It should be repealed and have all local stations become "must carry" again.

 

[Mr Tony]

sounds like its something different. From the Mankato Free Press

Because of a contract dispute that KEYC General Manager Marvin Rhodes deems irreparable for the time being, about 3,400 DISH customers in the Mankato area will be without the channels.
Rhodes said the dispute isn’t about money. DISH and United Communications Corp., which owns the local stations, came to agreeable financial contract terms July 31, Rhodes said.
But when the multi-paged formal contract was provided to KEYC, “the fine print” indicated KEYC was required to give DISH digital rights to network programming.
KEYC doesn’t own the rights to CBS and Fox content, and KEYC’s contracts with the networks do not allow the rights to be provided to a third party, such as DISH.
“(The contract) required us to give them digital rights to things we don’t have the rights to give away; they are demanding these rights,” Rhodes said.

 

[Tampa8]

Wonder if this is a new tactic by DISH to get around the Networks? No idea if it's a good way or not, doesn't seem like it is if the affiliate doesn't hold the rights.

EDIT - Now that I see Gray media just came to an agreement with DISH for a long term contract for it's affiliates, I realize I almost fell for the United Communications reasons. It just can't be that DISH is only asking them for those rights, and if Gray, and any others that recently came to agreements had no problem with it or were able to come to an agreement over it, so too can United Communications.

 

[Teehar]

There's no way Gray would bend the truth is there?

 

[sam_gordon]

Wonder if this is a new tactic by DISH to get around the Networks? No idea if it's a good way or not, doesn't seem like it is if the affiliate doesn't hold the rights.

EDIT - Now that I see Gray media just came to an agreement with DISH for a long term contract for it's affiliates, I realize I almost fell for the United Communications reasons. It just can't be that DISH is only asking them for those rights, and if Gray, and any others that recently came to agreements had no problem with it or were able to come to an agreement over it, so too can United Communications.

Is it possible Dish is "trying out" the new contract language on the "small fish" and if it works out, then bring it to the bigger owners?

 

[Tampa8]

Can't say that isn't possible, just seems odd they would do that at the same time they just agreed with Gray. Each has several affiliates. Maybe it's the other way around, the Networks are telling them to say that now.

 

[sam_gordon]

Can't say that isn't possible, just seems odd they would do that at the same time they just agreed with Gray. Each has several affiliates. Maybe it's the other way around, the Networks are telling them to say that now.

I think Gray would be a "big fish" compared to United.

I was just throwing out an idea. If this is coming from the networks, I'd expect Gray to have the same marching orders.

 

[waylew]

Hissy fit over,channels back on.

 

[Deadlocked]

2 down, 2 to go.

 

[Mr Tony]

from keyc.com

An agreement has been reached to return KEYC News 12 and FOX 12 Mankato to the DISH Network. Service to DISH customers is expected to be restored sometime this evening (Friday, Oct. 25).

The stations had been off DISH since Oct. 10 because a contract and extensions had expired between DISH and United Communications Corp., owners of KEYC News 12 and FOX 12 Mankato, and the parties reached impasse in negotiations.

No terms of the multi-year agreement were released.

General Manager Marvin Rhodes said "We're pleased to be coming back on for DISH customers with our unique local blend of news and entertainment."

 

[Tampa8]

Translated - We can't stay off any carrier and hope to survive.