Tegna and Dish Network are sparring over contract fees

Dish Network customers have lost access to WGRZ-TV Channel 2 because of a contract dispute between the satellite broadcaster and the Virginia company that owns the local station. It said that Dish was preventing customers from accessing the valued channels even if customers continue paying for the content.

Dish’s previous agreement with Tegna expired September 30.

Tegna, formerly Gannett Co. If a new deal is struck, it will permit Dish to carry on with forty six television stations across thirty eight markets in thirty three states where Tegna operates. The move comes as part of what Dish characterizes as a plan to double Dish Network’s current rate. “Tegna doesn’t have anything to lose & consumers have everything to gain from this since the channels are left up according to Warren Schlichting, the senior VP of programming at Dish”. Dish, based in Englewood, Colorado, said it offered a short-term contract extension to Tegna while negotiations continued.

Dish charged that Tenga was seeking “above-market rate increases” that are twice what the satcaster now pays. But Tegna, instead, chose to turn their back on their public interest obligations & use innocent consumers for bargaining chips.

Schlicting added, “We are actively working to negotiate an agreement that promptly returns this content to Dish’s programming lineup”.

“Our position has been simple: the same fundamental terms that allowed us to reach deals with distributors nationwide should serve as the basis for our deal with DISH”. Dish’s feuds have extended to cable nets, as well: The satcaster said it suffered lower activations and higher cancellations in the first quarter of 2015 because of the loss of Fox News Channel and several Turner Broadcasting channels in late 2014. In fact, we have never had a service disruption with a major distributor before. It said that it was able to reach fair agreements with the other providers without the viewers being disrupted. “Make your voice heard”.