DirectTV and Viacom reach agreement
July 23, 2012 11.20 Europe/London By Julian Clover
The dispute that saw 17 Viacom-owned channels withdrawn from the US satellite platform DirecTV has been settled.
Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, MTV, BET, Spike, CMT, TV Land and ten other channels had been absent from DirecTV homes since July 10. Financial terms for the settlement have not been disclosed.
“We are very pleased to be able to restore the channels to our customers and thank them for their unprecedented patience and support,” said DirecTV’s Derek Chang in a somewhat uncharitable statement. “It’s unfortunate that Viacom took the channels away from customers to try to gain leverage, but in the end, it’s clear our customers recognized that tactic for what it was.”
In addition to the return of the channels Viacom programming has also been added to tablets, laptops, handhelds and other personal devices as part of the DirecTV Everywhere platform.
In a statement Viacom said: “Viacom is extremely pleased to bring its programming back to DIRECTV subscribers, and thanks everyone affected by the disruption for their patience and understanding during this challenging period.”
Carriage of the EPIX movie channel is not required as part of the new agreement.
July 23, 2012 11.20 Europe/London By Julian Clover
The dispute that saw 17 Viacom-owned channels withdrawn from the US satellite platform DirecTV has been settled.
Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, MTV, BET, Spike, CMT, TV Land and ten other channels had been absent from DirecTV homes since July 10. Financial terms for the settlement have not been disclosed.
“We are very pleased to be able to restore the channels to our customers and thank them for their unprecedented patience and support,” said DirecTV’s Derek Chang in a somewhat uncharitable statement. “It’s unfortunate that Viacom took the channels away from customers to try to gain leverage, but in the end, it’s clear our customers recognized that tactic for what it was.”
In addition to the return of the channels Viacom programming has also been added to tablets, laptops, handhelds and other personal devices as part of the DirecTV Everywhere platform.
In a statement Viacom said: “Viacom is extremely pleased to bring its programming back to DIRECTV subscribers, and thanks everyone affected by the disruption for their patience and understanding during this challenging period.”
Carriage of the EPIX movie channel is not required as part of the new agreement.