DirecTV dropping local TV channels

[Randyk47]

Originally Posted by txtea

Same bull that happens every year. They both blame each other for the problem, then just before the cutoff date, they kiss and make up, then make the public believe they sacrificed something for you, their customer. Handshakes and pats on the back all around the boardroom. See ya next year.

Agree. Just change the station designation and number and it's about the same routine every year or so whenever the contracts get renewed. I don't recall any channel, at least not a major, that's ever been dropped permanently and I've been with DirecTV since 1999. In the meantime I have a regular antenna to bridge the coverage gap if they don't reach agreement before the cutoff date.

[RJMorris82]

Originally Posted by Bo

You might want to check first whether all of your favorite programs are available on those services. There are many blind spots in the streaming world, particularly on very new shows, unless you're willing to pay $2 an episode.

I have all 3 of those services and TW cable. My wife and I still watch more cable. My sons watch more Netflix.

Well planning on also getting an Antenna, I mean might as well get what I can for free. But when I think of cable TV or TV in general, there is only a handful of shows that I watch religiously that I couldn't wait a bit of time till they are available for streaming. There are only a handful of shows that I watch that I know I couldnt get through one of those services.

I love the Walking Dead, Warehouse 13, Royal Pains, and a few others, and the reality is since I'm an Amazon Prime member I can get each season for under $20 bucks a season and watch the episode the next day. So for $60 bucks, plus $20 bucks for the monthly charges of Netflix and Hulu Plus, I will pretty much have everything that I want without a wait. A lot of the shows show up for viewing 30 days after airing for free on Hulu Plus, so it could be even cheaper. Also, if you are a computer nerd like myself and have an entertainment PC there are ways through the interweb to get all of that content for free.

[SabresFanInSA]

Stick a fork in this one...

BALTIMORE (February 28, 2013) -- Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: SBGI), the Company or Sinclair, is pleased to announce that it has reached agreement with DirecTV on a new retransmission consent agreement and has entered into a short-term extension of its existing agreement in order to allow the parties to enter into a formal agreement. As a result, DirecTV will continue to carry all of our stations. We thank our viewers for their patience and support during these negotiations.

Sinclair Broadcast Group

[txtea]

BALTIMORE (February 28, 2013) -- Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: SBGI), the Company or Sinclair, is pleased to announce that it has reached agreement with DirecTV on a new retransmission consent agreement and has entered into a short-term extension of its existing agreement in order to allow the parties to enter into a formal agreement. As a result, DirecTV will continue to carry all of our stations. We thank our viewers for their patience and support during these negotiations.

Sinclair Broadcast Group

Yawnnn.....
Was anyone surprised?

Originally Posted by txtea
Same bull that happens every year. They both blame each other for the problem, then just before the cutoff date, they kiss and make up, then make the public believe they sacrificed something for you, their customer. Handshakes and pats on the back all around the boardroom. See ya next year.


Told ya so!! LOL.

[matthigh]

>Yawnnn.....Was anyone surprised?

Not one iota. I've seen this sort of tiff erupt half a dozen times in the past decade, and they've always always always come to some sort of agreement, usually at the very last minute. And cable fees keep going up and up.

A few years back I got fed up and cut the cable, now relying on Netflix and Hulu through Roku, mostly. Instead of paying $50/$70/$100 or more each month for dozens/hundreds of channels I never watch, I can pick and choose specifically from a broad list of shows for less than twenty bucks a month. It has also completely changed my viewing habits, too -- so instead of settling for "whatever the best thing is on at the time after flipping through all the channels", I am choosing my own shows to watch. And for local channels, hey, they've *always* been free via a cheapo antenna.

Is everything available through streaming Amazon/Netflix/Crackle/Hulu/Whatever? Nope. It takes some getting used to, but after a few months you no longer miss those "must see" shows from before that *seemed* so important. And my wallet is several hundred dollars better off at the end of the year because of it.

I really wish I had cut the cord sooner. Maybe if more people did so, we wouldn't have to worry about all of these silly tv station vs. cable provider nonsensical flare-ups over carriage fees anymore.