Media conglomerate News Corp. (NWSA) said Wednesday it expects to pull its programming from Time Warner Cable (TWC) on Jan. 1 in a dispute over payment for News Corp. content.
News Corp.’s current contract with the cable distributor ends tomorrow.
Millions of Time Warner subscribers, many of them in Manhattan and Brooklyn, would lose their access to such News Corp. produced television staples as "American Idol" and "The Simpsons," which appear on the Fox television network. Professional and college football games, including the Sugar and Cotton Bowls, would also be affected.
“We deeply regret that millions of Fox customers will be deprived of our programming,” News Corp. chief operating officer Chase Carey said in a memo to employees. “We need to receive fair compensation from Time Warner Cable to go forward with them.”
Meanwhile, Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt told the Associated Press that the cable operator will agree to binding arbitration and any interim steps necessary to keep Fox channels on while talks continue.
“Consumers should not be held hostage during these negotiations. That's just wrong,” Britt said in an interview with the AP.
Fox believes it should be paid more for broadcast signals that are retransmitted to subscribers of Time Warner Cable and Bright House. Time Warner Cable says the demanded fees are excessive.
The dispute concerns the signals of 14 Fox-owned stations covering such markets as Los Angeles, New York, Dallas-Fort Worth and Austin, Texas and Tampa Bay-St. Petersburg and Orlando, Fla. Stations carrying Fox programming but owned by other companies are not affected.
Besides the Fox broadcast network, six cable channels -- FX, Speed, Fuel, Fox Reality, Fox Soccer Channel and Fox Sports en Espanol -- and certain regional sports networks were also up for negotiations. Unaffected are Fox News Channel, Fox Business Network and National Geographic Channel, which is partially owned by News Corp.
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