There are always disputes in the entertainment industry, and more often than not, the viewers have to pay the price of such disputes. A similar instance occurred on Sunday when many DirecTV subscribers were left without access to popular networks like ESPN and ABC, cutting the viewership of the U.S. Open Tennis championship. The dispute between the two media giants means that around 11 million DirecTV subscribers won’t be able to watch ESPN. Moreover, the ABC broadcast network also went dark for many users.
Such disputes have become common in the media industry and usually result in service disruption. Typically, both sides have to agree on the terms of the deal every year, but this does not happen every time, and the subscribers face difficulties. This urges the viewer to look for different alternatives, which, in the long run, becomes unprofitable for both parties.
In the past few years, Disney has found itself on the wrong side of the court in more than one instance. TV distributors are fed up with Disney charging a premium for networks like ESPN when most of their investment goes to producing new shows for their streaming platform, Disney+. The latest example of Disney’s dispute came about a year ago. Disney and Charter Cable System had a dispute over high prices, which was resolved after both parties signed a pact that ensured lower prices for Charter’s viewers.
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The co-chairmen of Disney, Dana Walden and Alan Bergman, and the chairman of ESPN, Jimmy Pitaro, said in a statement, “We invest significantly to deliver the No. 1 brands in entertainment, news and sports because that’s what our viewers expect and deserve. We urge DirecTV to do what’s in the best interest of their customers and finalize a deal that would immediately restore our programming.”
After Disney’s comment, the Chief Content Officer of DirecTV, Rob Thun, said, “Disney is in the business of creating alternate realities, but this is the real world where we believe you earn your way and must answer for your own actions. Disney’s only magic is forcing prices to go up while simultaneously making its content disappear.” This was a jab at Disney as it is seen that Disney is shifting its content to its streaming service Disney+ while expecting higher prices from network distributors like DirecTV.
These disputes usually start with pointing fingers at each other, but they are often resolved in less than a week. Only time will tell what the outcome of this dispute will be.
