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01-04-2010, 01:36 PM
Time Warner Cable, News Corp. Strike Retrans Deal
Following extensions that kept Fox programming on TWC systems past the Dec. 31 midnight deadline, the companies announced a pact the afternoon of Jan. 1
By John Eggerton & Alex Weprin -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/1/2010 8:11:11 PM
News Corp. and Time Warner Cable finally struck a retransmission consent deal in the afternoon of New Year's Day after a series of extensions and negotiations that went through the night and past the Dec. 31 midnight deadline.
The pact prevents any disruption of service and will keep the Fox networks in the 13 million homes the MSO serves. The deal also includes an additional two million homes served by Bright House Networks.
Sen. John Kerry said the Hill would be doing some Monday morning quarterbacking to see if any legislation was needed to avoid a repeat of the impasse. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said the pair had granted a New Year's resolution to millions, while urging Sinclair and Mediacom to follow suit and finalize their own retrans deal.
Terms of the Fox-TWC agreement were not disclosed, though the companies were at one point understood to be quite a bit apart, with News Corp. seeking around $1 a subscriber for the Fox-owned broadcast stations, and TWC reportedly countering with an offer in the 35 cent range. The deal has benchmark implications for numerous retrans deals industrywide.
The agreement ends months of negotiations between the parties. News Corp. opted not to pull the Fox networks from TWC once the clock struck midnight, so the MSO's customers were able to see the college Bowl games that were in jeopardy if a deal was not reached in time.
"We're pleased that, after months of negotiations, we were able to reach a fair agreement with Time Warner Cable -- one that recognizes the value of our programming," said Chase Carey, Deputy Chairman, President and COO, News Corporation in a statement.
"We're happy to have reached a reasonable deal with no disruption in programming for our customers," said Glenn Britt, Chairman, President and CEO, Time Warner Cable in a statement."
Kerry, who pushed the two sides to extend carriage while they negotiated and pushed the FCC to intervene if they didn't, praised the pact. "I applaud the parties for putting consumer interests first by reaching a new carriage contract, and for staying at the table until a deal was cut," Kerry said.
He indicated his office had been in contact with the parties during the negotiation. "I also appreciate their communications with my office throughout the process," he said. "My sole objective is to ensure that the rules and regulations governing the media marketplace protect consumers. "
But while Kerry sounded relieved that the threat of pulled signals interrupting football games was over, he also suggested that he would be assessing the retrans process to decide whether Congress needs to step in to avoid a repeat performance. "I will reach out to both parties, the FCC, and consumer advocates to assess lessons learned from this dispute," he said, "and what, if any, changes to law are necessary. I again extend my appreciation for a positive outcome to the parties and the efforts that the FCC exerted to bring them together."
Genachowski, who publicly urged Fox and Time Warner to agree to an extension also took time off from his New Year's Day festivities to praise the deal. "Fox and Time Warner have granted a New Year's resolution of millions of viewers, and I congratulate them."
He also used the opportunity to encourage Mediacom and Sinclair to settle their dispute before the Jan. 8 expiration date on their extension of carriage. "Now it is the turn of Sinclair and Mediacom to respect the wishes of their audience, and resolve their differences. The governing statute contemplates that retransmission terms should be and will be resolved by agreement between private companies, and broadcast and cable companies must accept shared responsibility for any failure to reach a timely deal," he said.
Genachowski indicated the FCC, too, had something to do with getting the deal done, as well as getting Sinclair and Mediacom to keep the signals on. "I commend the FCC's Media Bureau for its yeoman, pragmatic, and consumer-focused work in encouraging yesterday's extension of the Sinclair/Mediacom retransmission agreement as well as today's Fox/Time Warner agreement," he said.
Following extensions that kept Fox programming on TWC systems past the Dec. 31 midnight deadline, the companies announced a pact the afternoon of Jan. 1
By John Eggerton & Alex Weprin -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/1/2010 8:11:11 PM
News Corp. and Time Warner Cable finally struck a retransmission consent deal in the afternoon of New Year's Day after a series of extensions and negotiations that went through the night and past the Dec. 31 midnight deadline.
The pact prevents any disruption of service and will keep the Fox networks in the 13 million homes the MSO serves. The deal also includes an additional two million homes served by Bright House Networks.
Sen. John Kerry said the Hill would be doing some Monday morning quarterbacking to see if any legislation was needed to avoid a repeat of the impasse. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said the pair had granted a New Year's resolution to millions, while urging Sinclair and Mediacom to follow suit and finalize their own retrans deal.
Terms of the Fox-TWC agreement were not disclosed, though the companies were at one point understood to be quite a bit apart, with News Corp. seeking around $1 a subscriber for the Fox-owned broadcast stations, and TWC reportedly countering with an offer in the 35 cent range. The deal has benchmark implications for numerous retrans deals industrywide.
The agreement ends months of negotiations between the parties. News Corp. opted not to pull the Fox networks from TWC once the clock struck midnight, so the MSO's customers were able to see the college Bowl games that were in jeopardy if a deal was not reached in time.
"We're pleased that, after months of negotiations, we were able to reach a fair agreement with Time Warner Cable -- one that recognizes the value of our programming," said Chase Carey, Deputy Chairman, President and COO, News Corporation in a statement.
"We're happy to have reached a reasonable deal with no disruption in programming for our customers," said Glenn Britt, Chairman, President and CEO, Time Warner Cable in a statement."
Kerry, who pushed the two sides to extend carriage while they negotiated and pushed the FCC to intervene if they didn't, praised the pact. "I applaud the parties for putting consumer interests first by reaching a new carriage contract, and for staying at the table until a deal was cut," Kerry said.
He indicated his office had been in contact with the parties during the negotiation. "I also appreciate their communications with my office throughout the process," he said. "My sole objective is to ensure that the rules and regulations governing the media marketplace protect consumers. "
But while Kerry sounded relieved that the threat of pulled signals interrupting football games was over, he also suggested that he would be assessing the retrans process to decide whether Congress needs to step in to avoid a repeat performance. "I will reach out to both parties, the FCC, and consumer advocates to assess lessons learned from this dispute," he said, "and what, if any, changes to law are necessary. I again extend my appreciation for a positive outcome to the parties and the efforts that the FCC exerted to bring them together."
Genachowski, who publicly urged Fox and Time Warner to agree to an extension also took time off from his New Year's Day festivities to praise the deal. "Fox and Time Warner have granted a New Year's resolution of millions of viewers, and I congratulate them."
He also used the opportunity to encourage Mediacom and Sinclair to settle their dispute before the Jan. 8 expiration date on their extension of carriage. "Now it is the turn of Sinclair and Mediacom to respect the wishes of their audience, and resolve their differences. The governing statute contemplates that retransmission terms should be and will be resolved by agreement between private companies, and broadcast and cable companies must accept shared responsibility for any failure to reach a timely deal," he said.
Genachowski indicated the FCC, too, had something to do with getting the deal done, as well as getting Sinclair and Mediacom to keep the signals on. "I commend the FCC's Media Bureau for its yeoman, pragmatic, and consumer-focused work in encouraging yesterday's extension of the Sinclair/Mediacom retransmission agreement as well as today's Fox/Time Warner agreement," he said.