Dish Network, Fox Close To Reaching Carriage Agreement

Dish Network and Fox are close to cutting a carriage deal for Fox, FX, the National Geographic Channel and all 19 of Fox' RSNs, ending a bitter four-week series of high-level negotiations, according to sources. The two sides face a Sunday deadline to cut a deal or Dish subs risk having Fox owned-and-operated broadcast channels go dark. Dish dropped the RSNs, FX and NatGeo on Oct. 1, unable to come to terms on a new deal. Talks heated up this week as the deadline for the broadcast channel approached and RSNs started covering the new NBA season. Sources say that the two sides were involved in tense, round-the-clock negotiations. A formal agreement is expected to be signed and announced before the Sunday deadline. Deal terms are not known, though Dish Network was seeking similar terms to the deal Time Warner Cable signed with Fox earlier this year. News of Dish’s deal could increase pressure on Cablevision to cut a deal with Fox. Fox' broadcast channels went dark on Cablevision systems Oct. 15, and the two sides have exchanged acrimonious barbs through the press. Sources say Fox and Cablevision still are far apart in their negotiations (John Ourand, THE DAILY).

Thousands Of Cablevision Subscribers Took Advantage Of Rebate For Viewing Series Online

CABLEVISION LATEST: BROADCASTING & CABLE’s John Eggerton reported Cablevision in the midst of its carriage dispute with News Corp. "has put out a general call to a 'government entity' or 'non-profit organization' to retransmit Fox's coverage of the World Series over the Internet." Cablevision Thursday in a statement said that there is an "exemption in the Copyright Act giving those entities the right to do so so long as it was not for 'any purpose of direct or indirect commercial advantage' and 'without charge to the recipients of the secondary transmission other than assessments necessary to defray the actual and reasonable costs of maintaining and operating the secondary transmission service.'" Cablevision said that those entities also are "excluded by statute from the FCC's retransmission consent regime" (BROADCASTINGCABLE.com, 10/28). A Cablevision spokesperson said "thousands" of subscribers took advantage of the company's offer to watch the World Series on MLB.com and receive a $10 credit (CABLEFAX DAILY, 10/29). Meanwhile, in N.Y., Bob Raissman writes News Corp. and Cablevision are "dug in." There is "too much to lose for one side to totally cave," and there is "no compromise, no middle ground, in sight." Until the dispute "causes Cablevision to experience major subscriber defections, or Fox to lose even more advertising revenue and ratings points, neither side is going to budge" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 10/29).