Disney and Charter Communications have successfully negotiated a deal, bringing an end to a commercial dispute that had resulted in nearly 15 million Spectrum cable subscribers being unable to access Disney's content.
The disagreement arose over carriage fees, payments made by cable, and satellite TV operators to media companies for the right to broadcast their networks. As a result, Disney channels such as ABC, ESPN, and others were unavailable to Spectrum customers from September 1. This led to widespread dissatisfaction among Spectrum users, who were unable to view popular content such as the U.S. Open and college football.
Charter, the second-largest cable provider in the nation, had accused Disney of demanding an "excessive increase" in carrier fees. The financial details of the agreement, which was reached just before the Monday Night Football game on September 11, have not been disclosed by either company.
The deal ensures Disney will receive $2.2 billion in fees from Charter and provides Charter with a foothold in the streaming market, which has led many former cable customers to cut the cord.
However, the agreement also means that Spectrum customers will lose access to several Disney-owned channels, including Baby TV, Disney Junior, Disney XD, Freeform, FXM, FXX, Nat Geo Wild, and Nat Geo Mundo.
Despite this, the deal allows customers to purchase Disney+, Hulu, or The Disney Bundle directly through Charter. Those who purchase Spectrum TV Select Plus will receive the basic version of Disney+ as part of their package, along with ESPN+ and ESPN's standalone streaming service, which is yet to be launched.
However, the shift towards streaming services presents significant challenges for Charter and other cable providers.
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