Viacom channels(i.e MTV, VH1) go dark for 20 million DirecTV customers

[Shortline Bus]

 

 

"More than 20 million DirecTV customers can no longer watch "The Daily Show," "SpongeBob SquarePants" and "Jersey Shore," after Viacom demanded its networks be dropped in a dispute over fees.

Seventeen channels, including MTV, Nickelodeon, and Comedy Central, went dark early Wednesday after the two sides failed to reach an agreement on subscriber fees before their seven-year deal expired.

Both companies blamed the other for the blackout. In a statement on its website, DirecTV said it had reached out to Viacom before the deadline "but never heard back."

"We have been very willing to get a deal done, but Viacom is pushing DIRECTV customers to pay more than a 30 percent increase, which equates to an extra $1 billion, despite the fact that the ratings for many of their main networks have plummeted and much of Viacom's programming can be seen for free online," said Derek Chang, executive vice president of Content, Strategy and Development.

Viacom said on its official blog that its channels are "the most watched" on DirecTV’s roster."

 

 

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/viacom-channels-dark-20-million-directv-customers-article-1.1112308#ixzz20Pdx2iam

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Funny because I didn't even know about this until last night. I don't really watch those channels that often so whatever. My question is when you have certain channels in your package that are blacked out due to a disagreement between two companies, do folks get credits to their accounts for the lost service or what?

[VWM]

First they kill everything on YouTube that has 1 bit of Viacom content on it, now this?

smfh

[Orion VII 4 Life]

I have FiOS, and most people in my area have Crappyvision, sorry, Optimum, so I don't think it will affect that many people. I think DirecTV is a thing of the past, I barely ever hear of people that use it anymore except for people who can't go without the NFL Sunday Ticket and VG8.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

I have FiOS, and most people in my area have Crappyvision, sorry, Optimum, so I don't think it will affect that many people. I think DirecTV is a thing of the past, I barely ever hear of people that use it anymore except for people who can't go without the NFL Sunday Ticket and VG8.

 

 

DirecTV isn't a thing of the past. Plenty of people use it, though it isn't necessarily my cup of tea, but it's better than Cablevision and Optimum. Unfortunately Verizon doesn't have FiOS in all areas, so in that case we're basically forced to go with DirecTV. I had FiOS previously but had to break up my plan and switch to DirecTV when I moved to Riverdale. Hopefully they'll have it all over Riverdale eventually.

[Grand Concourse]

Funny because I didn't even know about this until last night. I don't really watch those channels that often so whatever. My question is when you have certain channels in your package that are blacked out due to a disagreement between two companies, do folks get credits to their accounts for the lost service or what?

 

I think some years back when Viaacom and Time Warner? had a dispute, they (TW) was going to offer some money back because of the absence of those channels (but I think the strike was short, so no discounts). Other than CBS on Mondays, I could care less about Viacom. They can pull all their channels and life will continue like normal for me.

[Astoria Line]

Thank god I have Verizon FiOS.. And I didn't know that ppl still had satellite? I thought that now everyone has either time warner or FiOS

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Thank god I have Verizon FiOS.. And I didn't know that ppl still had satellite? I thought that now everyone has either time warner or FiOS

 

 

I never had Satellite before this either and used to laugh at people with Satellite dishes wondering how they could be so stupid. The thing is in some cases you don't have a choice. I wanted to stay with Verizon and since they don't have FiOS yet in all parts of Riverdale (which I was told that they did when I originally got FiOS on Staten Island knowing that I would be moving to Riverdale eventually ), the only other option they had was DirecTV, so I had to get rid of my FiOS package with them for cable and internet when I moved and switch to DirectTV AND go back to DSL for internet... Sucks royally compared to FiOS but it isn't that bad overall. I will say that the picture quality is actually better than FiOS especially for HD channels and now that I have my own dish, the picture doesn't go out immediately during a rain storm. It has to be pretty bad out in order for me to lose signal. When I had FiOS, I was thinking that my flat screen had a crappy display, when in reality it's a damn good display. The HD channels with FiOS looked somewhat grainy on my TV. Not sure why either. On the minus side, the technicians are complete morons.

 

I had my landlord sign a friggin' permission form from DirecTV to have my own dish. I then set up an appointment for them to come out and install the dish. They bring a brand new dish and split the bloody dish between me and another person who already had DirecTV! Instead of giving me my own dish they basically replaced the old dish that was already there and then ran a splitter off of it. My service was dependent on the other person's service so if he/she unplugged the power to the dish, that meant my service would go out too.

 

Aside from that, any wind or rain storm and my service would freeze up. I was beyond livid and demanded that they come out again and give me my own dish with it's own power connection. Anytime I have an appointment I get 10 people calling me to confirm that I'll be at home at the time I requested. The last time it happened I am cursed out a few of them because they were calling me every 5 minutes on my cell phone. I couldn't tell if it was a language problem or not because all of them were Dominican (could tell by their accent) and seemed to have limited English capabilities, which was also annoying. I speak Spanish but I shouldn't have to when calling for service, but even when you speak to them in Spanish they still don't understand because they speak Spanglish, so they often times don't know the correct words in Spanish for certain things which was even more comical.

 

In sum, they do try hard to please you, but they're extremely incompetent and unorganized, not to mention rude. When they come they just walk in and immediately start working, and I have to literally stop them and demand to know where they are working in the apartment often times switching to Spanish since they seem completely oblivious to me speaking in English. I mean the last thing I need is for them to go knocking expensive items over, so I would prefer to move floor lamps and such out of the way.

[Astoria Line]

I never had Satellite before this either and used to laugh at people at Satellite dishes wondering how they could be so stupid to have satellite dish. The thing is in some cases you don't have a choice. I wanted to stay with Verizon and since they don't have FiOS yet in all parts of Riverdale, the only other option they had was DirecTV, so I had to get rid of my FiOS package with them for cable when I moved and switch to DirectTV AND go back to DSL for internet too... Sucks royally compared to FiOS but it isn't that bad overall. I will say that the picture quality is actually better than FiOS especially for HD channels and now that I have my own dish the picture doesn't go out immediately during a rain storm. It has to be pretty bad out in order for me to lose signal. When I had FiOS, I was thinking that my flat screen had a crappy display, when in reality it's a damn good display. The HD channels with FiOS looked somewhat grainy on my TV. Not sure why either. On the minus side, the technicians are complete morons.

 

I had my landlord sign a friggin' permission form from DirecTV to have my own dish. I then set up an appointment for them to come out and install the dish. They bring a brand new dish and split the bloody dish between me and another person who already had DirecTV! My service was dependent on their service so if they unplugged the power to the dish, that meant my service would go out too. Aside from that any wind or rain storm and my service would freeze up. I was beyond livid and demanded that they come out again and give me my own dish with it's own power connection. Anytime I have an appointment I get 10 people calling me to confirm that I'll be at home at the time I requested. The last time it happened I am cursed out a few of them because they were calling me every 5 minutes on my cell phone. I couldn't tell if it was a language problem or not because all of them were Dominican (could tell by their accent) and seemed to have limited English, which was also annoying. I speak Spanish but I shouldn't have to when calling for service, but even when you speak to them in Spanish they still don't understand because the speak Spanglish, so they often times don't know the correct words in Spanish for certain things which was even more comical.

 

In sum, they do try hard to please you, but they're extremely incompetent and unorganized, not to mention rude. When they come they just walk in and immediately start working, and I have to literally stop them and demand to know where they are working in the apartment. I mean the last thing I need is for them to go knocking expensive items over, so I would prefer to move floor lamps and such out of the way.

 

 

Sounds like A LOT of trouble just to put up a satellite dish... FiOS on my TV is beautiful in HD, so idk if there was some different between our TVs idk... I'm glad that I have FiOS now. Time Warner sucked OD.. FiOS is quicker and simpler tbh.. and FiOS only seems to be in far out areas (it is all over SE Queens) but not really in metropolitan areas (idk anyone in Manhattan that has it, they all have Time Warner).. I heard that by 2014 (I'll be graduating high school by then, so I know that is going to be quite awhile) FiOS will have coverage all over NYC..

 

Thinking about it, idk why there isn't more FiOS in Manhattan, in my neighborhood there was a Verizon headquarters type place over on 2nd avenue and 13th street. There is one in Springfield Gardens too, along 140th Avenue (I pass by it on the Q85), which makes me wonder why Springfield Gardens has a lot of coverage, but Manhattan doesn't have so much..

 

Note: what confuses me even more is that in Manhattan, the verizon place was like 10 blocks away from my house, but here in Springfield Gardens, it twice the distance .. It should have been easier to get coverage in Manhattan instead of Springfield Gardens, but it is actually the opposite

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Sounds like A LOT of trouble just to put up a satellite dish... FiOS on my TV is beautiful in HD, so idk if there was some different between our TVs idk... I'm glad that I have FiOS now. Time Warner sucked OD.. FiOS is quicker and simpler tbh.. and FiOS only seems to be in far out areas (it is all over SE Queens) but not really in metropolitan areas (idk anyone in Manhattan that has it, they all have Time Warner).. I heard that by 2014 (I'll be graduating high school by then, so I know that is going to be quite awhile) FiOS will have coverage all over NYC..

 

Thinking about it, idk why there isn't more FiOS in Manhattan, in my neighborhood there was a Verizon headquarters type place over on 2nd avenue and 13th street. There is one in Springfield Gardens too, along 140th Avenue (I pass by it on the Q85), which makes me wonder why Springfield Gardens has a lot of coverage, but Manhattan doesn't have so much

 

 

It seemed to be available fairly easily when I lived on Staten Island so I was under the impression that it was more available than what it currently is. They claim that eventually they'll have all of Riverdale covered, but I'm not holding my breath on it. Before that I had Time Warner but I didn't pay for it so I didn't complain. I was renting part of a house from a relative so it was already there, but eventually I wanted certain channels and packages so I had it taken out and got FiOS. Funny that you mention 2nd and 13th because that's where I went to return my FiOS equipment. What's amazing is that that big clunky box that they install on the side of the house stays there whether the owner of the house wants FiOS or not.

[Astoria Line]

It seemed to be available fairly easily when I lived on Staten Island so I was under the impression that it was more available than what it currently is. They claim that eventually they'll have all of Riverdale covered, but I'm not holding my breath on it. Before that I had Time Warner but I didn't pay for it so I didn't complain. I was renting part of a house from a relative so it was already there, but eventually I wanted certain channels and packages so I had it taken out and got FiOS. Funny that you mention 2nd and 13th because that's where I went to return my FiOS equipment. What's amazing is that that big clunky box that they install on the side of the house stays there whether the owner of the house wants FiOS or not.

 

 

Oh yes, I noticed that. When I first moved in, there was already a FiOS box on the side of the house, we just had it cut, returned it, and got our own installed... I knew 2nd and 13th was some type of headquarters type place.. Maybe that is why it isn't in Manhattan yet (the big box on the side of the house, which I forgot all about until you mentioned it).. Manhattan barely has any houses, mostly apartments/condos/co-ops so maybe it is harder to get those boxes set up for coverage...

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Oh yes, I noticed that. When I first moved in, there was already a FiOS box on the side of the house, we just had it cut, returned it, and got our own installed... I knew 2nd and 13th was some type of headquarters type place.. Maybe that is why it isn't in Manhattan yet (the big box on the side of the house, which I forgot all about until you mentioned it).. Manhattan barely has any houses, mostly apartments/condos/co-ops so maybe it is harder to get those boxes set up for coverage...

 

 

Exactly... My friend got it eventually when it came to West New York there in NJ, and they had to put that big box in his closet. Before that I believe he had my current set up. DirecTV and DSL.

[Astoria Line]

Exactly... My friend got it eventually when it came to West New York there in NJ, and they had to put that big box in his closet. Before that I believe he had my current set up. DirecTV and DSL.

 

 

In a closet? Of all places? Sheesh!

[Joe]

Verizon fiber optic service requires a few small extra components, but the connection is awesome. Well worth it. I like my 30/30.

[Orion VII 4 Life]

While I hate Cablevision, if I could only get them or DirecTV/DSL I'd go with them. I'll admit that in areas without FiOS, CV provides the better service. However if FiOS is available there's no way in hell I'm going with CV. Sadly, around here FiOS is wired almost everywhere yet few people seem to have it, and I'll never understand why anyone would pick CV's slow, outdated, and overall crappy service over FiOS. I used to like them up until a few months ago since we had problems with Verizon in the past, then the service went downhill starting with the cable modem constantly resetting itself, a problem they couldn't even fix. Now with FiOS, our internet is much, much faster, speeds are always consistent and usually above the advertised speed, ALWAYS working, and the TV picture is much better too.

 

But yeah, no way I'd get DirecTV for myself. No reason to, especially considering the NFL Sunday Ticket's DirecTV exclusitivity ends in 2014 I believe.

[67thAve]

Viacom, in my opinion, deserves to be dropped. Those people will make DIRECTV customers pay more for an MTV that doesn't even show music videos, a Nickelodeon that is copying the Disney Channel (the Disney Channel copies itself) and a Comedy Central that is also beginning to show some non-comedic programming. Maybe it would help if Viacom would also put up some old shows on a Youtube channel. (The closest thing they have is the 90's Are All That on TeenNick, but not everyone gets TeenNick and it only shows a few old Viacom (all Nickelodeon) programming.) Plus, who wouldn't want to get MS3TK legally without ever leaving your PC or Mac?

[Via Garibaldi 8]

While I hate Cablevision, if I could only get them or DirecTV/DSL I'd go with them. I'll admit that in areas without FiOS, CV provides the better service. However if FiOS is available there's no way in hell I'm going with CV. Sadly, around here FiOS is wired almost everywhere yet few people seem to have it, and I'll never understand why anyone would pick CV's slow, outdated, and overall crappy service over FiOS. I used to like them up until a few months ago since we had problems with Verizon in the past, then the service went downhill starting with the cable modem constantly resetting itself, a problem they couldn't even fix. Now with FiOS, our internet is much, much faster, speeds are always consistent and usually above the advertised speed, ALWAYS working, and the TV picture is much better too.

 

But yeah, no way I'd get DirecTV for myself. No reason to, especially considering the NFL Sunday Ticket's DirecTV exclusitivity ends in 2014 I believe.

 

 

Well FiOS isn't exactly cheap. I am paying a lot less with DSL and DirecTV than I was with having FiOS for cable and internet. Internet alone at one point was costing me about $75.00 a month before I switched to get FiOS for cable and bundled my wireless, internet and cable together.

[VWM]

Comedy central is owned by Viacom? Let's hope they don't continue this temper tantrum to other TV providers...

[Threxx]

Goodbye channels I never watched... I can just watch Comedy Central on YouTube...

[youngblaze]

In a closet? Of all places? Sheesh!

 

 

It's true my building is fairly new ...built in 2009 or 2010 IIRC and each apartment has the FiOS components embedded behind a cover in one of the closets.

[Shortline Bus]

Comedy central is owned by Viacom? Let's hope they don't continue this temper tantrum to other TV providers...

 

 

Yup. Actually it's part of the CBS "machine" that owns an alaphbet soup of media outlets. The main ones being CBS-TV, Westwood one Radio Network (i.e WFAN, WCBS-AM 1010 WINS here in NYC area) and Viacom i.e MTV, VH1, NICK, TV land and Comedy Central. They operates with separte mangement but in end of the day, it main owners are CBS.

 

 

Similar to how Comcast now owns NBC-TV, Universal Cable Channels (i.e USA Channel, NBC Sports Net, SCI FI, etc.) and Comcast Sports and News channels around the country. To me this is a conflict of intrerest in why i.e media superpwers owning both the stations/media outlets and cable systems, we keep having this disputes that leds to a "blackout' of these channels IMO.

[Orion VII 4 Life]

 

 

Well FiOS isn't exactly cheap. I am paying a lot less with DSL and DirecTV than I was with having FiOS for cable and internet. Internet alone at one point was costing me about $75.00 a month before I switched to get FiOS for cable and bundled my wireless, internet and cable together.

 

Maybe not cheap compared to the DirecTV bundle, but it sure is compared to what we paid CV for the triple play. Yet most people don't seem to care and would rather pay much more and get outdated and crappy service.

[Shortline Bus]

Maybe not cheap compared to the DirecTV bundle, but it sure is compared to what we paid CV for the triple play. Yet most people don't seem to care and would rather pay much more and get outdated and crappy service.

 

 

Love your "crappyvision" comment about CV and the Dolan tv family empire lol. Being fair having realtives/friends in Brooklyn service has improved to say when i lived w/ my parents in CI in the 1990's-2003. With that said I am happy as FIOS customer.

[Joel Up Front]

Name one other ISP that gives you 25/25 as a basic Internet package... I'm SUPPOSED to get 15/2 with CV but I only get 3/2. Unless you're an email-checker only, 15/2 is nowhere near good enough. I download things, I have an XBox, and three other relatives who are online at the same time.... I hate it to death.

[User]

I have FiOs and so do all my friends. We all switched as soon as FiOs came to NYC. I love the internet speed and can have everyone in the household online at the same time and have no problems. In fact, Verizon gives me a couple of more mb/s speed than what we pay for. I used to have Time Warner Cable and in the early 2000s, it was OK. Then it got worse and we got fed up with their service. And they had problems with Viacom too. Viacom wants so much money for their channels and the smaller cable companies don't wanna pay for it. I don't know if anyone remembers seeing these ads in newspapers or on TV back in 2009, but it was when TWC and Viacom were fighting: