DISH: If Tribune Wants ‘Fair Market Rates’ It Should Be Willing to Arbitrate
June 17 2016 - 07:05AM
Business Wire
- Binding arbitration presents path to
end Tribune’s blackout immediately, and would ensure ‘Fair Market
Rates’ for Tribune, says DISH
- Arbitration proposal modeled after
Comcast/NBCU consent decree
DISH Network L.L.C. responded to Tribune Broadcasting’s
rejection Thursday of a proposal to pursue an immediate, fair and
binding solution to restore its blacked-out channels to DISH
subscribers.
Tribune blacked out DISH customer access to 42 local channels in
33 markets early Sunday evening.
The following statements can be attributed to Warren
Schlichting, DISH executive vice president Programming:
“Tribune claims that it is ‘seeking nothing more than fair
market rates for the value of [its] programming – the same market
rates that DISH pays other local station groups, and the same
market rates that [it gets] from other satellite, cable and telco
partners.’
“If Tribune is serious in its commitment to accept fair market
rates, then there is no downside for them to immediately restore
the Tribune channels on DISH while allowing a neutral third-party
arbitrator to review DISH’s agreements with other station groups,
as well as the rates that Tribune receives from our pay-TV
competitors and determine the fair market rates that Tribune
desires on a basis that is binding upon DISH and Tribune.
“This is especially true since DISH has offered to retroactively
pay any new rates back to the date that the channels are restored
to consumers.”
Among other reasons, DISH has suggested that the arbitration be
modeled on the successful arbitration procedures in the
Comcast/NBCU consent decree to ensure that there would not be an
opportunity for Tribune or DISH to walk away from the decision of
the arbitrator.
Schlichting continued:
“Regrettably, we can only interpret Tribune’s unwillingness to
participate in binding arbitration as an indication that it
actually is angling for rates that are above fair market and that
it wants to keep the Tribune channels off DISH as long as possible
in order to continue to use innocent consumers as pawns to gain
negotiating leverage against DISH.”
In the meantime, DISH continues to fight for customers by
distributing tens of thousands of free over-the-air antennas to
help impacted consumers regain access to the Tribune local
broadcast stations.
About DISH
DISH Network Corp. (NASDAQ:DISH), through its subsidiaries,
provides approximately 13.874 million pay-TV subscribers, as of
March 31, 2016, with the highest-quality programming and technology
with the most choices at the best value. DISH offers a high
definition line-up with more than 200 national HD channels, the
most international channels and award-winning HD and DVR
technology. DISH Network Corporation is a Fortune 200 company.
Visit www.dish.com.
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160617005155/en/
DISH Network Corp.John Hall, 720-514-5351news@dish.com
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