Dozens of stations owned by Raycom Media were blacked out on DirecTV Monday, the result of a failed attempt to reach a retransmission agreement with the satellite television broadcaster.
Raycom had said it was negotiating in “good faith” with DirecTV, but was unable to reach a decision by the end of August. As such, 53 stations in more than three dozen markets have been blacked out on the service.
“This is frustrating for DirecTV customers who rely on Raycom stations for information and entertainment,” Raycom CEO Paul McTear said in a press release. “We share their frustration and are committed to doing everything we can to resolve this issue and have been for the last 12 weeks of discussions.
As usual, the retransmission negotiations deal with how much Raycom believes DirecTV should pay in order to deliver the company’s 53 local television stations to pay television customers.
Stations affected include CBS and FOX affiliates in Tucson (KOLD, KMSB), ABC and FOX affiliates in Columbus (WTVM, WXTX) and six CBS and NBC affiliates in Hawaii (KGMB, KHNL and their full-power relays).
Some Raycom stations began posting messages on their websites early Monday morning encouraging DirecTV customers to complain to the pay TV provider and reminding viewers that the stations can still be viewed over the air.
Raycom employed a similar tactic during negotiations with DirecTV in 2011. DirecTV says it is working with Raycom to reach an agreement.
