Nexstar warns Comcast could drop local stations

Dozens of local broadcast stations owned by Nexstar Media Group are warning customers of Comcast’s Xfinity pay TV service of a looming carriage dispute.

The dispute could see around 200 local television stations and their associated digital broadcast networks removed from Xfinity cable, Xfinity Stream and Xfinity X1 systems across the country if the two sides are unable to reach a new agreement by the end of December.

On Saturday, Nexstar stations in the country’s top TV markets began warning customers of the impending carriage dispute. The dispute revolves around two issues: The money Comcast must pay to Nexstar in exchange for the right to carry its local stations and digital networks, and an ongoing lawsuit between Comcast and Nexstar over the latter’s management of WPIX-TV (Channel 11) in New York City.

Comcast lodged a complaint to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) last year, accusing Nexstar of violating federal ownership rules for its management of WPIX. Nexstar divested WPIX as a condition of its acquisition of Tribune Media several years ago; it now operates WPIX under a local marketing agreement with Mission Broadcasting, which owns the license to WPIX.

Local marketing agreements are not unusual — other companies, including Sinclair Broadcast Group, also use them to manage and share services like news teams with stations that they do not own. But Comcast says Nexstar’s management of WPIX makes it a de facto owner, because Mission allows Nexstar to negotiate carriage terms on pay TV systems.

As The Desk reported last week, the situation escalated to federal court shortly after Comcast’s complaint to the FCC. The issue has already prompted Nexstar to pull WPIX from Comcast’s systems serving the greater New York City metropolitan area. (New York City itself is not affected, because that area is covered by Charter’s Spectrum TV service.) The federal lawsuit is still pending in court, with Comcast and Nexstar scheduled to engage in depositions early next year.

The following are the stations that could be lost if Comcast and Nexstar are not able to come to terms on a new carriage agreement by the end of the month: (click or tap here to skip the list)

KAMC (Channel 28, ABC) Lubbock
KAMR (Channel 4, NBC) Amarillo
KARD (Channel 14, Fox) El Dorado, AR
KARK (Channel 4, NBC) Little Rock
KARZ (Channel 42) Little Rock
KASN (Channel 38) Little Rock
KASY (Channel 50) Albuquerque
KAUT (Channel 43) Oklahoma City
KBVO (Channel 14) Austin
KCAU (Channel 9, ABC) Sioux City
KCIT (Channel 14, Fox) Amarillo
KCLO (Channel 15, CBS) Rapid City
KCPN (Channel 33) Amarillo
KDAF (Channel 33) Dallas
KDVR (Channel 31, Fox) Denver
KELO (Channel 11, CBS) Sioux Falls
KETK (Channel 56, NBC) Tyler, TX
KFDX (Channel 3, NBC) Wichita Falls
KFOR (Channel 4, NBC) Oklahoma City
KFQX (Channel 4, Fox) Grand Junction
KFTA (Channel 24, Fox) Fayetteville
KFXK (Channel 51, Fox) Tyler, TX
KGCW (Channel 26) Davenport
KGET (Channel 17, NBC) Bakersfield
KGPE (Channel 47, CBS) Fresno
KHII (Channel 9) Honolulu
KHMT (Channel 4, Fox) Billings
KHON (Channel 2, Fox) Honolulu
KIAH (Channel 39) Houston
KJTL (Channel 18, Fox) Wichita Falls
KKEY (Channel 13) Bakersfield
KLAS (Channel 8, CBS) Las Vegas
KLBK (Channel 13, CBS) Lubbock
KLFY (Channel 10, CBS) Lafayette
KLJB (Channel 18, Fox) Davenport
KLRT (Channel 16, Fox) Little Rock
KLST (Channel 8, CBS) San Angelo
KMID (Channel 2, ABC) Midland
KMSS (Channel 33, Fox) Shreveport
KNVA (Channel 54) Austin
KNWA (Channel 51, NBC) Fayetteville
KOIN (Channel 6, CBS) Portland, OR
KOLR (Channel 10, CBS) Springfield, MO
KOZL (Channel 27) Springfield, MO
KPEJ (Channel 24, Fox) Midland
KPLR (Channel 11) St. Louis
KRBC (Channel 9, NBC) Abilene
KRBK (Channel 49, Fox) Springfield, MO
KRCW (Channel 32) Portland, OR
KREX (Channel 5, CBS) Grand Junction
KRON (Channel 4) San Francisco
KRQE (Channel 13, CBS) Albuquerque
KRWB (Channel 21) Albuquerque
KSAN (Channel 3, NBC) San Angelo
KSEE (Channel 24, NBC) Fresno
KSHV (Channel 45) Shreveport
KSNT (Channel 27, NBC) Topeka
KSNW (Channel 3, NBC) Wichita
KSVI (Channel 6, ABC) Billings
KSWB (Channel 69, Fox) San Diego
KTAB (Channel 32, CBS) Abilene
KTAL (Channel 6, NBC) Shreveport
KTKA (Channel 49, ABC) Topeka
KTLA (Channel 5) Los Angeles
KTMJ (Channel 43, Fox) Topeka
KTSM (Channel 9, NBC) El Paso
KTVE (Channel 10, NBC / Fox) Monroe, LA
KTVI (Channel 2, Fox) St. Louis
KTXL (Channel 40, Fox) Sacramento
KVEO (Channel 23, NBC / CBS) Brownsville
KWGN (Channel 2) Denver
KWKT (Channel 44, Fox) Waco
KXAN (Channel 36, NBC) Austin
KXMA (Channel 2, CBS) Bismarck
KXNW (Channel 34) Fayetteville
KXRM (Channel 21, Fox) Colorado Springs
KXTU (Channel 57) Colorado Springs
KYLE (Channel 28) Waco
WANE (Channel 15, CBS) Fort Wayne
WATE (Channel 6, ABC) Knoxville
WAVY (Channel 10, NBC) Norfolk
WAWV (Channel 38, ABC) Terre Haute
WBDT (Channel 26) Dayton
WBGH (Channel 34, NBC) Binghamton
WBOY (Channel 12, NBC / ABC) Weston
WBRE (Channel 28, NBC) Wilkes-Barre
WBTW (Channel 13, CBS) Myrtle Beach
WCBD (Channel 2, NBC) Charleston, SC
WCIA (Channel 3, CBS) Springfield, IL
WCIX (Channel 49) Springfield, IL
WCTX (Channel 59) Hartford
WDAF (Channel 4, Fox) Kansas City
WDCW (Channel 50) Washington, D.C.
WDHN (Channel 18, ABC) Dothan
WDKY (Channel 56, Fox) Lexington
WDTN (Channel 2, NBC) Dayton
WDVM (Channel 25) Washington, D.C.
WEHT (Channel 25, ABC) Evansville
WETM (Channel 18, NBC) Elmira, NY
WFFF (Channel 44, Fox) Burlington
WFLA (Channel 8, NBC) Tampa
WFNA (Channel 55) Mobile
WFRV (Channel 5, CBS) Green Bay
WFXP (Channel 66, Fox) Erie
WFXR (Channel 27, Fox) Roanoke
WFXV (Channel 33, Fox) Utica
WGHP (Channel 8, Fox) Greensboro
WGMB (Channel 44, Fox) Baton Rouge
WGN-TV (Channel 9) Chicago
WGNO (Channel 26, ABC) New Orleans
WHBF (Channel 4, CBS) Davenport
WHDF (Channel 15) Huntsville
WHLT (Channel 22, CBS) Hattiesburg
WHNT (Channel 19, CBS) Huntsville
WHO (Channel 13, NBC) Des Moines
WHTM (Channel 27, ABC) Harrisburg
WIAT (Channel 42, CBS) Birmingham
WIVB (Channel 4, CBS) Buffalo
WIVT (Channel 34, ABC) Binghamton
WJBF (Channel 6, ABC) Augusta
WJET (Channel 24, ABC) Erie
WJHL (Channel 11, CBS) Tri-Cities, VA
WJKT (Channel 16, Fox) Jackson, TN
WJMN (Channel 3) Marquette
WJTV (Channel 12, CBS) Jackson, MS
WJW (Channel 8, Fox) Cleveland
WJZY (Channel 46, Fox) Charlotte
WKRG (Channel 5, CBS) Mobile
WKRN (Channel 2) Nashville
WLAJ (Channel 53, ABC) Lansing
WLAX (Channel 25, Fox) Eau Claire
WLNS (Channel 6, CBS) Lansing
WMBB (Channel 13, ABC) Panama City
WMBD (Channel 31, CBS) Bloomington
WNAC (Channel 64, Fox) Providence
WNCN (Channel 17, CBS) Raleigh
WNCT (Channel 9, CBS) Greenville
WNLO (Channel 23) Buffalo
WNOL (Channel 38, CW) New Orleans
WNTZ (Channel 48, Fox) Alexandria, LA
WOOD (Channel 8, NBC) Grand Rapids
WOTV (Channel 41, ABC) Grand Rapids
WOWK (Channel 13, CBS) Charleston, WV
WPHL (Channel 17) Philadelphia
WPIX (Channel 11) New York City
WPRI (Channel 12, CBS) Providence
WQRF (Channel 39, Fox) Rockford, IL
WRBL (Channel 3, CBS) Columbus, GA
WREG (Channel 3, CBS) Memphis
WRIC (Channel 8, ABC) Richmond
WROC (Channel 8, CBS) Rochester
WSPA (Channel 7, CBS) Spartanburg
WSYR (Channel 9, ABC) Syracuse
WTAJ (Channel 10, CBS) Altoona
WTEN (Channel 10, ABC) Albany
WTNH (Channel 8, ABC) Hartford
WTRF (Channel 7, CBS) Steubenville
WTTA (Channel 38) Tampa
WTTV (Channel 25, CBS) Indianapolis
WTVO (Channel 17, ABC) Rockford, IL
WTVW (Channel 7) Evansville
WTWO (Channel 2, NBC) Terre Haute
WUTR (Channel 20, ABC) Utica
WVBT (Channel 43, Fox) Norfolk
WVLA (Channel 33, NBC) Baton Rouge
WVNS (Channel 59, CBS / Fox) Beckley
WVNY (Channel 22, ABC) Burlington
WWCW (Channel 21) Roanoke
WWLP (Channel 22, NBC) Springfield, MA
WWTI (Channel 50, ABC) Watertown
WXIN (Channel 59, Fox) Indianapolis
WXSP (Channel 15) Grand Rapids
WXXA (Channel 23, Fox) Albany
WYCW (Channel 62) Spartanburg
WYOU (Channel 22, CBS) Wilkes-Barre
WYZZ (Channel 43, Fox) Bloomington

In areas where the local Nexstar station also carries several digital networks (including Antenna TV, Rewind TV, Court TV, Laff, Grit, Bounce, TBD TV and Ion Television), those stations will also disappear from Comcast’s systems if the two companies are unable to reach a new contract for carriage of Nexstar-owned and distributed channels. NewsNation, the cable channel Nexstar launched early last year, will also be removed from Comcast.

If Comcast and Nexstar are unable to reach an agreement, TV viewers can always buy an over-the-air antenna and receive Nexstar’s local TV station signals for free. Those who live in an area where TV signals are hard to get have a few streaming options to get their local ABC, NBC, CBS or Fox station, including:

Paramount Plus, which has a live feed of local CBS stations in their $10 a month (or $100 a year) package, currently discounted by about 50 percent when customers opt for annual pricing.
Vidgo, offers access to local ABC and Fox stations along with more than 100 cable channels (including ESPN, Fox Sports 1, Fox News Channel, the Disney Channel, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon and more), starting at $60 a month. For those who want to watch NFL games on Fox, Vidgo is the cheapest streaming TV solution.
Fubo TV, which carries ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox and CW stations in most markets, starting at $70 a month — but Fubo TV also offers a 7-day free trial, which might be best if the Comcast-Nexstar dispute only lasts a few days. For those who want to watch college football games on Fox, CBS and ABC, Fubo TV is the cheapest way to get nearly everything.
Peacock, Comcast’s own streaming television service, offers on-demand access to popular NBC shows as well as live streams for NBC News, Sky News and Sunday Night Football, starting at $5 a month. Live NBC feeds are also available in most areas as part of Peacock’s $10 a month plan. Some Comcast TV and Internet customers get Peacock’s $5 a month plan for free.
Hulu, which costs $8 a month ($15 a month without ads), offers next-day access to popular ABC prime-time and daytime shows. Some Fox shows are also available on Hulu, but no NFL games broadcast on Fox (unless you upgrade to Hulu with Live TV, which starts at $75 a month).
NFL Plus: Live, in-market games from CBS and Fox are available on the NFL’s streaming service, but customers have complained that the service can be hit-or-miss in terms of reliability.

Stay on top of this carriage dispute and others by visiting www.carriagedispute.com.