When DirecTV subscribers in Austin tuned in to watch the National Football League’s (NFL) kickoff game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles last Thursday, they may have noticed something a bit unusual after the game: Local news from another city.
It wasn’t a glitch — Cowboys fans in the Texas capital who subscribe to DirecTV’s new genre-based sports package, called MySports, were watching a national feed of NBC programming, part of a unique arrangement between the pay TV provider and Comcast’s NBC Universal that has been tested at least once in the past.
Launched earlier this year, MySports is one of several genre-based streaming packages offered by DirecTV that aims to give TV fans greater flexibility over the channels they receive and pay for. The package includes more than 20 national sports networks, and initially included local broadcast stations owned by ABC, Fox and NBC.
Earlier this month, DirecTV announced it was expanding the number of local broadcast stations available through the MySports package to include independently-owned affiliated stations from the E. W. Scripps Company, Sinclair Broadcasting, Cox Media, TEGNA, Weigel Broadcasting and a number of other companies. The move instantly brought local ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox affiliates to streaming subscribers in nearly all of the top 50 television markets across the country.
One major holdout: Nexstar Media Group, the largest independent owner of broadcast stations in the country (and a company that is about to get even larger, if its proposed $6 billion deal to acquire TEGNA goes through). DirecTV has an agreement to offer Nexstar’s local NBC affiliates through its legacy satellite product and its streaming “Signature” packages that resemble traditional pay TV bundles, but it doesn’t yet have a deal to offer those same stations through the lower-priced MySports package, which starts at $70 per month.
While DirecTV continues to work toward an agreement with Nexstar, the company is providing MySports subscribers in affected areas with access to a national programming feed of NBC, which allows them to watch “Sunday Night Football” games, college football and other sports, including games from the National Basketball Association that will start airing on NBC next month.
The national NBC feed clears the entire network schedule, including NBC’s morning and evening news programs, prime-time shows and late-night programming. During daytime and evening hours, when most local NBC stations and affiliates air syndicated programming, the national feed offers news broadcasts from KNBC (Channel 4) in Los Angeles or WNBC (Channel 4) in New York City, depending on the location of a subscriber, according to a source familiar with the arrangement.
It isn’t clear if Nexstar was aware that a national NBC programming feed was taking the place of its local TV stations on a DirecTV streaming platform. A spokesperson for Nexstar Media Group declined to comment on Monday. DirecTV and NBC Universal have not returned requests for comment.
Some of the markets where the national NBC programming feed is offered through the MySports package in lieu of the local Nexstar owned or operated affiliate include:
- Abilene, Texas
- Amarillo, Texas
- Austin, Texas
- Bakersfield, California
- Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- Binghamton, New York
- Charleston, South Carolina
- Clarksburg, West Virginia
- Columbus, Ohio
- Dayton, Ohio
- Des Moines, Ohio
- El Paso, Texas
- Elmira, New York
- Fresno, California
- Grand Rapids, Michigan
- Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
- Monroe, Louisiana
- Norfolk, Virginia
- Oklahoma City
- Savannah, Georgia
- San Angelo, Texas
- Tampa, Florida
- Topeka, Kansas
- Wichita, Kansas
- Wichita Falls, Texas
- Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
All told, the MySports streaming package offers more than 160 NBC stations and affiliates that reach 99 percent of the viewing audience, a count that includes subscribers who receive the national NBC programming feed. Of the four broadcast networks offered through MySports, NBC reaches the biggest audience, according to statement issued by DirecTV last week.
“We created MySports to provide consumers more choice and flexibility in their viewing options while creating exceptional value,” Rob Thun, the Chief Content Officer at DirecTV, said in a statement. “We have always been a sports leader, especially with respect to local sports, and appreciate the widespread support from America’s broadcasters in creating these more consumer-friendly programming options.”
The offering of a national NBC feed to some of its MySports subscribers is at least the second time DirecTV has tapped a national feed of network programming in lieu of a contract to distribute certain NBC affiliates.
Last year, Thun confirmed the company tested the delivery of NBC’s national programming feed in some markets after a contract to offer TEGNA-owned local stations expired. The test was limited to DirecTV’s satellite product.
“We don’t need the stations to deliver the network content — we can go get it from the network,” Thun said. “So, why don’t we work on that construct? And, by the way, we’ve had those conversations with the networks.”
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Editor’s note: This story was updated to include additional details about the availability of NBC in the MySports package. The story also corrected the financial value of Nexstar’s proposed merger with TEGNA; an earlier version erroneously reported the value at $8 billion.
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Read more:
- DirecTV quietly tests transmitting national NBC feed to offset loss of TEGNA affiliates
- DirecTV expands “MySports” package to include more broadcast stations
- DirecTV launches multiview channels on streaming platform
- E-mails: Nexstar, TEGNA CEOs announce $6.2 billion merger to employees
- Nexstar ordered to pay DirecTV $26.6 million over contract dispute
