The owner of several local television stations in Indianapolis says he is hopeful satellite and streaming provider DIRECTV will make a last-minute deal to carry all three of his outlets in order to maintain the privilege of offering subscribers programming from ABC.
In a statement sent to a blog on Monday, Circle City Broadcasting owner DuJuan McCoy claimed to offer DIRECTV a substantially lower rate to bring back WISH (Channel 8, the CW Network) and WNDY (Channel 23) to its platforms as a condition of carrying WRTV (Channel 6, ABC) for several more years.
WRTV is currently offered on DIRECTV through a prior agreement with the E. W. Scripps Company that is scheduled to expire around 8 p.m. Eastern Time (7 p.m. local time). Circle City acquired WRTV from Scripps earlier this year.
WISH and WNDY have been unavailable to DIRECTV subscribers since September 2019, with the satellite company refusing to carry the channels due to perceived low ratings and interest.
McCoy said DIRECTV’s decision to not bundle the two channels with WRTV in a new deal puts Circle City at a disadvantage compared to other broadcasters in town.
“By refusing to compensate my locally owned and operated company at those established market rates, DIRECTV is effectively seeking to devalue Hoosier-produced local television content on its platform and place my company at a significant competitive disadvantage relative to other broadcasters in the Indianapolis market that receive compensation consistent with established fair market value,” McCoy said.
He charged DIRECTV with making “false and misleading” claims about what Circle City was proposing to continue offering satellite and streaming subscribers ongoing access to ABC programming, saying his company was “not asking for anywhere close to double what DIRECTV paid WRTV’s previous owner to carry WRTV.”
But Circle City has also made misleading claims about the situation, telling viewers they could lose access to college and professional sports that his channels do not carry and warning DIRECTV subscribers that they may not be able to watch the Super Bowl in February. The Super Bowl is being simulcast on ABC from ESPN, which will be carried next year under an agreement with the network’s parent company Disney, which is separate from Circle City’s contract with DIRECTV.
A spokesperson for DIRECTV told The Desk on Monday that both sides continue to discuss the matter, but no deal has been reached.
If WRTV disappears from DIRECTV, viewers in Indianapolis will be able to watch live sports from ABC through the ESPN app with their DIRECTV credentials. Other services, like Comcast’s Xfinity TV, Hulu with Live TV, Fubo and Charter’s Spectrum TV, also offer WRTV, and most Indianapolis residents can receive Circle City’s stations with a conventional antenna.
