Just in time for Thursday Night Football, CBS’s contract with Dish is set to end this Thursday, and both parties are already warning viewers of a possible blackout. CBS has a website up to inform customers, have them petition via social media, and straight up change providers.
CBS does not play around, especially when the markets affected are big ones. From Variety:
The Dish-CBS standoff could black out the following stations — KCBS (L.A.), WCBS (New York), WBBM (Chicago), WBZ (Boston), KYW (Philadelphia), WCCO (Minneapolis), WFOR (Miami), WJZ (Baltimore), WWJ (Detroit), KCNC (Denver), KDKA (Pittsburg), KOVR (Sacramento), KPIX (San Francisco) and KTVT (Dallas) — along with several CW and independent channels. CW stations are WUPA (Atlanta), WKBD (Detroit), WPSG (Philadelphia), Pittsburgh (WPCW), KMAX (Sacramento), KBWC (San Francisco) and KSTW (Seattle); My Network TV stations are WSBK (Boston) and WBFS (Miami); and unaffiliated stations are KCAL (L.A.), WLNY (New York) and KTXA (Dallas).
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For its part, Dish has issued a statement pointing the finger at CBS, saying in a statement that they are “unsure why CBS decided to involve customers in the contract negotiation process at a point when there is time for the two parties to reach a mutually beneficial deal.”
They have their own website for customers to check their zip code and see if they will be affected by the potential blackout. Dish customers are also currently without Turner Broadcasting Channels like CNN and the Cartoon Network after a contract expired with Turner Broadcasting.
The current CBS-Dish battle is reminiscent of last year’s battle with Time Warner. It seems like CBS may be winning, again:
@dish #dishnetwork Don’t F w/ my CBS!!! Seriously. I see we lost CNN, Cartoon and Boomerang. Now looking at losing CBS? Come on
— Eric Miller (@EJMiller707) November 16, 2014
@dish After more than a decade with #dishnetwork I’m looking elsewhere. Blaming TNT, CNN, CBS is childish. I pay you, not them.
— Michele Rehder (@michelerehder) November 15, 2014
You can’t mess with the NFL and NCIS and get away with it on Twitter.