With more and more people getting the weather through their phones and computers, DirecTV has decided that The Weather Channel is no longer a worthwhile investment and has dropped the channel from its lineup. Negotiations apparently had The Weather Channel asking for a penny-a-sub increase (not an insubstantial amount, to be clear, but the network had its first upfront last year and has been trying to increase its value with a large unscripted lineup), with DirecTV pushing back with a surprisingly harsh demand for a 20 percent rate drop.
Rate drops are very rare in the business of cable subscription fees these days, but they may become more common for networks like The Weather Channel that aren't tethered to an existing cable package.
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