DIRECTV Loses ESPN, Disney Channels In Carriage Fight

By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man –Follow me on X.

DIRECTV tonight lost the Disney channels, including ESPN, when it could not reach a new carriage agreement with the programmer. The blackout also affects DIRECTV Stream, U-verse and DIRECTV Via Streaming.

The Disney basic cable channels that are blacked out are: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Deportes, ESPNU, ESPN News, SEC Network, ACC Network, FX, FX Movie Channel, FXX, Freeform, National Geographic, Nat Geo Wild, Nat Geo Mundo, Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney XD, and BabyTV.

In addition, the following Disney-owned local networks were removed from DIRECTV’s satellite service:  ABC7 Chicago, ABC7 Los Angeles, ABC7 New York, ABC7 San Francisco, ABC11 Raleigh-Durham, ABC13 Houston, Philadelphia 6ABC, and ABC30 Fresno.

The two DIRECTV streaming services lost all ABC affiliates.

Disney tonight issued this statement shortly after the blackout began:

“DirecTV chose to deny millions of subscribers access to our content just as we head into the final week of the US Open and gear up for college football and the opening of the NFL season. While we’re open to offering DirecTV flexibility and terms which we’ve extended to other distributors, we will not enter into an agreement that undervalues our portfolio of television channels and programs. We invest significantly to deliver the No. 1 brands in entertainment, news and sports because that’s what our viewers expect and deserve. We urge DirecTV to do what’s in the best interest of their customers and finalize a deal that would immediately restore our programming.”

DIRECTV issued this statement tonight:

“The Walt Disney Co. is once again refusing any accountability to consumers, distribution partners, and now the American judicial system,” said Rob Thun, chief content officer at DIRECTV. “Disney is in the business of creating alternate realities, but this is the real world where we believe you earn your way and must answer for your own actions. They want to continue to chase maximum profits and dominant control at the expense of consumers – making it harder for them to select the shows and sports they want at a reasonable price.”

Thun added: “Consumer frustration is at an all-time high as Disney shifts its best producers, most innovative shows, top teams, conferences, and entire leagues to their direct-to-consumer services while making customers pay more than once for the same programming on multiple Disney platforms. “Disney’s only magic is forcing prices to go up while simultaneously making its content disappear.”

The TV Answer Man will monitor this situation and report back here if anything significant changes.

The TV Answer Man is veteran journalist Phillip Swann who has covered the TV technology scene for more than three decades. He will report on the latest news and answer your questions regarding new devices and services that are changing the way you watch television. See the bio for Phillip Swann here.