Fargo direcTV and CBS – Contract negotiations between companies are a fact of life. One company has a product another company needs to run their business, a contract ensues to ensure one company provides a product and the other company pays for it at an agreed upon price. Currently there is a disagreement between DirecTV and our local CBS station, KXJB resulting in the removal of CBS until an agreement can be made. It is not for me to say one company is being stubborn, or another company is being cheap, and I found the battle between the two companies quite amusing. I don’t watch CBS…
But then it was Sunday afternoon and I realized that there would be no Steelers – Chargers game. You can have all the CSI’s you want, but keep your hands off the playoffs! Panic suddenly gripped my household, and one 30 minute phone call to DirecTV later, we still have no NFL football. More panic as we realize we may not have our Steelers – Raven’s playoff game next Sunday either. Even more panic when we can’t figure out if the Super Bowl XLIII will be blocked as well. (What station is playing the Super Bowl?)
Now my impartial attitude towards this contract negotiation has turned to concern. Firstly, if DirecTV undervalues our market, that affects local revenues which in turn affects local jobs. If KX4, KXJB holds out for a reasonable price…I guess we’ll just go to our neighbors to watch the game. There are plenty of cable providers in our area to keep the game on… just a thought.
And for those of you with DirecTV… we have free HBO and Showtime for two months; you could make a 30 minute phone call too. It’s still bunk, old movies for football ~
