Univision Channels Go Dark on Charter

NEW YORK: Univision’s owned-and-operated stations in New York, Los Angeles, Dallas and other major markets have been pulled from Charter Communications cable platforms after the two were unable to reach new carriage terms.

Univision filed a lawsuit against Charter last year, accusing the cable operator of breach of contract over carriage fees after its acquisition of Time Warner Cable (TWC). Univision alleges that Charter purposely avoided negotiating a carriage agreement—which expired June 30, 2016—in order to try to take over TWC’s lower programming fee deal when the merger was completed. As the two were not able to negotiate new terms, Charter customers can no longer tune into such networks as Univision, UniMás, Galavisión, Univision Deportes, El Rey and local O&O stations.

“Charter Communications has continually rejected all of UCI’s repeated, good-faith efforts to reach an agreement,” Univision said in a statement. “As a result, Charter has decided to deny its subscribers continued access to Hispanic America’s most popular entertainment and sports, and most trusted news content. Over the past few days, Charter’s subscribers have demonstrated an overwhelming level of support for Univision’s content through an outpouring of calls to Charter. Despite this huge customer outcry, Charter still refuses to value Univision’s content and the audience we serve.

“Charter’s recent acquisition of Time Warner Cable and Brighthouse, making it the second largest cable and broadband company in the U.S., gives it immense marketplace power. Given the size of the distribution platforms that it controls, Charter has an obligation to its customers to provide them with access to content that is in-language and in-culture, which is vitally important during these politically volatile times. This is part of a continuing fight against mega-mergers to ensure that there are diverse voices and opportunities for minorities in the media marketplace. Univision’s top priority remains steadfast: providing critical news and information to empower and serve the Hispanic community. We are ready to resume good faith negotiations immediately and hope Charter will do what is right for its Hispanic customers.”