DISH Sues NBCU for Breach of Contract

ENGLEWOOD: DISH has filed a lawsuit accusing NBCUniversal of breach of contract over statements made about their carriage negotiations.

NBCU launched a marketing campaign on Monday night that warns viewers that they could be losing access to its TV stations and some cable channels on March 20 if a new carriage deal is not reached with DISH.

“We are disappointed that DISH would deny its subscribers access to valuable programming on NBC, Telemundo, USA, Syfy, Bravo, CNBC, MSNBC and more,” the network said in a statement on Monday. “NBCUniversal has the most-watched portfolio in the U.S. and on DISH systems, including the number one broadcast network, the number one cable entertainment network, and NBCUniversal is number one in news and late-night television.”

DISH fired back on Tuesday with: “NBC’s public statements against DISH over the past 24 hours are in violation of the contract between the two companies. Today, DISH filed a breach of contract lawsuit against NBC to address those violations.

“DISH has successfully negotiated agreements representing numerous networks in recent months that benefit all parties, including our viewers. DISH’s goal is to reach a mutually beneficial deal with NBC. However, based on NBCU’s actions to date, DISH currently expects to file for arbitration, which would prevent NBC from blacking out DISH customers.

“Under the conditions imposed by the FCC and Department of Justice in approving the Comcast-NBCUniversal merger, NBC is forbidden from blacking out its networks if a pay-TV provider chooses, in its sole discretion, to exercise its right for binding arbitration. Regulators implemented these conditions to prevent Comcast and NBC from harming consumers and competition.

“In the event of arbitration, affected programming would remain available during that process, and for the foreseeable future.”