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Suddenlink Customers May Never See Viacom Content Again

Since last October, Viacom and Suddenlink have been engaged in one of many retransmission fee disputes, resulting in not only Suddenlink TV customers losing Viacom channels -- but Suddenlink broadband customers being blocked from watching any online Viacom content whatsoever. Usually after a lot of very public whining the two sides reach a confidential number they can agree on, but in this case it appears that Suddenlink customers may never see this content return.

Speaking about the company's latest earnings (which reveal Suddenlink lost 34,800 customers last quarter), Suddenlink Communications CEO Jerry Kent stated that the company had "moved on" from their negotiations with Viacom over a new contract agreement:
quote:
“We’ve moved on,” Kent said in an interview. “We have replaced the channels with some really high-quality programming from Disney, Discovery, Fox and Hallmark.” The Suddenlink chief didn't completely shut the door, though. "If Viacom would come back to the negotiating table and give us attractive rates for those channels we want to carry, we would be happy to [carry] them," Kent added.
With two of Viacom's biggest draws, Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart moving on from Comedy Central, cable operators haven't been quite as willing to concede to Viacom's demands in recent months. While a deal could be struck, it's apparently going to have to involve Viacom pulling back on their monetary demands.
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IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
Premium Member
join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA

IowaCowboy

Premium Member

Good thing Comcast gives in

Comcast usually gives in to content providers.

SysOp
join:2001-04-18
Atlanta, GA

SysOp

Member

Re: Good thing Comcast gives in

Passing it along to consumers as a cost of doing business.

But you can always vote with your wallet.

IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
Premium Member
join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA

IowaCowboy

Premium Member

Re: Good thing Comcast gives in

Why should we pay for less and less, if they keep dropping channels. If they keep having carriage disputes then pretty soon you'll turn on the TV and the screen will be dark.

Back in the '90s we had none of this BS.

mackey
Premium Member
join:2007-08-20

1 recommendation

mackey

Premium Member

Re: Good thing Comcast gives in

said by IowaCowboy:

Why should we pay for less and less

Because the other option is to pay more and more and more for the same amount.
said by IowaCowboy:

Back in the '90s we had none of this BS.

You can thank congress for the 'retransmission consent' law which allows this.

TechyDad
Premium Member
join:2001-07-13
USA

1 recommendation

TechyDad to SysOp

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to SysOp
Unless you only have one Internet provider in your area, Internet access is an essential service for you, and Internet access is priced higher than Internet+TV. Then, "voting with your wallet" would mean giving Comcast MORE money to show you don't like something they are doing. Voting with your wallet to get the cheaper option will still get you Comcast TV service.
lawpdx
join:2014-04-16
Portland, OR

1 recommendation

lawpdx

Member

Re: Good thing Comcast gives in

Is Internet+TV at a higher cost than Internet access only? Even with the "below the line fees" for TV?
elefante72
join:2010-12-03
East Amherst, NY

1 recommendation

elefante72

Member

Re: Good thing Comcast gives in

In my case on FiOS yes. 75/75 is $79 a month, and my 2 play is $75 a month. With cablecard and fees my bill is $89, about $8 more than just internet.

I could have done a lower package (SelectHD) which would have cost $10 less and no RSN, but the Mrs likes a few channels.

That is not the case for my cable provider (Time Warner). HSI unbundled is the cheapest option, regardless of package, and more expensive and slower than Verizon (not a good combo).

TechyDad
Premium Member
join:2001-07-13
USA

TechyDad to lawpdx

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to lawpdx
As elefante72 See Profile pointed out, it can be for some users. I'm not sure if Comcast is using this scheme yet, or if so in how many areas, but I wouldn't put it past them given their past performance. The reason behind this is to push potential cord cutters into buying TV packages as well to save money. This way, even if they stick the TV box in a closet and never use it, they are counted as TV subscribers and not cord cutters.

Of course, if this practice becomes too widespread, I'd hope that Dish or DirecTV would object as it would also dissuade anyone from ditching cable TV and going to satellite TV. (Using a monopoly Internet Service Provider position to improve their TV service sales is abusing their monopoly position and should be investigated and stopped as quickly as possible.)
Kuro
join:2014-10-01

1 recommendation

Kuro

Member

Re: Good thing Comcast gives in

They have gone one step beyond that in my area. Internet only is not an option at all unless you go for business class for twice the price and a quarter of the speed. Have heard it from some new guys at work who moved into the area complaining that they had DirectTV but were paying for cable because they couldn't get internet without tv and went through it myself when I tried to drop tv from my package because a promo ended and costs went up more than what I was told they would when I signed up.

TechyDad
Premium Member
join:2001-07-13
USA

1 recommendation

TechyDad

Premium Member

Re: Good thing Comcast gives in

Wow. I haven't heard of that before, though nothing Comcast does really surprises me anymore. (I live in a Time Warner Cable area and dread having to deal with Comcast.)

I would think that there would be some anti-trust issues with this if Comcast is using their Internet Service monopoly to push their TV service (non-monopoly) on people. I'm not holding my breath on a monopoly abuse lawsuit being filed against Comcast. Even if one is filed, Comcast will likely just get their lawyers to drag it on until the case is dropped.
BiggA
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join:2005-11-23
Central CT

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BiggA to TechyDad

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to TechyDad
They're not as aggressive as Verizon. They basically made Limited Basic plus internet the same cost as Internet only.

CosmicDebri
Still looking for intelligent life
join:2001-09-01
Lake City, FL

CosmicDebri to SysOp

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to SysOp
Colbert and Stewart were the only things I watch on Comedy Central anymore, and CC was the only Viacom channel I watched, for the previously stated reason. With them gone, I don't see any reason to watch CC anymore. @Midnight is sometimes amusing, but without the leadins I probably won't remember it's on.... I'm sure I'm not alone either, so I expect to see more providers drop them.

Too bad a few already signed long term deals with them recently.

telcodad
MVM
join:2011-09-16
Lincroft, NJ

telcodad

MVM

Re: Good thing Comcast gives in

said by CosmicDebri:

Too bad a few already signed long term deals with them recently.

Yeah

From:
Suddenlink video sub losses quadruple to nearly 35K, says it's still not going back to Viacom
By Daniel Frankel, FierceCable - February 25, 2015
»www.fiercecable.com/stor ··· 15-02-25
quote:
Viacom didn't respond to Kent's statements with one of its own. However, executives from the conglomerate have recently noted that Viacom has 70 percent of the U.S. pay-TV market currently locked down with multi-year licensing agreements.

They also say that rurally focused Suddenlink, which operates in a number of markets that have limited competition from satellite or IPTV operators, is perhaps not the best barometer of Viacom's market value.
elefante72
join:2010-12-03
East Amherst, NY

2 recommendations

elefante72 to CosmicDebri

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to CosmicDebri
You guys realize that it doesn't really matter if you like the channel or watch it, you are paying for it.

Take O'Reilly, the #1 cable news blah...

Adults 25-54: The O'Reilly Factor (550,000); 500k viewers..My city has more people

Now take Taylor Swift Shake it off on Youtube - 600,000,000+ views.

Now tell me who is relevant. Cable is dying...

but all is well at Viacom:

»www.businessinsider.com/ ··· s-2015-2

TechyDad
Premium Member
join:2001-07-13
USA

1 recommendation

TechyDad

Premium Member

Re: Good thing Comcast gives in

Not that I'm disagreeing that the Internet is more relevant than cable, but comparing an online music video and a cable news program sounds like comparing apples to oranges. It would be better to give viewership numbers for Google News vs CNN or YouTube's music videos vs MTV (well, if MTV played music videos anymore).
elefante72
join:2010-12-03
East Amherst, NY

1 recommendation

elefante72

Member

Re: Good thing Comcast gives in

I was supporting a substitution argument, so I posit it was relevant. My illustration is that people have limited time that they use to consume entertainment. When I was growing up, 6:00 news was on the TV. My kids have never seen a news cast, they have infinitely more options today to consume and entertain than even 10 years ago. I read Pandora has over 40m listeners, most in the US.

What will they do in 10 years when my kids who watch 10 hours of linear TV per YEAR (mostly live sports) become consumers? All they know is Netflix, Youtube, Amazon, Xbox, ipads, and Mr Google In fact last night, we were watching 3 stooges without commercials, flung free to a chromecast via YT on our TV.

I'm just saying the relevance of losing channels and the sky high price of cable is a condition where Rome is burning and they continue to play the same games.

For instance I would have thought that the #1 cable news would mean like 5-10 million, but only 550k in the 18-49 demographic. Colbert report only has 600k or so in 18-49. Color me wrong. Cheers back in the day would have averaged over 20 million per episode in a much smaller USA...

TechyDad
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join:2001-07-13
USA

1 recommendation

TechyDad

Premium Member

Re: Good thing Comcast gives in

In that sense, I agree with you. When I was growing up (back in the 80's), video games weren't nearly as big as TV. Sure, I would spend a lot of time on video games, but television was THE source of entertainment.

Nowadays, my boys play on their Android tablets and on the WiiU more than they watch TV. When they do watch TV, it's mostly shows on Netflix, DVRed shows, or shows that we could get from Amazon VOD if we cut cable. They will get annoyed when a show is live and we can't fast forward through commercials. (Well, except for my youngest who will multitask and use commercial breaks to play with his toys, ignoring the TV until his show is back on.)

We're on the cusp of cutting cable. We had a decent deal but it is expiring soon. If our cable company tries to make us pay full price, we'll cut cable rather than paying an extra $50+ a month.
Kearnstd
Space Elf
Premium Member
join:2002-01-22
Mullica Hill, NJ

Kearnstd to elefante72

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to elefante72
I think in the near future linear TV will exist solely for sports and news. Everything else will become on demand where a new episode might release on a set day but it will be available at midnight that day.

IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
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join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA

IowaCowboy to elefante72

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to elefante72
Add me to one of those viewers of the O'Reilly Factor.

PapaMidnight
join:2009-01-13
Baltimore, MD

1 recommendation

PapaMidnight to SysOp

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to SysOp
said by SysOp:

But you can always vote with your wallet.

...and go where exactly?

telcodad
MVM
join:2011-09-16
Lincroft, NJ

1 recommendation

telcodad to IowaCowboy

MVM

to IowaCowboy
said by IowaCowboy:

Comcast usually gives in to content providers.

Well, that may change soon: »[Content] Is Discovery bracing for a possible showdown with Comcast?

maartena
Elmo
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join:2002-05-10
Orange, CA

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maartena to IowaCowboy

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to IowaCowboy
said by IowaCowboy:

Comcast usually gives in to content providers.

And passes that right on to your wallet.
clone (banned)
join:2000-12-11
Portage, IN

1 recommendation

clone (banned)

Member

Lucky

I wish I didn't have to pay Comcast for Viacom garbage.

battleop
join:2005-09-28
00000

1 recommendation

battleop

Member

Just so I get this right..

If you use SuddenLink as your ISP and Directv as your TV provider Viacom still blocks you from viewing Viacom online content?

telcodad
MVM
join:2011-09-16
Lincroft, NJ

1 recommendation

telcodad

MVM

Re: Just so I get this right..

said by battleop:

If you use SuddenLink as your ISP and Directv as your TV provider Viacom still blocks you from viewing Viacom online content?

I believe that's correct. It's the same thing Viacom did to CableOne HSI subscribers: »Viacom Blocks CableOne Broadband Customers From Online Content [28] comments

maartena
Elmo
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join:2002-05-10
Orange, CA

1 recommendation

maartena to battleop

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to battleop
said by battleop:

If you use SuddenLink as your ISP and Directv as your TV provider Viacom still blocks you from viewing Viacom online content?

I don't know if they still do, but they certainly did for a while. Suddenlink started to advice their customers: "If you want to watch their shows, simply go to their website, bla, bla...." , and Viacom reacted by blocking it, and with it everyone that uses Suddenlink for internet but another provider for television.
Kearnstd
Space Elf
Premium Member
join:2002-01-22
Mullica Hill, NJ

1 recommendation

Kearnstd to battleop

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to battleop
Yep that is how a content owner like Viacom thinks. Screw everybody with an ISP owned by that company.

Proxies are the only solution, I would hope Suddenlink support keeps a list handy to tell people about since that would not break any laws.

caster
@sysvana.com

caster

Anon

what about internet + dish / directv subs?

are they locked out as well?

moldypickle
Premium Member
join:2009-01-04
Haughton, LA

moldypickle

Premium Member

Well

Didn't realize anyone actually missed these channels. This is old news, the deal done for, we should move on.
dd31879
join:2013-02-27
Boyce, LA

1 recommendation

dd31879

Member

Cable content

Personally I pay for Dish Network satellite service so I could care less.

I recently got an offer in my mailbox from Suddenlink about SDL200 stating they could offer it to me for a super discounted rate. So I decided to look up what channels are offered in my area.

Now, I am not saying I need a 1000 channels of nothing to watch obviously. I watch a few different channels all the time like most people. Then here or there catch some others when good stuff appears. Suddenlink doesnt even provide all the channels I want to watch. So switching over is not even an option to consider.

I know one of the popular things to say about satellite is that "one little cloud and it goes out". That is simply not true anymore. In the old days yes it was, but things have advance since then. It can be pouring rain outside and my TV will still get great reception. Obviously this depends a lot on the technician that installs your dish because they have to set it up right to get the highest signal, but done right about the only thing that stops dish service is physical blockage (snow, trees, etc.)
DigiKnight
join:2008-07-26
Eureka, CA

1 recommendation

DigiKnight

Member

still have netflix

like to see them stop us from watching their stuff there