Is Charter Communications (Finally) Calling Walt Disney's Bluff?
If you're a Spectrum cable customer, then you've likely noticed a few channels are missing from your cable lineup. Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS) stopped delivering ESPN, The Disney Channel, and ABC programming to Spectrum subscribers on Friday, as it was unable to reach acceptable pricing terms with Spectrum parent Charter Communications (NASDAQ: CHTR).
Such blackouts are nothing new, of course. Disney stopped feeding content to Alphabet's nascent streaming-cable platform YouTube TV in late 2021 and did the same again in October 2022 with Dish Network. These blackouts usually end within a few days, with both parties coming to an accord after some predictable and well-publicized jawboning.
Yet this particular impasse is different. Charter's CEO Chris Winfrey bluntly explains, "We've reached the point of indifference" as to whether it continues carrying Disney's content.
Source Fool.com