AT&T and Cox Media Group said they reached a new multi-year retransmission agreement, ending a blackout just hours before the start of the Super Bowl.
The blackout affected 26 stations in 20 markets, including five with the CBS affiliated stations that would have been carrying those games to subscribers of AT&T’s DirecTV, U-verse, and AT&T TV.
Also Read: Dish, WINK-TV, Fort Myers, Fla., In Pre-Super Bowl Blackout
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
In the announcement of the agreement the companies said “the parties appreciate consumers’ patience during the negotiation.”
During the negotiations, AT&T went to Capitol Hill to plead its case and a top AT&T executive "demanded" that Cox return its signal before the big game.
Also, the American Television Alliance, which represents satellite and cable companies, launched an ad campaign in the markets affected warning viewers they could miss the Super Bowl.
The 20 markets involved were: Alexandria, La.; Atlanta; Binghamton, N.Y.; Boston; Charlotte; Dayton, Ohio; Eureka, Calif.; Greenville-Greenwood, Miss.; Idaho Falls-Pocatello, Idaho; Jacksonville, Fla.; Medford, Ore.; Memphis, Tenn.; Orlando, Fla.; Pittsburgh; Seattle; Spokane, Wash.; Syracuse, N.Y.; Tulsa, Okla.; Yakima-Tri Cities, Wash.; and Yuma, Ariz.
