DirecTV Now Drops Hurt AMC, Discovery, Viacom

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Stock prices of cable programmers AMC Networks, Discovery and Viacom dropped Wednesday after AT&T confirmed they were being dropped by DirecTV Now.

AMC Networks finished down nearly 5%, Discovery dropped more than 5% and Viacom fell 3.36%.

AT&T boosted the price of DirecTV Now to try to boost its profitability of the streaming service.

For programmers without the retransmission consent muscle of a broadcast network or powerful sports franchises, getting networks carried on the top virtual MVPDs is a key issue as Wall Street watches traditional pay TV subscription fall, taking revenue with them.

It’s worth nothing that DirecTV Now is carrying the networks it acquired when it bought Time Warner, including HBO, Boomerang, Cartoon Network, CNN, TBS, TNT and TruTV.

Jon Lafayette
Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.