Comcast-owned
network G4 is no longer being carried by DirecTV.
In
a statement on its Web site, G4 says it "has done everything in our
power" to make a deal to keep the network on DirecTV. "This is
especially frustrating since our offer to them was the same basic deal that
we've had with DirecTV for the past three years."
A spokesman for DirecTV said it is no longer negotiating and has
no plans to return G4 to its subscribers at this time. "We are
constantly evaluating our lineup in a new world where programming costs
continue to rise at significant rates. Since G4 is among the lowest rated
networks based on the latest Nielsen data, we decided that it made sense to
focus on preserving programming that is more relevant to our larger customer
base," the spokesman said.
Frequently,
there are other issues at work when these types of carriage issues go public,
but DirecTV says it has no other issue with Comcast, which has several other
entertainment channels, regional sports channels and is trying to complete a
deal to buy control of NBC Universal.
"This
is really about the viability of an individual channel," DirecTV's
spokesman said.
In
the third quarter, G4's total viewership was up 29%, but it was still
ranked only 60th of the 77 cable networks measured by Nielsen. Among
18 to 34 year olds, G4 ranked 47th.
