Hearst Television stations went dark to Dish Network subscribers Tuesday night after the parties failed to reach a retransmission consent agreement by the 9 p.m. Central Time deadline.
But the parties appear to differ on the reason for the blackout – Hearst says it’s not over money (which is typically at the heart of these disputes.)
"It appears that Dish does not have a problem with the rates we are seeking," said Dan Joerres, president and general manager of Hearst’s Baltimore station WBAL-TV, in a statement. "But the Dish negotiating team is seeking other terms that we don't have in our deals with any other cable or satellite distributor or telco, nor do we have them in our current deal with Dish. Frankly, we are scratching our heads as to why Dish would hold their own customers and our viewers hostage for terms that are radically off-market."
WBAL did not elaborate.
Hearst owns 29 stations in 25 different markets across the country.
Dish was equally vague in its own statement, saying Hearst is using the blackout to make demands the satellite giant apparently is reluctant to identify.
