DirecTV and Viacom? Let's make a deal

[Coconut36]

My thought is this... Do some of the channels deserve a 30% increase, possibly. Do all of them? No. Some of the channels have a decrease in viewers.
If you go into work and your work product and/or quality goes down do you get a raise? Probably not.

I think the bold is a good example..quality and productivity down for these channels but they are like the person not doing well asking for a raise when their output doesn't equal what they are asking for.

I honestly am not going to argue who is right and who is wrong here. What I am going to say is that if they don't bring back the Nick Channel's and VH1, without a rate increase, I am dropping Dtv like a rock. We have talked about getting rid of any sort of cable or satellite altogether since we have a Roku and Netflix so we can get pretty much anything we would want to watch on those.

I think this might just make that decision for us. Nick and Nick Jr. are my kid’s favorite channels and without those, there is really no need for us to have Dtv.

I just wonder if they would let someone out of their contract because of this. We have until November until we can cancel, but I wonder if they would allow us to do it early since they are of no use to me right now.

Why not expose them to the Disney Jr and Disney programming instead. Mine watched Nick/Nick Jr too but have been quite pleased to move on to new content and they opened up Disney Jr (aimed to the same age group as Nick Jr) a few days ago.

 

[connorlevismom]

I think the bold is a good example..quality and productivity down for these channels but they are like the person not doing well asking for a raise when their output doesn't equal what they are asking for.



Why not expose them to the Disney Jr and Disney programming instead. Mine watched Nick/Nick Jr too but have been quite pleased to move on to new content and they opened up Disney Jr (aimed to the same age group as Nick Jr) a few days ago.

My youngest does watch some Dinsey Jr., but she much prefers Nick Jr. She has some strange obsession with Wow Wow Wubzzy (which thank god I recored several episodes prior to the pull). And the only show she really likes on Disney Jr. is Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.

My 8 year old is not going to watch Disney Jr and he really is not into any of the shows on the Disney Channel. He likes the shows on Nick.

The fact is that we want Nick and Nick Jr and picked a package that includes those. Now we don't have those and we are not happy. They should let us out of our contract since they are not giving us what we are paying for, no? I am not saying they will, just saying they should.

 

[Coconut36]

I believe right now they are offering credits for the loss of content so they might view that as taking care of things vs releasing your contract. Not sure though..you would have to ask to find out.

 

[sam_gordon]

They should let us out of our contract since they are not giving us what we are paying for, no? I am not saying they will, just saying they should.

I'm guessing if you look at the fine print of the contract there's a line that says something to the effect of "Programming subject to change". That would mean from a legal standpoint, they don't have to let let you out of the contract.

 

[sam_gordon]

Huh? So Viacom wants more money and Direct should just eat the difference between current rates and what Viacom wants?

Never said that. But there's plenty of people who think Viacom should eat the difference between their costs and what they're trying to get.

I said D* COULD "eat the difference" (or part of the difference). There's nothing that says they HAVE to pass along the costs.

 

[sam_gordon]

No one has stated the terms of the contract yet have they? I may have missed that part. Do we know if the $1B is spread out over a specific number of years or is it $1B a year for the life of the contract?

All we know is the following:

From Viacom:
An increase of .02/day/subscriber

From DirecTV:
An increase of 30%
An increase of $1B

Viacom's claim is the only one that gives a time frame (that I've heard).

 

[Coconut36]

All we know is the following:

From Viacom:
An increase of .02/day/subscriber

From DirecTV:
An increase of 30%
An increase of $1B

Viacom's claim is the only one that gives a time frame (that I've heard).

What timeframe has Viacom given?

 

[sam_gordon]

What timeframe has Viacom given?

.02/day/subscriber

With the time frame, you can calculate all kinds of things... 60 cents/month, $7.30/year, $73.00/decade, etc.

D* saying $1B increase doesn't really say much. Is that for one month? one year? Seven years? 10 years?

I can go to my employer and say "I want a million dollar raise!" And they can give it to me... over the next thousand years.

 

[Coconut36]

Never said that. But there's plenty of people who think Viacom should eat the difference between their costs and what they're trying to get.

I said D* COULD "eat the difference" (or part of the difference). There's nothing that says they HAVE to pass along the costs.

But you don't seem to be recognizing the value for the cost. As a pp pointed out..if you are putting out low quality and quantity and ask for a raise are you likely to get it? No because your quality and quantity is not up to par to warrant the increase.

That is partly what Direct is saying here..they are saying Viacom offerings are not up to par with the increase and they aren't willing to pay. Nick Jr for example has little to no new programming..Fresh Beat Band has a few new episodes, Franklin and Friends did too. Most shows stopped with new episodes some time ago (Wow Wow Wubbzy for example last made a new show in Feb 2010, Blues Clues hasn't had a new episode since 2006, Olivia hasn't had a new episode since 2011, Drake and Josh (Nick) hasn't had a new episode since 2007 and so on).

So then they offer some new content on Comedy Central and MTV..is that really worth what they are asking? Does it bring in enough viewers/money to justify the cost? It all comes down to the value they are offering and the cost they are asking.

 

[sam_gordon]

But you don't seem to be recognizing the value for the cost. As a pp pointed out..if you are putting out low quality and quantity and ask for a raise are you likely to get it? No because your quality and quantity is not up to par to warrant the increase.

That is partly what Direct is saying here..they are saying Viacom offerings are not up to par with the increase and they aren't willing to pay. Nick Jr for example has little to no new programming..Fresh Beat Band has a few new episodes, Franklin and Friends did too. Most shows stopped with new episodes some time ago (Wow Wow Wubbzy for example last made a new show in Feb 2010, Blues Clues hasn't had a new episode since 2006, Olivia hasn't had a new episode since 2011, Drake and Josh (Nick) hasn't had a new episode since 2007 and so on).

So then they offer some new content on Comedy Central and MTV..is that really worth what they are asking? Does it bring in enough viewers/money to justify the cost? It all comes down to the value they are offering and the cost they are asking.

I have always agreed the value is a judgement call. I was simply against taking only one side's "facts".

Some people think Viacom's request IS reasonable. *I* would be willing to pay $7 extra per YEAR for the same old programming. I would *NOT* be willing to pay $7 extra per MONTH. I personally think if Viacom was asking for 2 cents/subscriber, they'd probably settle for 1.5 cents/subscriber. That's a little over $5/year.

In my opinion, if some cable/sat company actually came out with a true ala carte system, they could charge a premium. Unfortunately, we don't have that.

 

[pat fan]

I just wonder if they would let someone out of their contract because of this. We have until November until we can cancel, but I wonder if they would allow us to do it early since they are of no use to me right now.

Doubtful. A friend of mine cancelled D* a while ago because they switched to Roku with HuluPlus, NetFlix and D* charged them an outrageous fee (the final months of their contract in one lump sum I believe) so they turned it back on and are letting the contract run out. They did drop down to basic service, but they were not let out of the contract. Since D* has given more channels to replace Viacom and a credit on bills, I doubt they will let you out of the contract. But, you never know til you ask

 

[rgf207]

I honestly am not going to argue who is right and who is wrong here. What I am going to say is that if they don't bring back the Nick Channel's and VH1, without a rate increase, I am dropping Dtv like a rock. We have talked about getting rid of any sort of cable or satellite altogether since we have a Roku and Netflix so we can get pretty much anything we would want to watch on those.

I think this might just make that decision for us. Nick and Nick Jr. are my kid’s favorite channels and without those, there is really no need for us to have Dtv.

I just wonder if they would let someone out of their contract because of this. We have until November until we can cancel, but I wonder if they would allow us to do it early since they are of no use to me right now.

Unfortunately nope. In the contract it states that D* has the right to add, remove or discontinue channels at any time without notice.

 

[connorlevismom]

Well, at least I only have a few months before I can cancel.

 

[holycow]

Doubtful. A friend of mine cancelled D* a while ago because they switched to Roku with HuluPlus, NetFlix and D* charged them an outrageous fee (the final months of their contract in one lump sum I believe) so they turned it back on and are letting the contract run out.

This is nothing new. Dish does the exact same thing. We had to pay off our contract to get with D, but D paid it for us totaling about 150$

 

[Coconut36]

This is nothing new. Dish does the exact same thing. We had to pay off our contract to get with D, but D paid it for us totaling about 150$

Exactly..it's no different than a cell contract or any other contract. You enter it knowing there is a penalty if you leave before it is up.

 

[kaytieeldr]

no...but do you know that is what they actually want and not a 30% increase in Year 1?

I don't - but given that all Viacom says they're asking is the same payment the negotiated with other providers combined with never hearing any controversy about those negotiations or agreements is a strong indicator that (a) whatever Viacom is asking isn't unreasonable or dramatic or gouging; and (b) that it's not 30% or any large lump sum increase in any single year.

 

[sam_gordon]

Not to reignite the debate, but some new information...

1) Viacom puts up SOME online content.
http://www.wptv.com/dpp/entertainment/directv-viacom-dispute-viacom-restores-daily-show-colbert-report-free-online-streaming
2) A deal is getting closer.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-07-17/directv-says-it-s-closer-to-deal-with-viacom.html

 

[Coconut36]

Not to reignite the debate, but some new information...

1) Viacom puts up SOME online content.
http://www.wptv.com/dpp/entertainment/directv-viacom-dispute-viacom-restores-daily-show-colbert-report-free-online-streaming
2) A deal is getting closer.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-07-17/directv-says-it-s-closer-to-deal-with-viacom.html

Glad to see some progress occurring and I like that Viacom returned at least some online content.

 

[ICF]

Here is what D* put on their FB page this afternoon....

Viacom’s current statement on our negotiations is completely inaccurate. They made a proposal last night for our carriage of the 17 channels they pulled from DIRECTV and we accepted all material terms for those channels including an increase that was more than fair. We are ready to close this deal at anytime and restore those channels to our customers.

However, as part of that offer, Viacom insists that we carry the EPIX channel at an additional cost of more than half a billion dollars. We know our customers don’t want to pay such an extreme price for an extra channel, they simply want the ones they had returned to them. We stand ready and willing to work with Viacom to get this done and, once again, ask Viacom to do the right thing and restore these channels to our customers immediately. Thank you.

 

[Coconut36]

Here is what D* put on their FB page this afternoon....

I don't believe I have even heard of Epix and looking it up I don't want to pay extra for it for sure. I am with Direct..bring back what we had but don't try to slide something new (with an increase in cost no less) in with it.