Retransmission deal not yet done between Insight and Raycom stations

I have written many times about retransmission consent negotiations between broadcasters and cable and satellite companies.  We closely followed the dispute between Fox and Cablevision which resulted in Fox pulling their local channels off of Cablevision's systems in New York during Major League Baseball's playoffs and World Series.

Recently three stations owned by Raycom Media have been running a crawl at the bottom of the TV screen informing their viewers that they are in negotiations with Insight for continued carriage of WAVE in Louisville, WXIX in Northern Kentucky and WFIE in Evansville.  If an agreement is not reached by December 31, Raycom will decide if it is willing to temporarily extend our license to carry their stations or to order us to drop them until we agree on the terms of that carriage.

Although Insight has never dropped any TV signals because of failing to reach an agreement with a broadcaster – and will not drop any of Raycom’s stations from our lineup - the possibility exists that Raycom may pull their signal from our customers. However, we’ll continue to negotiate with them to reach a fair deal for our customers and we’ll keep you updated on all the latest information at our website, www.LetsKeepItOn.com, so please feel free to check back often.

Comments

[Kelly]

This is only one time I have considered dropping INSIGHT. Believe me, they have supplied me with numerous reasons. The fact is a LOT of people watch these stations. Do you think they know that?? Once again, the customer suffers for the almighty dollar tug-of-war. Get the service on !!

[Clarence]

Well Insight and Bill Lamb needs to grow up a make compromising deal and stop using the costumer as the rope in a tug of war and WDRB and ect back on the Insight Cable costumers lineup,and Bill Lamb come on and flick the switch back on already.

[Sue Moore]

We can receive WDRB thru the digital box, if this crap continues we may be forced to drop cable as well. The constant rise in bills is getting ridiculous and the basic channels are free. As with DISH and Direct Tv, the local cable went out here in the tornado as no one could know what was going on.
We could follow WDRB on the Frontier internet service and thru digital. You at Insight are getting a little sure of yourselves even making a statement about we the customer changing all the time for better rates.(If you needed gas to drive your car and it is 20 cents cheaper across the street you will cross the street too for the same service)

[Janell]

Once again it is the ones that pay their bills that are in the middle here and have no say. Im so tired of money controlling everything. Someone needs to have integrity and do the right thing, not allowing money to once again take over all. They need to do the right thing for the customer this time.

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[Howard Aubrey]

@Jim: I actually said I don't consider satellite as competition. I realize that people do switch between them. I was one of them, but because satellite locks you into a two year contract in most cases, they are not competition for ME. Now, if we had another cable company competing with Insight here, there would be a very real chance that I and probably others would consider switching. Another company competing with Insight, that could offer phone, internet, and a TV signal pumping through the coax into my home would be a good thing.

[Jim]

@Howard Just because satellite provides an inferior product doesn't mean that it's not competition or that Insight enjoys a monopoly. People switch between cable and satellite providers every day based on their perception of the features and value of both services.

[Howard Aubrey]

@Derek. I'm afraid I will have to disagree with you, Derek. Neither Raycom nor Insight are altruistic organizations. They are both in business to make a profit, and will do so at the customer's expense. And of course, each will blame the other for the current situation.

The real solution to these kinds of situations, in my opinion, is competition. Insight has the monopoly on cable in this area. At one time, there were actually two cable companies serving Boone County, and that provided some great consumer options. Of course, one eventually bought out the other, and consumer interests took a nose dive. I don't consider DirecTV and Dish Network as competition due to their long term contracts and poor reception due to weather fade.

A second issue that needs to be addressed is this whole concept of bundles. I get a ton of channels on Insight that I have absolutely no use for, and never, ever view. I should have the option of picking and choosing what I buy. Ala Carte service sounds good to me, although I am sure both the cable companies and the media companies don't want to see that happen.

So, as I said earlier, a pox on both their houses. Neither is going to give up a red cent of profit for the benefit of their customers. The only questions is which one is going to be the one to soak the customer. My guess is that both will.

[Derek]

@ Mr. Aubrey, This is exactly what Insight is working against in this case...

If companies like Raycom are able to drastically increase the cost of their programming on a whim, providers like Insight are forced to raise their prices to provide the programming that their customers like to watch. I agree that the customers are the ones that suffer most in cases like this.

If cable providers were to bow down and pay the cost of demands like this, other networks and media providers would likely follow suit. Then, our cable bills would have to go up in order to keep the company providing it afloat! Either that, or they bear the brunt of the cost, and go out of business leaving us with inferior providers to take their place.

Remember, the majority of the money you spend on your cable bill doesn't go directly into your provider's coffers. The majority goes toward paying the cost of the media they provide, and the maintenance of the network they use to provide it.

I commend Mr. Willner's stance on this issue, and am sure it wasn't an easy decision to make.

[William]

@Nate, I posted a link and quoted a small excerpt from WAVE 3 on DSL Reports. Raycom had it pulled, link and all.

I don't know if that's what happened here but it wouldn't surprise me.

[Howard Aubrey]

The only "good guys" in this fiasco are the customers who, at least up to now, continue to pay their cable bills. This is all about money. I don't care what Insight says versus what Raycom says. It comes down to profits, and we are stuck in the middle. I absolutely will not run out and buy an OTA antenna just to watch Fox 19, and I am starting to consider my options when it comes to continuing my subscription to Insight. The only thing I ever see from them is increased bills.

A pox on both of them!

[Nate Hiatt]

Really going to pull my link to Fox19's side of this Michael? It was just a link, I didn't add anything, just giving everyone else both sides if they were curious. What's next, blocking access to their site? After all, now it's legal as long as you warn us about it ahead of time, right?

[ARGO]

Raycom is now a hostage taker.