DirecTV says its customers will be able to watch the ABC News Presidential Debate Tuesday night, even if it is unable to reach a viewing agreement beforehand with ABC parent Disney amid the two companies' ongoing carriage dispute.
DirecTV's more than 11 million customers have been unable to view several major events after Disney yanked its channels, including ABC News and ESPN, from DirecTV last week. In response, DirecTV filed a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) complaint against Disney over the weekend.
Unless a deal is reached in time, the situation could impact DirecTV customers' ability to watch "Monday Night Football" this week, but the company says it has a workaround that will ensure its customers can watch the first debate between former President Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.
"Despite The Walt Disney Co.’s intent to withhold the Sept. 10 Presidential Debate from DIRECTV satellite customers in the eight cities where Disney owns the local ABC station, and blocking its own local ABC affiliates from providing the ABC News debate coverage to any DIRECTV customers who choose to stream their news and analysis, DIRECTV customers will have access to this live event," a DirecTV spokesperson told FOX Business in a statement.
"C-SPAN, the other major broadcast networks besides ABC, and multiple national news and commentary channels, will simulcast ABC News coverage of the debate, which begins at 9 p.m. EDT from Philadelphia," the statement continued. "DIRECTV offers all the ABC News competitors, and CBS, NBC, and FOX local affiliates in the same cities where Disney has suspended its own or affiliated broadcast stations."
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In its complaint to the FCC, DirecTV said Disney has imposed unreasonable conditions on the renewal of their distribution agreement, including demands for bundling and penetration requirements that a federal court recently ruled unlawful.
DirecTV also said Disney has insisted on a "fat bundle" of channels, forcing the carrier to offer less popular programming while Disney provides consumers with cheaper, "skinnier" packages.
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Disney did not immediately respond to FOX Business' request for comment on Monday.
In a statement over the weekend, a Disney spokesperson told Reuters, "We continue to negotiate with DirecTV to restore access to our content as quickly as possible."
Reuters contributed to this report.
