Charter Takes on Disney in Fight Over Cable TV’s Future
- Disney says cable service won’t pay market value for networks
- Charter counters that the current pay-TV system is broken
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Charter Communications Inc., the No. 2 US cable TV provider, declared war on Walt Disney Co., saying it can no longer live with rising fees for ESPN and other programming.
Disney, the world’s largest entertainment company, responded by yanking its channels, including ESPN, from Charter’s Spectrum TV service, depriving that company’s 14 million viewers of popular shows, including possibly the coming NFL season. It was a big shock for tennis fans who couldn’t watch the latest rounds of the US Open.