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NEW YORK -- Viacom (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB) has issued the following statement regarding the status of renewal negotiations with Charter Communications:
“Viacom has made a series of very attractive offers to Charter that are consistent with terms we’ve recently reached with other large cable operators. Importantly, these offers would enable Charter to lower Spectrum subscribers’ bills, while also giving them more access to shows across Nickelodeon, BET, MTV, Comedy Central and other Viacom networks.
"Viacom is committed to developing strong, mutually beneficial relationships with our distribution partners. Despite our efforts, Charter continues to insist on unreasonable and extreme terms that are totally inconsistent with the market. While we’re making every effort to reach a new deal, Charter's actions may force a disruption in their service.”
The current deal between Viacom and Charter is due to expire on Sunday 15th October 2017, reports Reuters. A blackout would hit 16.5 million subscribers.
Earlier this year, Charter moved Viacom’s flagship networks to its most expensive programming tier, a move that threatened the media company’s affiliate and advertising revenue.
In addition to Nickelodeon, BET, MTV and Comedy Central, other Viacom networks Charter customers are set to lose include TV Land, Spike, Logo, CMT and VH1.
Viacom is planning to run a “crawl” on its networks on Charter telling viewers the TV outlets may be disrupted if the tone of its current talks does not change, a person familiar with the matter told Variety. Ads talking about the negotiations are also possible, this person said. Charter reaches approximately 16.5 million subscribers. The company broadened its national footprint in May of 2016 by buying Time Warner Cable for approximately $65 billion.
Viacom, for its part, finds some of Charter’s current demands onerous, a person familiar with the talks told Variety. Charter, this person said, wants to keep Viacom from taking part in so-called “skinny bundle” packages that would make a narrower selection of TV networks available to consumers looking to pay less for linear content.
About Viacom
Viacom is home to premier global media brands that create compelling television programs, motion pictures, short-form content, apps, games, consumer products, social media experiences, and other entertainment content for audiences in more than 180 countries. Viacom's media networks, including Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, MTV, VH1, Spike, BET, CMT, TV Land, Nick at Nite, Nick Jr., Logo, Nicktoons, TeenNick, Channel 5 (UK), Telefe (Argentina) and Paramount Channel, reach over 3.9 billion cumulative television subscribers worldwide. Paramount Pictures is a major global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment. Paramount Television develops, finances and produces programming for television and other platforms.
For more information about Viacom and its businesses, visit www.viacom.com. Keep up with Viacom news by following Viacom's blog at blog.viacom.com and Twitter feed at www.twitter.com/viacom.
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