MUMBAI: The fight between US media company DirecTV and broadcaster Fox has gone to a new level with DirecTV sending a complaint letter to US media watchdog the FCC.
The letter has accused Fox of running misleading ads over the dispute over carriage fees. Fox wants to charge cable providers more for its channels, and DirecTV is reluctant.
DirecTV CEO Mike White has said that Fox‘s parent News Corp is seeking a nearly 40 per cent jump in its fees for the programming. He has said that DirecTV will start pulling programming from its lineup by 1 November 2011 if a deal isn‘t reached.
Fox, meanwhile, says that DirecTV hasn‘t replied to its offer of an extension in contract talks. It has accused DirecTV of taking an unnecessarily aggressive posture and going public. Fox adds that it is willing to continue offering its programming for the same price and terms as they are currently carried in the interim.
DirecTV has complained over ads run in local papers in the US indicating that Fox owned-and-operated channels -- and not just select Fox networks and regional sports channels -- will be pulled off the satellite service as part of the dispute.
