ESPN Plus is a popular sporting channel where you can find the latest sports matches. ESPN Inc. is the owner of ESPN Plus. ESPN+ lets you watch sporting events including FIFA, WWE, Cricket, and hockey competitions.
ESPN is a geo-restricted sporting channel that is currently available to watch in the USA. However, if you want to watch ESPN Plus in Australia, Canada, UK or anywhere around the world without facing any geo-restrictions then you will need a premium VPN service for that.
The Disney Channel Backout on Sling TV and Dish Network Satellite’s Television occurred after Dish and The Walt Disney Company failed to reach an accord on the carriage-renewal deal at midnight, September 30th.
“The Disney Network go dark” news has thus caused curiosity amongst the audience. The customers cannot watch the kids, family, and sports programming on their TV screens.
Channels Affected by Disney Blackout
The disagreement has led to the Disney Channel Blackout affecting the transmission of many channels on Sling TV and DIsh.
These Disney Network channels are Nat Geo WIld, Nat Geo Mundo, National Geographic, ESPN, ESPN 2, ESPNU, ESPN Deportes, ESPN News, ACC Network, SEC Network, Longhorn Network, Freeform, FX, FXX, FXM, Disney Channel, Disney Jr, Disney XD, and Baby TV.
The ABC-Owned local channels facing the disruption and blockage on Dish and Sling TV are Chicago(WLS), Calif.( KFSN), Fresno, Houston (KTRK), Los Angeles (KABC), New York (WABC), Philadelphia (WPVI), Raleigh, NC (WTVD), San Francisco, and CA (KGO).
Who is to blame for the Disney channel blackout?
Dish vs. Disney! After both parties have failed to lock a deal on the continuation of transmission on Sling TV and Dish, the blame game continues.
● The Disney’s Part
Disney justifies its part by saying, “The rates and terms we are seeking reflect the marketplace and have been the foundation for numerous successful deals with pay-TV providers of all types and sizes across the country.”
According to Disney, both parties couldn’t agree on mutual consent leading to an extended contract because Dish TV failed to realize a fair and market-based proposal to continue to carry the networks.
“After months of negotiating in good faith, Dish has declined to reach a fair, market-based agreement with us for continued distribution of our networks,” claims Disney Network.
● The Dish’s Concerns
As per the statement by Brian Neylon, Executive Vice president and group President of Dish TV, “Disney has exploited its market position to increase fees without regard for the public viewing experience.”
According to the press release by Dish, Disney is responsible for the negotiation deadlock, declining the offer for the contract extension and refusing to give access to Dish and Sling TV ( owned by Dish) to its customers across the country.
The Dish is also holding Disney responsible for the inconvenience caused to a number of local customers who largely turn to satellite television as a source of entertainment.
Further revealing the details, Dish blames Disney for asking for a $1 billion increase in the fee.
The proposed changes in Dish TV’s packages have also fueled the disagreement between the two giants.
Dish has thus criticized Disney for demanding a change in Dish TV’s packages and the inclusion of ESPN and ESPN2 in the packages, which previously did not hold any sports channel.
DIsh TV has therefore shown a dislike for Disney TV, trying to out obligations on Dish TV to make changes in the TV packages. Additionally, Dish accuses Disney of exploiting its customers. Disney wants to deprive local Dish TV customers of the right to remove channels and reduce their payments. Instead, it wants Dish TV to forcibly bind the subscribers to pay for the local channels in their ABC markets.
Since both parties are holding each other accountable for the inconvenience and blackout, customers are concerned about many things. They wonder if they can even watch ESPN Plus from their hometown using Sling TV or Dish, as these are no longer entertaining customers with Disney content in the US.
The crux of the discussion says that Dish TV accuses Disney Network of being more greedy than professional. It no more cares for the sentiments and entertainment of the local customers. Offers imposing charges for the local TV channels and disrupting the services are thus declined.
On the contrary, Disney explains its offer as a market-based and fair offer that has grabbed opportunities in the past and will still continue with networks based upon professional offers allowing growth.
Chances for Reconciliation
Despite the disagreement that has caused the blackout, both companies have still called for reconciliation and fair resolutions.
According to a statement by Disney, “We’re committed to reaching a fair resolution, and we urge Dish to work with us in order to minimize the disruption to their customers.”
On the other hand, Dish TV said, “We will continue to negotiate to provide the best value for our customers. We want to provide customers with fair rates, reliable service, and the freedom of choice to pay for the channels they most watch”. In another statement, Gary Schanman,
Executive Vice president and Group President at Sling TV said, “Disney is an important long-term partner of ours, and we hope they will be reasonable in their demands so we can reach a fair agreement and bring our customer’s channels back as quickly as possible.”
Aggressive negotiation Tactics of Dish
Dish TV is known for its aggressive, Hardball negotiation tactics on the table. Dish TV has disagreed with other companies on certain deals before. Deadlocks, in the past, has been responsible for removing several channels on Dish and Sling TV.
The standoff in carriage-renewal negotiations between Dish TV and Sony TV, Disney, and Google’s Youtube TV is evidence of the aggressive negotiation tactics of Dish TV.
Conclusion:
Since, ESPN+ is a very famous sports streaming service, which is still unavailable in many countries. However, you can watch live sports streaming and highlights of your favorite sports on ESPN using a VPN service.