Media company disputes could keep millions of TV viewers from watching football playoffs

Sports fans nationwide may soon find themselves cut off from some of the most anticipated televised football games of the year as massive media and television companies go to war with one another over the programming fees required to air those matches.

Beginning next week, TV customers on Verizon FiOS and Charter’s Spectrum service could be hit by widespread channel blackouts after the companies’ contracts with major programming giants expire. Verizon’s 4.5 million TV customers could lose access to ESPN, Freeform and the Disney Channel and other networks belonging to Disney, as well as ABC affiliates based in Philadelphia and New York, on Dec. 31. Meanwhile, some 6 million Spectrum viewers could miss out on programming from Tribune Media in as many as two dozen markets across the country starting Jan. 1.

http://www.startribune.com/media-company-disputes-could-keep-millions-of-tv-viewers-from-watching-football-playoffs/503589222/