After a long partnership between Disney and DirecTV, the global entertainment giant known for its animations and magical content has pulled out from the service, taking with it the channels that it owns. This includes ESPN, ABC, and more.
The two companies are known to have had a falling out over a licensing dispute. There are as many as five channels that will no longer be available on DirecTV after this issue, and it is believed that this will affect millions of its subscribers.
Disney Pulls Out from DirecTV Service After Licensing Dispute
The Walt Disney Company released a statement at the start of September that confirmed that it has pulled out its channels from DirecTV's satellite TV services. According to the statement, this is effective immediately.
According to Disney's release, "While we're open to offering DirecTV flexibility and terms which we've extended to other distributors, we will not enter into an agreement that undervalues our portfolio of television channels and programs."
Because of this, channels like ABC, ESPN, Freeform, FX, and Hulu have been removed from the satellite service, which led to millions of DirecTV subscribers losing these channels. Specifically, this significantly affected DirecTV subscribers who are tuning into ESPN for its US Open coverage, as well as other programs.
Will Disney's Television Channels Return to DirecTV?
According to Disney, it is still open to a revised licensing agreement with DirecTV, urging the company to "finalize a deal" that will not undervalue its portfolio. The possibility of Disney's return will highly depend on how good negotiations are between both companies.
Until then, users will have to deal with having no access to Disney's channels through DirecTV.
DirecTV's License Disputes and Lost Programs
For many years, DirecTV has dominated the television streaming industry with its satellite TV service, and it has been the proud platform that hosted the National Football League's Sunday Ticket for decades. However, this changed in 2022 when the NFL found a new home for its Sunday Ticket in Google's YouTube TV, leaving behind its long-term partner for good.
While DirecTV and the NFL did not exactly have a falling out, the massive shift to online streaming platforms is what essentially prompted Sunday Ticket's move.
Last year, DirecTV also had a falling out with Tegna regarding licensing agreements, which led to the satellite TV service losing local channels like CBS, Fox, and NBC.
It can be said that cable TV is slowly losing its grip on channels and programs as streaming is now the favored by audiences.
