Another long-running network dispute has come to an end as Disney and DirecTV have reached an agreement.
The new long-term deal resolves a dispute that left more than 11 million DirecTV subscribers without access to Disney networks for 13 days. Service was restored Saturday before the first college football games began.
A press release from Disney sent out Saturday morning outlined some of the terms of the deal, including the return of Disney channels such as ABC, ESPN, Disney, Freeform, FX and more, according to Puck’s John Ourand.
Additionally, DirecTV will offer several specific “skinny” bundles tied to Disney networks, such as a sports bundle, an entertainment bundle, a kids and family bundle, plus the Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ bundle. The ability to create these smaller, genre-specific bundles was one of the bottlenecks that led to the blackout, CNBC reported.
The blackout began on September 1, when Disney Networks was unable to watch DirecTV’s service after contract negotiations fell through. The blackout left DirecTV subscribers unable to watch several major events to kick off the season, including the U.S. Open, the first two weeks of college football and the first kickoff of the NFL’s Monday Night Football.
The two companies initially struggled to agree on terms of the deal, but they were able to close the deal on Saturday, just in time for a busy sports weekend. Disney-affiliated networks (including ABC, ESPN and ESPN+) will air more than 30 college football games on Saturday; Monday Night Football will feature the Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles.
Disney had a similar dispute with Charter Spectrum last September, which prevented subscribers (and tennis players) from watching events like the US Open. However, the issue was resolved after twelve days.
