Dish and Sinclair Extend Retransmission Talks

Dish Network and Sinclair Broadcast Group said they agreed to a short-term contract extension as their retransmission consent agreements covering 153 stations expired.

On Saturday morning, it appeared a huge blackout was likely as Dish filed a compliant with the FCC charging that Sinclair was not negotiating in good faith.

But the Sinclair stations remained available to Dish subscribers after the 11:59 P.M. ET deadline Saturday night. And early Sunday morning, the two sides announced the extension.

In addition, the said that Dish is asking the Federal Communications Commission to stay action on Dish's complaint and request for preliminary injunctive relief as the two parties continue to negotiate.

“We appreciate that we have mutually created time to try to find the right path to serve consumers,” Warren Schlichting, Dish senior VP of programming said.

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.