Viacom Renews DirecTV Deal

MTV Networks and CBS have renewed their carriage deals with DBS service DirecTV, securing slots for a couple of new cable services, plus HD feeds of some CBS and UPN broadcast stations.

The deal covers cable networks including BET, MTV, Nickelodeon, VH1, TV Land, Comedy Central, and Noggin. It also renews carriage of the local signals of CBS and UPN O&O stations.

What’s new is formalizing carriage of startup gay network Logo and South Asian music channel MTV Desi.

Logo is widely carried, but MTV Desi is carried narrowly on a tier of Hindi channels. Also, DirecTV agreed to carry the HD signals of CBS and UPN stations in their local markets “over time.” No rollout schedule was disclosed.