
Martin Prado and the Braves can now again be seen on Peachtree TV for Dish customers. Hyosub Shin, hshin@ajc.com
Atlanta Braves fans who happen to get Dish Network have missed a few games this year because of a dispute with Peachtree TV that goes back to early February.
But the dispute over “restransmission” fees is over. Dish and Peachtree TV, after three months, have resolved their differences and the network is back on Dish.
Peachtree TV is owned by Turner but run by Meredith Broadcasting, which owns CBS Atlanta. That’s why over the months you’ve seen crawls about the battle on WGCL-TV.
“We’re pleased on behalf of our customers – especially Braves fans – to be able to offer that channel again,” said Steve Caulk, a spokesman for Dish out of Denver.
Braves fans with Dish missed 10 games. Peachtree TV airs 45 games a year, the next ones on Friday and Saturday vs. the Tampa Bay Rays. You can see the schedule here.
Otherwise, Peachtree TV airs repeats of shows that can be seen elsewhere, including “The Big Bang Theory,” “Law & Order: Criminal Intent,” “Meet the Browns” and “The Office,” to name a few.
Dish does not release how many customers it has in Atlanta, though based on its national numbers, its base is probably smaller than rivals such as Charter, DirecTV and Comcast.
Dish has also announced it plans to drop AFC, IFC, WE-TV and Sundance at the end of June so if you like “Breaking Bad” or “Braxton Family Values,” you might be out of luck.
Here is Dish’s explanation:
“AMC Networks channels such as IFC, WE, AMC and Sundance overall have had significant declines in viewership among DISH subscribers. AMC Networks’ very limited popular programming is non-exclusive, and available to our customers through multiple other outlets such as Amazon.com, iTunes and Netflix.
“Our decision to drop AMC Networks’ channels is solely dependent on their high renewal cost when compared to their low viewership. DISH will make alternative high-value channels available to our customers as replacements.”
But it’s more complicated than that. There is some litigation between VOOM, a subsidiary of AMC, and Dish over whether Dish dropped a deal with VOOM in a breach of contract. Here’s how AMC explains it:
May 4: As a result of a new ruling in the ongoing VOOM
HD/DISH litigation, the case is now set for trial. In the latest ruling, filed on
Thursday, April 26, 2012, the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme
Court denied DISH’s application to further appeal a prior trial court decision
sanctioning it for bad-faith destruction of evidence in the case.
The case began in 2008, when VOOM HD (an indirect subsidiary of AMC
Networks (NASDAQ: AMCX)) sued DISH Network for breach of contract. The
case concerns a contract in which DISH agreed to carry a suite of HD networks
known as VOOM for 15 years. In early 2008, DISH improperly terminated the
VOOM contract, and VOOM HD filed suit, seeking over $2.5 billion in damages.
In a pre-trial ruling, the trial court judge ruled that DISH had destroyed evidence
in the case, citing DISH’s “pattern of egregious conduct and questionable – and,
at times, blatantly improper – litigation tactics.” The Appellate Division recently
affirmed the trial court ruling, writing that DISH “acted in bad faith in destroying
electronically stored evidence.” And on April 26, 2012, the Appellate Division
denied DISH leave to further appeal the decision, leaving the case to be set for
trial.
Within days of the denial of DISH’s final avenue of pre-trial appeal, DISH
informed AMC Networks of its intention to drop its award-winning networks.
In response to the latest developments, AMC Networks released the following
statement: “AMC Networks has some of the most acclaimed programming on
television, with shows like “Mad Men,” “The Walking Dead” and “Breaking Bad.”
In fact, AMC’s “The Walking Dead” is the number one scripted drama with DISH
subscribers.
It is unfortunate that, because of setbacks in an unrelated litigation, DISH even
suggests that they might deny their customers access to some of their favorite
networks and and shows that are offered by every other major satellite and cable TV
provider.”
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By Rodney Ho, Radio & TV Talk
6 comments Add your comment
joe
May 16th, 2012
8:24 pm
this is about a week late….
vagabond
May 16th, 2012
8:40 pm
AMC you twit
vagabond
May 16th, 2012
8:41 pm
AMC you dope
So Glad
May 17th, 2012
7:17 am
I have not missed seeing the DISH banner at the bottom of the screen. No need to punish the rest of us with their fight.
finally
May 17th, 2012
4:22 pm
At last. I was so sick of that GD banner I was hoping both Dish and Peachtree TV would burn to the ground.
Brook Sizemore
May 17th, 2012
4:58 pm
I could always get Peachtree TV over the air…for free with some rabbit ears.