Disney Says It Offered Gender-Based DirecTV Packages Amid Controversy

Disney responds to DirecTV after the satellite TV provider's call with media and analysts on Tuesday, during which the company outlined its position in the carriage dispute.

Following the controversy, many Disney channels, including ABC and ESPN, went dark for millions of DirecTV subscribers on September 1, coinciding with the U.S. Open and before the start of the NFL season.

DirecTV CFO Ray Carpenter said Tuesday that the company is pushing for more flexible options for its customers, including “streamlined, genre-based” packages, where customers can choose the type of content they want to pay for, grouped by genres including news, family and sports, with different price points associated with those options. During the call, Carpenter suggested that Disney had been resistant to the idea.

Dana Walden and Alan Bergman, co-chairmen of Disney Entertainment, and Jimmy Pitaro, chairman of ESPN, said that is not the case.

“DirecTV continues to misrepresent the facts of our ongoing negotiations. Our priority is to reach a market-ready agreement that meets the needs of DirecTV and its customers, while recognizing the value of our high-quality content and the significant investment required to create and acquire it. We believe there is a path to a fair and flexible agreement that strikes this critical balance and works for all parties, especially the consumer,” the statement read.

According to a Disney spokesperson, Disney has offered a number of customized packages to DirecTV, including a sports-focused offering with ESPN and ABC, an entertainment-focused option, and linear offerings bundled with Disney's direct-to-consumer subscription services.

The spokesperson added that Disney's proposed rates “are in line with other distribution providers in the market” and that Disney also offered options to connect DirecTV platforms to Disney's streaming services.

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