Disney: Cable Customers Might Lose ABC, ESPN

(RTTNews) - Walt Disney Co. (DIS) has threatened to pull its programming from cable distributor Altice USA Inc. (ATUS) if the two companies are unable to reach a new deal before the end of September. The current contract between the two companies expires at the end of this month.

According to a Reuters report, Altice said Disney has asked it for "hundreds of millions of dollars" in new fees to continue carrying ESPN and ABC despite a decline in ratings.

Subscribers to Altice's Optimum cable service reportedly began to see scrolling messages on their television screens on Friday night, with Disney warning that they might lose ABC programming if its talks with Altice did not progress.

Disney said in a statement, "Our contract with Altice is due to expire soon, so we have a responsibility to make our viewers aware of the potential loss of our programming. We remain fully committed to reaching a deal and are hopeful we can do so."

If the two companies fail to reach a deal before the end of September, Altice subscribers will lose access to ESPN, ABC, Disney Channel and other Disney-controlled networks.

According to Reuters, this is the first time a cable company has pushed back at increased fees for ESPN, the most popular sports network. Altice has reportedly claimed that Disney was seeking to force even those customers who did not receive ESPN to pay for it.

However, ESPN's ratings have fallen in recent years as fans increasingly get games highlights and news online.

Altice USA, the U.S. business of Altice N.V., is the fourth-largest cable distributor in the U.S.

The company delivers broadband, pay television, telephony services, Wi-Fi hotspot access, proprietary content and advertising services to about 4.9 million residential and business customers across 21 states through its Optimum and Suddenlink brands.