Disney and Dish have reached a "handshake deal" that will bring Disney's cable networks back to Dish and Sling TV customers. Late on Sunday night, the two companies confirmed the deal. Disney said in a statement that they are pleased to restore their portfolio of networks on a temporary basis.
The Disney Channel, National Geographic, local ABC programming, and many other channels have been restored for Dish and Sling TV subscribers. The situation was resolved in time for Monday Night Football, despite the fact that college football was on Saturday.
Disney walked away from the negotiation table during the renewal of their carriage contract. After the previous deal expired, Dish said in a press release that Disney was interested in becoming a monopolistic power. Disney wanted a billion dollar increase in fees compared to the expired agreement and was pushing Dish to bundle more of its satellite TV plans, including some that don't currently include sports networks.
Disney said its terms reflect the marketplace and have been the foundation for many successful deals with pay TV providers. The carriage renewal spat between programmers and TV providers is nothing new, but this one was unusual in that Dish didn't give much warning to its customers before the October 1st black out.
Once the two sides hammer out a final agreement, will Dish and Sling TV customers see a subscription price hike? The package that includes Disney networks costs $35 a month. It is one of the cheapest ways to get linear ESPN compared to services like YouTube TV, which is $64.99/month, and Disney's own Hulu with Live TV offering, which costs $699.99 per month.
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