Time Warner Cable and Viacom agree on fee deal, avoiding blackout of MTV, Comedy Central

Posted by:Roode90 1238 days ago • Discuss • http://gogogolf.info

Theres no need to cry, Dora. The programmer Viacom and Time Warner Cable agreed on compensation that preserved access for the cable system operators 15.7 million subscribers to Doras Nickelodeon network, MTV and 17 other channels.

The two sides, citing disagreement over fee hikes, had threatened a damaging blackout at a minute past midnight Thursday that would have cut off shows such as "Dora the Explorer," "SpongeBob SquarePants" and "The Colbert Report" for Time Warner Cable customers.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Details must still be finalized over the next few days, the companies said.
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"We are pleased that our customers will continue to be able to watch the programming they enjoy on MTV Networks," said Glenn Britt, president and CEO of Time Warner Cable Inc. "We are sorry they had to endure a day of public disagreement as we worked through this negotiation."

Viacom Inc. president and CEO Philippe Dauman said the company was happy a deal was struck. Viacom had mounted an advertising onslaught warning customers of the possible blackout, taking out ads in major newspapers and Web sites from The New York Times and TVGuide.com featuring a tearful "Dora the Explorer" crying and clinging to her monkey pal, Boots.

"Why is Dora crying?" the ad read. "Tonight you will lose Nickelodeon and 18 other channels from your TV." It then prompted people to call their cable company to complain.

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