1 . What is happening?
By law, KIRO 7 must negotiate carriage agreements with satellite companies like DISH. Usually, these deals are reached without any disruption to your service. In fact, our company has negotiated dozens of agreements with only the rarest of disruptions. Unfortunately, so far, DISH has refused to reach a fair, market-based deal to carry KIRO 7. Our existing agreement with DISH expires at 4 PM Pacific Time on March 31, 2019. If no deal is reached before that date, you will lose live access to the shows, sports and local news on KIRO 7, which you rely on and are paying for. We are continuing to negotiate with DISH, but DISH has refused to agree to reasonable terms for the valuable programming we provide.
2. How can I watch KIRO 7 – and the upcoming Final Four – if this issue is not resolved?
All NCAA Tournament games are available on KIRO 7 free, over-the-air with an antenna. The game will also be livestreamed on several web sites and apps, including:
CBS All Access will feature all of the tournament games airing on the network. There is a seven-day free trial of CBS All Access available before a $6 monthly fee kicks in.
NCAA March Madness Live is accessible both through a website and a downloadable app that’s compatible with many different devices.
3. As a DISH customer, what can I do to continue to watch my favorite shows on KIRO 7?
The best thing viewers can do is Call DISH at 1-800-333-3474. Tell DISH that you pay them a lot of money to watch your favorite shows on KIRO 7, including the KIRO 7 News, NCAA Tournament, NFL games, Big Bang Theory, and more. Tell DISH that if it drops KIRO 7, then you will drop DISH.
4. Why does KIRO 7 charge cable and satellite operators a fee to carry their programming?
KIRO 7 is among the highest rated channels on DISH. Producing and broadcasting high rated, top-quality programming is very expensive. We invest hundreds of thousands of dollars in our local news, weather, and emergency programming. Without the fees from cable and satellite operators, this would not be possible. KIRO 7 could not afford to broadcast [list popular programming, etc.].
5. What is a “fair” deal for KIRO 7’s programming and why is DISH refusing to pay it?
We have proposed that DISH renew our previous agreement on substantially the same terms as the old agreement. DISH refused. We have carriage agreements with every other major cable and satellite company that is carrying KIRO 7, including DirecTV and Comcast.
6. What does DISH pay for other channels?
Based on publicly available information, DISH pays over $6 per subscriber per month for ESPN. In other words, $6 from your monthly bill goes straight to ESPN. Our ratings are much higher than ESPN’s! Yet, we are asking for far less what DISH pays to ESPN. More importantly, ESPN has NO local programming, NO local employees, NO local investments, and a very small local audience – unlike KIRO 7.