NBC signal returns for DISH customers
DISH Network reached an agreement with Bonten Media Group Sunday night that put NBC back on the air for local DISH subscribers.
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed, but the deal between DISH and Bonten Media Group and Esteem Broadcasting affects television stations in eight markets nationwide, including KECI in Missoula, which serves the Kalispell area with KCFW; and KTVM in the Butte-Bozeman area.
The NBC blackout for DISH subscribers began Dec. 8 when NBC Montana for the first time ever was unable to renew its agreement with a television provider before the contract deadline.
NBC Montana General Manager Dick Reingold said he received numerous phone calls Monday from DISH subscribers who are pleased about the restoration of the NBC station.
“The big thing for us is that it’s only about the viewers and we’re happy to be back serving them,” Reingold said.
Reingold said he couldn’t elaborate on details or longevity of the contract, but added that “typically they are long-term, multi-year deals.”
News of the restored NBC service even prompted a response from Montana Sen. Jon Tester, who issued a press statement announcing he is pleased Montanans’ local NBC news broadcasts have returned.
“Montanans need local news for everything from weather alerts to public safety announcements,” Tester said. “I’m glad folks in Western Montana will once again be able to get the critical information they paid for and need. I will continue to keep a close eye on the situation.”
At the heart of the service disruption was how much NBC Montana — of which Kalispell’s KCFW is a part — was asking to be paid by DISH for its programming. DISH claimed Bonten, owned by NBC Montana, was demanding three times more than its current rate for the same content.
NBC Montana maintained, however, that DISH’s claim was misleading.
“When you’re dealing with small numbers, percentages can be made to look large though they’re much less than the actual money involved,” Reingold said in an earlier interview, adding that what NBC Montana was asked for was “a couple pennies per day per subscriber per month.”