If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission.
The contract dispute between DirecTV and The E.W. Scripps Company has continued into June, with DirecTV subscribers in almost 40 markets across the country still without access to local Scripps-owned stations.
The blackout has impacted major cities including Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Nashville and Phoenix, with subscribers no longer able to view their local ABC and NBC affiliates. The timing couldn’t be worse, as ABC is home to the current NBA and NHL finals, while the U.S. Open golf tournament airs on NBC, in addition to the broadcast networks’ regular lineup of shows.
Now, Scripps is directing viewers to other streaming and OTT services, lising YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV and Fubo as the best DirecTV alternatives.
YouTube TV is a paid arm of YouTube, that lets you watch 100+ channels over the internet, including NBC, ABC and ESPN for additional sports coverage. Pricing starts at just $67.99/month right now for your first five months of service (regularly $82.99/month). You can try out YouTube TV with a 10-day free trial here.
You can also watch ABC and NBC programming live online through Fubo, another DirecTV alternative recommended by Scripps. For a limited time, new users can get the Fubo Pro plan with 200+ channels for just $48.99/month (regularly $73.99). Test drive the streamer with a five-day free trial here.
The Hulu + Live TV plan gets you 90+ television channels that you can stream online without cable, including ABC, NBC and FOX (which is home to the World Cup tournament). Pricing starts at $89.99/month for live TV streaming, plus access to Hulu’s on-demand library and a free Disney+ and ESPN Unlimited subscription. Hulu offers a three-day free trial for new users here.
Scripps also recommends an over-the-air antenna, which can pick up local affiliate channels like ABC and NBC through the antenna’s reception range — no cable package required.
Digital Indoor TV Antenna for Local Channels
This one above features a 120-mile range and is a bestseller on Amazon with more than 10,000 units sold in the last month alone on Amazon.
The impasse between Scripps and DirecTV stems from a contract and carriage fee dispute. In a press release, DirecTV said Scripps is “demanding the highest rates DirecTV has ever received from a station group, which would continue to dramatically raise costs for consumers and businesses already struggling with affordability. After DirecTV declined those demands and sought a more reasonable agreement, Scripps chose to remove its stations from viewers in several major markets nationwide.”
Scripps countered that characterization, saying that it has been “engaging in good-faith negotiations with DirecTV to establish an equitable agreement that serves both companies and, most importantly, consumers. Regrettably, DirecTV has elected to remove Scripps local stations from their lineup, employing the same heavy-handed tactics that have become synonymous with pay-TV operators who hurt their own subscribers by using them as bargaining chips in contractual disputes.”
Leave a Reply