DirecTV-Disney dispute: 49ers' opener could see potential blackout
WALNUT CREEK, Calif. - An ongoing dispute between DirecTV and Disney has Bay Area sports bars facing a potential nightmare scenario this weekend and into Monday.
Bars and more than 11 million DirecTV customers, caught in the middle of the contractual dispute over carriage fees, are now wondering if they’ll be able to see college football and the San Francisco 49ers opener against the Jets on Monday.
"I’m frustrated, I’m angry," said Patty Sherman, owner of The Stadium Pub in Walnut Creek, and a DirecTV subscriber. Amid the ongoing dispute, Disney has blacked out all of its programming, including networks ABC and ESPN, which are scheduled to broadcast the Niners. The channels first went dark last Sunday.
"When the LSU USC game didn't come on, one of my guys called me, and he’s like, what’s going on? I don’t know what’s happening," said Sherman.
Bars like The Stadium Pub, which already operate on small profit margins, are eyeing potentially huge losses.
"I’m going to lose money all weekend. I don’t have ESPN tomorrow. I don’t have the SEC network. I don’t have ABC, and there’s a lot of big games tomorrow, and I’m facing Monday night football," said Sherman.
The bar owner said she was busy searching for a last-minute workaround. Her former cable provider, Comcast, recently told her they would be unable to get her set up in time for the games.
One block away, the manager of Broderick Road House, said her establishment was in a similar bind.
"We went to put on our sports channels and none of them worked," said Broderick Road House manager, Candace Williams, who added, sports fans had been calling ahead to reserve seats for the games. "We’re trying to figure out some ways around it, or figure out a different direction we need to go, but so far it’s not been the best."
So far, both DirecTV and Disney have continued to blame each other for the standstill.
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