Viacom Channel Takedown Information

[Tasydra]

Troll's ruin things.

[stickyfingers]

Is this the "explosive news?"

Just sounds like poopy news to me.

Brian

[RAD]

If Charlie actually lets this happen he's got more balls then I thought. I think this move might just tick off a few of his customers. I guess Viacom brass didn't see him playing poker last month on the chat ;)

OH, I've got it! This is all part of Charlies grand plan, he dumps all these channels and now he's got enough space on 110 to add more HD programming without having to wait for AMC-15 to launch. :rolleyes:

[Tasydra]

Is this the "explosive news?"

Just sounds like poopy news to me.

Brian

I didn't say it would be GOOD news. :D


-Tasy

[Cyclone]

At least the Daily Show comes on at 11pm.

[willy]

Holy Moly.

I reaaaaaaalllly doubt they will let this happen... if it means bending over at 11:59pm I dont think Dish management would let these channels drop. Thats HUGE!!! (Im not questioning your info Tasy, just doubting if it will end in these channels being dropped).

Sheesh-- if that DOES come to pass.... Im dropping dish immediately. Hands down.

[Mark Lamutt]

Damn...that would certainly hurt...

[dbronstein]

Charlie's out of his mind if he lets this happen. People choose their provider largely based on the channels that are offered. Dish needs these channels a hell of a lot more than Viacom needs Dish. If they are off for even a day, I'm heading to Directv or dare I say it, mabye even cable.

Dennis

[Sparkman87]

And here's what D* has in response to this:

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/040107/nyw077_1.html

[BobMurdoch]

Oh, great I will FINALLY get my 921 tomorrow and CBS goes away (I'm assuming CBS-HD gets yanked along with WCBS out of NY in my DMA)

Once again, with ANY stoppage, I can't see it lasting long as they both need each other too badly. Can Viacom REALLY afford to walk away from 9 Million households?

I wonder why this snuck up on people though?

[greylar]

Well, ****.
It seems that we maybe losing Viacom channels by TONIGHT, at midnight, 1/7/2004. If no agreement can be reached by then, we will loose a lot of channels.


Can you provide your source? I can't find anything on the negotiations.

Thanks,
G

[TonyM]

Other stations:

KCCO - Alexandria, MN
KCCW - Walker, MN

Remember that these are NOT 100%. There is a chance that the contract to carry these channels will be renewed at 11.59 PM. Just letting you all know, laters.


I'm not doubting the channels that were originally listed get taken off, but the 2 above (KCCO & KCCW) CANNOT be taken off of Dish because THEY'RE NOT ON THERE TO BEGIN WITH!!! Both are satellites of WCCO (CBS 4 Mpls), but neither are on Dish...so why are they on the list??

just my .02

[willy]

Tasy---

Is this because negotiations are still going on this late in the game, or because there is a standoff that doesnt look like either side will budge?

I know personally that in many corp. deals, agreements are held off until late in the game. My company has a HUGE global client that *always* plays hardball until *THREE HOURS* before the fiscal year ends! This company is "inside" what you are posting this message with (unless you are using linux). :)

[BobMurdoch]

Something smells fishy here.......

[dbdsac]

Damn...that would certainly hurt...

I agree...my house has 3 kids in it that would be devistated (oh, OK, I admit I like cartoons too! Just look at my avatar :sure: ) to lose Nick and Noggin. Nickelodian and sports programming are the programming most watched at my house. Charlie PLEASE do not let this happen!

[dbronstein]

Once again, with ANY stoppage, I can't see it lasting long as they both need each other too badly. Can Viacom REALLY afford to walk away from 9 Million households?

Yes they can, because they know the 9 million households will follow them soon enough.

Dennis

[TonyM]

They arent going away
Its fishy to me..here are my reasons.


We may also loose the following CBS Stations in these cities:

WCCO Minneapolis, WI
KCCO - Alexandria, MN
WJMN - Escanba, WI
KCCW - Walker, MN


Where the hell are Mpls, WI and Escanba, WI? Its Mpls, MN and Escanaba, MI
The other 3 (minus WCCO) arent even on Dish to begin with..so how can they be taken off?? KCCO & KCCW are satellites of WCCO and never will be on Dish.

[Chris Freeland]

Their will be a last minet reprieve, Charlie can not let this happen, it would be a devastating blow and write on the hills of a price increase and at the same time D* signing a deal, could not be a worse time for this to happen and I do not believe it will. I suspect tomorrow morning we will see an extension which I thought from earlier press releases they had or their will be an announcement of a deal similar to what D* has signed.

[gpflepsen]

Next C Chat... Charlie will let it be known a short service interruption has been ended by a higher cost Viacom contract. Also mentioned will be last December's C Chat and the comment of TW's new contract also carrying with it increased fees. This will all allow Chas to introduce the rate increase and not look like the bad guy. Just wait.

[SParker]

Directv is looking better by the nanosecond!

[SlicerMDM]

Coincidence that D* strikes a deal with Viacom and E* negotiations falling through on the same day??

Never underestimate the power of Rupert Murdoch.

Total domination is inevitable...

[gpflepsen]

Total domination is inevitable...

Assimilation... is inevitable.

Didn't Charlie already try that?

[Kevin]

Something leads me to the assumption that this whole situation is BS. How did this news slip through our hands until right now? We usually know about these kind of things well before anything huge goes down. Could this be a secret E* bashing in disguise? I guess we'll have to wait until midnight to see if this really falls through...

[Tasydra]

Ew, some of you are right about those cities, I'm sorry, I scribbled them quickly at work, I was busy. Some of those shouldn't be there, others I put the wrong state, sorry! Will edit.

[gpflepsen]

DBStalk ambush?

Man, this feels like it's shaping up to be like the battle for Middle Earth.

[Chris Walker]

What a load of BS this thread is, these channels are going nowhere.

[FTA Michael]

IF those channels go dark tonight, then tomorrow I will:

* Be extremely impressed with Tasydra's inside information. (And I still say anything ending in "ydra" sounds like a female name.)

* Get on the phone with DirecTV to talk about being assimilated.

[SlicerMDM]

I would assume so... (that it's BS) I find it hard to believe Charlie would let so many popular channels just disappear.

[Geronimo]

Actua;y we were talking about this two weeks ago. I thought a temporary deal was signed. I guess it was really temporary.

[STrider]

They arent going away
Its fishy to me..here are my reasons.



Where the hell are Mpls, WI and Escanba, WI? Its Mpls, MN and Escanaba, MI
The other 3 (minus WCCO) arent even on Dish to begin with..so how can they be taken off?? KCCO & KCCW are satellites of WCCO and never will be on Dish.
WJMN is a "satellite" of CBS O&O WFRV in Green Bay, providing CBS service to the Marquette, MI DMA.

[ehren]

who the hell is this tasydra? I don't believe in all the posts I have seen of this person they have said what their credentials are

[Tasydra]

IF those channels go dark tonight, then tomorrow I will:

* Be extremely impressed with Tasydra's inside information. (And I still say anything ending in "ydra" sounds like a female name.)

You're not the only one who thinks this about my name. :P

If you all don't believe me, call 1-800-333-DISH, talk to tech support, and ask them about Viacom take down.

Go ahead.

Toll Free.

Nothing to lose.

They'll tell you that something is happening, but they more than likely won't know the amount that I posted here. Then again, they could of updated the CSR's on the info.

Go on.

1-800-333-DISH

Free call.

Go.


-Tasy

P.S. Well, what are you waiting for?

[ehren]

blah blah blah blah blah blah blahhhhhhhhhhhhh

[shilton]

They'll tell you that something is happening, but they more than likely won't know the amount that I posted here. Then again, they could of updated the CSR's on the info.

Go on.

1-800-333-DISH

Free call.

Go.


-Tasy

P.S. Well, what are you waiting for?
Tasy,
Do we know...is this a temporary takedown or is this looking permanent?

[FTA Michael]

Uh, so I should go ahead and call Dish, where the CSRs will say "that something is happening", but they won't know about the details you're posting.

Which would show that ... ? I don't know the end to that sentence.

Tasy, as I've said, I'll wait to be impressed until the morning. BTW, were you at the last shareholder's meeting? Maybe I saw you there.

[btbrossard]

blah blah blah blah blah blah blahhhhhhhhhhhhh
Thats the same thing I thought when I saw all of those threads about every installer in Dane county ticking you off.

If this information is correct, you won't have to wait very long to find out. Why don't you wait to pass judgement until then?

/Benjamin

[Tasydra]

Thats the same thing I thought when I saw all of those threads about every installer in Dane county ticking you off.

If this information is correct, you won't have to wait very long to find out. Why don't you wait to pass judgement until then?

/Benjamin

The thing is, if a deal is made, I'll look like a liar, :D! Oh well, damn if I care, I'm not here to impress anyone. Believe it if you want, or don't. I don't care either way.


-Tasy

[James Long]

What a load of BS this thread is, these channels are going nowhere.
By morning you could be proven wrong ...
Don't forget that E* already has a channel uplinked (since early last week) explaining the missing Viacom's. They wouldn't do that unless they intended to use it. Too much trouble.

Tick tock, watch the clock. As much as I wonder about Tasydra and his motives, there are enough of the usual inaccuracies to qualify him as a CSR. :lol:

At least it isn't CNN ... now that WOULD annoy me.

JL

[Tasydra]

Tick tock, watch the clock. As much as I wonder about Tasydra and his motives, there are enough of the usual inaccuracies to qualify him as a CSR. :lol:

JL

Why must I have motives? Jeez... forget it.


-Tasy

[gpflepsen]

Tasy, what are your views on video games and their cause of Kid's violence and gun use? ;)

Don't worry about these guys here. Their is a secret legion of Troll hunters on most forums and those who are not in these legions are quick to accuse.

Their is a saying about forums and *******s, everyone has one... er something like that. :)

[TNGTony]

LOL! The CBS channels (all the O&Os) have slate channels ready to be inserted in the place of these channels at the flip of a switch right now.

I will say that if Dish drops these channels for a nanosecond, I will be screaming loudly at BOTH parties! Then I will be making sure that my Congressman (neighbor) and Senators know all about this crap about holding customer hostage.

Not that it would do much good. But they would know about it.

See ya
Tony

[btbrossard]

Their is a saying about forums and *******s, everyone has one... er something like that. :)
It's always easier just to kill the messenger :).

Thanks for the info, either way.

/Benjamin

[Tasydra]

Tasy, what are your views on video games and their cause of Kid's violence and gun use? ;)

Don't worry about these guys here. Their is a secret legion of Troll hunters on most forums and those who are not in these legions are quick to accuse.

Their is a saying about forums and *******s, everyone has one... er something like that. :)

Bwahahaha, I KNEW someone would do that. Curious people you all are. I love it! :D


-Tasy

[Throwbot]

If we lose these channels, I'll forfeit the $50.0 deposit at Dish Depot and move to Direct TV

Just to be sure I called my brother in England which is 5 hours ahead of us and asked him to point his Sky TV (Good old Rupert) dish at 110 and he said.
My dear brother you really need to stop watching so much tellie and get a bloody life.

[scottchez]

I looked on the Hidden channels on Dish and my Retailers store and I check with my I.T. Source at dish.

The CBSLA and CBSDN and CBSLA feeds are still all set with the real channel. I they were about to black out the channels these special hiddne channels would be displaying the special call your local CBS as we could not agree on a contract.

I do no think anything is happening anytime soon. No changes.

There is also no Viacom special channel setup either. Dish always sets these channels up at least a day before pull something as it take a while for it to replicate through there server farm.

[Scott Greczkowski]

According to my contacts still at Dish Network HQ, they know nothing of these take downs, they just know that negoations are continuing and as long as they are talking the channels will remain online.

Guess we will find out at midnight.

[James Long]

Why must I have motives? Jeez... forget it.
You have motives because you are a human being. We ALL have them.

34 posts so far in the past two days? Perhaps you are looking for attention? :confused: It doesn't matter. Just keep your cool and post what you want without regard to what people think of you.

BTW: If I worked for E* I probably wouldn't be as verbose, but then that's my style. I'm glad you have your own style.

JL

[James Long]

If we lose these channels,
We will get them back. Nobody expects that these channels would be gone forever! (Well, at least no rational bodies ...)

JL

[scottchez]

My contact in the Admin office say Feb 7th for the extension.

They guy is right, only he has the wrong Month.

[Chris Walker]

According to my contacts still at Dish Network HQ, they know nothing of these take downs, they just know that negoations are continuing and as long as they are talking the channels will remain online.

Guess we will find out at midnight.

You mean "Tasy" could possibly be wrong? He is like Charlie Ergen's right-wing man after all. LMAO

[TonyM]

WJMN is a "satellite" of CBS O&O WFRV in Green Bay, providing CBS service to the Marquette, MI DMA.

But if Green Bay isnt even active on Dish, how can they take down Green Bay CBS & the satellite station (WJMN)??

Seems real fishy to me.........

[JohnH]

Within the last hour or so the following message was placed in readiness on transponder 18 of EchoStar 7 at 119w for the possible turnoff of the CBS O&O stations:

DISH Network sincerely regrets that this CBS channel, owned and operated by Viacom, is currently unavailable. Viacom has demanded rate increases which are unreasonable and would contribute to a higher monthly bill for you. We continually strive to control costs on behalf of our customers and are hopeful that this matter will be resolved quickly.

For more information, see
www.dishnetwork.com/programming or
call 888-200-0451.

[SParker]

if they have this for the CBS O&O then they must for the viacom stations. If they do go off then tomorrow morning I will order a 3 receiver package without hesitation. Even if DISH gets them back in a couple days they will lose me as a customer.

[Mark_AR]

I guess Viacom brass didn't see him playing poker last month on the chat

Was that before or AFTER playing musical chairs??? :grin:

[Mark Holtz]

I will say that if Dish drops these channels for a nanosecond, I will be screaming loudly at BOTH parties! Then I will be making sure that my Congressman (neighbor) and Senators know all about this crap about holding customer hostage.http://www.vote-smart.org/

[SlicerMDM]

Tasydra is actually Ashton Kuchar

and you've all been PUNK'D

:jump3: :new_Eyecr :joy:

[Sherlock]

9 minutes to go...?

[Crazy 1]

Who the heck is Ashton Kuchar ?

[ehren]

It's actually pronounced Ashton Kutcher. I feel lame I know this. Especially after seeing Just Married. Personally I think Tasydra is Jamie Kennedy and you've all been X'ed!

[James Long]

Troll's ruin things.
Yes, you do ... :nono2:

Tasydra has edited the first post of this thread, removing all traces of the channels this thread was about. I suppose that means he WANTS this thread to be all about him.

JL

[newsub]

It's actually pronounced Ashton Kutcher. I feel lame I know this. Especially after seeing Just Married. Personally I think Tasydra is Jamie Kennedy and you've all been X'ed!

nothing on mtv yet. If we lose mtv,etc charlie better take back that rate increase scheduled for next month. I can only image the people calling echostar to complain tomorrow when they go to watch mtv,nick,vh1,etc and see the "this channel is temporarily unavailable because of contract disputes" messages.

[bar1203]

Hey guys, he was right. the takedown was scheduled for tonight, but there is an extention until monday. so.... we'll see what happens then.

[Geronimo]

It is after midnight ET I still have the VIACOM Channels

[TON]

I've just found out that E* and Viacom inked another tempary agreement we will see if they can get it together by Monday now

[tonyquan]

the extension is actually for one week (until the 14th), according to the Associated Press here:

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/business/7657279.htm

the article confirms that the current contract would have expired today.

[Chris Blount]

Some of you need to take it easy when someone like Tasy posts. You never even gave him a chance and he was correct that the channels would have been taken down tonight.

If you want information to flow here at DBSTalk, shooting the messenger won't help.

[Kevin]

I apologize for my post questioning the credibility of the information Tasydra provided. I was shocked at the news, and the first thing that popped into my mind was "BS!"

Thank you for providing this insider information to us, please keep it coming!!!

[FTA Michael]

I'm conditionally impressed by that Miami Herald story, which adds that E* sued Viacom Wednesday for "illegally trying to force EchoStar to buy Viacom-owned MTV and other cable channels at unfair prices in exchange for the right to carry 18 CBS-owned stations in 15 big-city markets." That suit was put on hold while negotiations continue for another week.

WTG Tasy. :)

[ha ha]

http://news.google.com/news?q=echostar&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sa=N&scoring=d

TASY YOU ARE DA MAN!

[James Long]

I apologize for my post questioning the credibility of the information Tasydra provided. I was shocked at the news, and the first thing that popped into my mind was "BS!"

Thank you for providing this insider information to us, please keep it coming!!!
We need to get the first post in this thread restored. :( This is one moment that I wish someone would have quoted in full. As of now, the "insider information" is not available.

JL

[tonyquan]

We need to get the first post in this thread restored. :( This is one moment that I wish someone would have quoted in full. As of now, the "insider information" is not available.

JL

It's likely Tasydra was trying to post the list of affected channels, judging by the kinds of reponses I see (call signs of certain CBS stations, etc) The list of all Viacom owned properties, including CBS and UPN affliates, is here:

http://www.cjr.org/tools/owners/viacom.asp

As you can see, if the Viacom contract somehow did not get renewed, it would indeed have devastating impact, not only to locals, but some very popular networks.

[Sherlock]

Maybe folks could be just a tad bit patient and not be so quick to judge.

...or maybe not.

[cdru]

Maybe folks could be just a tad bit patient and not be so quick to judge.

...or maybe not.People were a bit harsh in their premature judgement to Tasy...but welcome to the internet. There are always trolls, flamers, and other itiots out there. I hope that Tasy doesn't leave for good just because people were saying it was untrue. If anything, he's probably laughing and chanting nana-nana-bobo stick your head in do-do at all the people who have egg on thier face.

However...even Tasy isn't immune to jumping to conclusions and profusing that something won't happen...and then it does. See his post here (http://www.dbstalk.com/showpost.php?p=182237&postcount=2).

[Randy_B]

Maybe folks could be just a tad bit patient and not be so quick to judge.

...or maybe not.
For the sat forum old timers, this thread reminds me of the intense crap that used to be heaped upon Young One whenever he/she posted insider rumors. Then there was the Dishplayer/WebTv programmer (Matt ?) that tried to communicate inside rumors and was personally trashed as well. So what if the info would have turned out be untrue. No harm, no foul. But I personnaly appreciate ALL inside rumors/memos. Even if they are not 100% accurate, they are always an interesting read.

[willy]

Exactly. No one could wait 5-6 hours to see if it was true... and then bash. They just went off so they could say "Told you so".

[greggg]

Here's the deal. Many newbies like myself do panic when they see this. But, and here is the big but, if this does turn out to be true, yes I will leave. I am an E*veteran for many years and remember when I first got it way back when my friend in LA called me an "eclectic" because E* was viewed as the niche intellectual satellite company. If they go back to that I am gone.

[BobMurdoch]

Some of you need to take it easy when someone like Tasy posts. You never even gave him a chance and he was correct that the channels would have been taken down tonight.

If you want information to flow here at DBSTalk, shooting the messenger won't help.

Once again, the trolls line up to kill a good thing.

His information turned out to be accurate in that there was a deadline that technically could have caused a switchoff of all the channels. Let's cut him some slack, let him post (according to Bill R he is risking a LOT being here), and take whatever we can get. I'm sure they will find a way to come to a deal as they BOTH need a deal to happen and can't afford to let an impasse occur.

The Super Bowl is coming. Viacom needs the eyeballs to satisfy the advertisers (YOU explain to Budweiser why 10,000,000 potential viewers won't be watching) and E* needs the channels to avoid being at a HUGE competitive disadvantage against Rupert who is just waiting for an opportunity to spank Charlie as payback. Not to mention how the churn would slam his stock as well.

[gpflepsen]

This satellite stuff is kind of like a fast food restaurant. If you just eat the food (or watch the TV) and not worry how it's prepared you will be more satisfied. Once you see behind the kitchen walls, your appetite may wane. Here we see the behind the scenes ugliness, don't let that taint your enjoyment of the DBS service.

[Nick]

What a bunch of worrywarts! :rolleyes:

Well, it's "tomorrow" where I live and I still have the Viacom channels.

As is frequently the case, it seems that such "inside" information from low-level "insiders" is usually flawed, biased and typically incorrect. In an organization, rumors and misinformation are stock-in-trade among the troops and any astute management well knows to keep its intentions secret from the peonage.

I also question "Tasydra's" motives in feeding this so-called "inside information" to us. An act of revenge, an attempt to gain his "15 minutes of fame" or a pathetic plea for attention from an audience predisposed to believe just about anything they hear?

I am skeptical.

[greggg]

Flepsen that's not bad. I have only posted for a short time but I have had E* for ages and never dealt with all the backroom stuff. All I knew was I paid my fee and watched. Now I am all bent out of shape about not getting the Superbowl, where if I wasn't posting I wouldn't have been the wiser and the show would have gone on in my house as usual. Good Post.

[BobMurdoch]

This satellite stuff is kind of like a fast food restaurant. If you just eat the food (or watch the TV) and not worry how it's prepared you will be more satisfied. Once you see behind the kitchen walls, your appetite may wane. Here we see the behind the scenes ugliness, don't let that taint your enjoyment of the DBS service.

Good point. I buy my steaks from the supermarket, but I don't NEED to know what happens before it hits styrofoam stage.

[gpflepsen]

What a bunch of worrywarts! :rolleyes:

Well, it's "tomorrow" where I live and I still have the Viacom channels.

As is frequently the case, it seems that such "inside" information from low-level "insiders" is usually flawed, biased and typically incorrect. In an organization, rumors and misinformation are stock-in-trade among the troops and any astute management well knows to keep its intentions secret from the peonage.

I also question "Tasydra's" motives in feeding this so-called "inside information" to us. An act of revenge, an attempt to gain his "15 minutes of fame" or a pathetic plea for attention from an audience predisposed to believe just about anything they hear?

I am skeptical.
Earth to Nick... Earth to Nick...

If you haven't read, tasydra was right. He had the scoop before any of us knew. Is that what really pisses folk off, someone new getting the scoop instead of the regulars?

[SlicerMDM]

And the REAL scoop was that, the "deadline" was last night. Not necessarily that "the channels WILL be turned off at midnight". I think this was the biggest confusion. Tasy even said in one of his later posts something to the effect that, he doubted they would be dropped.

edit:
Of course, now I can't find his post. :rolleyes:

[bytre]

echostar sues viacom over cbs. says it'd lose 1.6 million customers if it lost CBS.

http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/040108/media_viacom_echostar_1.html

[James Long]

Earth to Nick... Earth to Nick...
If you haven't read, tasydra was right. He had the scoop before any of us knew. Is that what really pisses folk off, someone new getting the scoop instead of the regulars?
You can be right and wrong at the same time. Yes, he had a clue that the extension ended January 7th (while others knew there was an extension, but did not report a date). Other reports (after Tasydra) had the extension through February 7th. Good info, but not nessisarily in good spirits.

Perhaps some of you may want to jump to the next post now.

Tasydra joined this forum two weeks ago on Christmas Eve and made no posts ... not one ... until two days ago.
His first post was January 6th, 2004, 08:53 PM, his last (so far) was Yesterday, 09:29 PM (EST). In those 24 1/2 hours he posted 35 posts.
His first post was about the new rates, and he said:
Yes, it's true, we are raising rates. I figure I may as well post changes here instead of letting people speculate/talk to idiot CSR's about it. Here we go:
OK, start with a bang calling CSR's idiots. I'd love to have the desk next to him at E* ... hey Tasy, why are you calling CSR idiots? They know as much as you!

That first thread was very verbose, spouting all he knew about the rate change and flipping into "expert mode" -- ask all questions and *I* will get the answers. And along the way getting ticked at people's questions:
For the love of god, :P .
Some new channels are coming, but we're not sure what they are. Period. We're working on it.

On the executive's resignation?
Not a chance in hell.
was his response - with a softened maybe by the end of the line. Another post
:D! This way, I'm right either way!
Actually not a bad conversation, rolling with the punches.

The next thread was this one, which he got fed up with and deleted the best content out of.

If everyone threw a tissy fit and left when confronted on the truth of their posts this would be a much smaller forum. This isn't evening tea with the ladies, this is the internet. While I agree with Chris that we should be kind to newbees, posting 35 attention drawing messages in 24 hrs is not a good thing. Constantly editing posts "because I was on crack"? Seems like he was truthful. :)

I hope Tasy feels comfortable to come back and participate. I hope that others in his position feel free to let us peek behind the curtain (without giving confidential information, of course). But I don't want the entire rest of the forum to have to be extra polite and walk on eggshells in regards to any ONE particular user. That makes sense with the 921 forum, which is INTENDED for E*'s use, but not elsewhere.

Welcome to the public internet.

JL

[BobMurdoch]

Guys, Guys. At this point he falls into one of two categories. He IS from E* and is sticking his neck out to feed us info, OR he is a fake who gets a kick out of all the attention.

At first, I was thinking the former after the price increase breakdown, then the latter after his "explosive" news. Regardless, he is adding to the discussion. We don't have confirmation yet that his pricing info was dead on, but it sounds reasonable and had a lot more detail than the usual trolls who like to throw grenades into the middle of the room. He picked up on the Viacom deadline when it was below all our radar screens.

At this point, I say let's give him the benefit of the doubt. If he's legit, he's a goldmine for info. If he's not, he'll still spark discussion. Let's not risk chasing him off if he IS legit.

All donations CHEERFULLY accepted, I always say......

OK, except for the usual old tired off topic rants...... those you can keep.

[Cyclone]

Speak of him in the past tense. After the reception he received here, I doubt we'll see him again.

[Mark Lamutt]

He's legit.

[RAD]

He's legit.
So Mark, do you know if he's coming back or did the overwhelming show of warmth that some extended to him scare him away????

[Mark Lamutt]

Working on it...

He's still here, just keeping quiet for now.

[reply]

We need to get the first post in this thread restored. :( This is one moment that I wish someone would have quoted in full. As of now, the "insider information" is not available.

JL

It seems that we maybe losing Viacom channels by TONIGHT, at midnight, 1/7/2004. If no agreement can be reached by then, we will loose a lot of channels.

Here is the list of channels that maybe shut off tonight:

BET
Nickalodeon
MTV
Nick At night
MTV2
NOGGIN
TV Land
VH1
CMT
Spike TV
Comedy Central
Flix
The Movie Channel
Sundance

Please note that Showtime is not in danger of being removed.

We may also loose the following CBS Stations in these cities:

KEYE Austin, TX
WJZ Baltimore, MD
WBZ Boston, MA
WBBM Chicago, IL
KTVT Dallas-Fort Worth, TX
KCNC Denver, CO
WWJ Detroit, MI
WFRV Green Bay, WI
WCBS NewYork, NY
WFOR Miami, FL
WCCO Minneapolis, MN
KYW Philadelphia, PA
KDKA Pittsburg, PA
KUTV Saly Lake City, UT
KPIX San Francisco, CA
KCBS Los Angeles, CA


We may loose the following UPN stations:

WUPA - Atlanta
WSBK - Boston
WWHO - Columbus
KTXA - Dallas
WKBD - Detriot
WNDY - Indianapolis
WBFS - Miami
WUPL - New Orleans
WGNT - Norfolk
KAUT - Oklahoma City
WPSG - Philadelphia
WNPA - Pittsburgh
WLWC - Providence
KMAX - Sacramento
KBHK - San Francisco
KSTW - Seattle
WTOG - Tampta
WTVX - West Palm Beach


Misc stations:

WJMN - Escanba, MI
KCAL - Los Angeles, CA
KUSG - Washington, UT

Remember that these are NOT 100%. There is a chance that the contract to carry these channels will be renewed at 11.59 PM. Just letting you all know, laters.


-Tasy

P.S. As for questions from that other thread, sorry, had no time to get that info today.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[James Long]

Thank you "Guest".

JL