Millions May Miss Oscars Due To Cablevision-ABC Feud

HuffPo.com:

With a midnight deadline looming on a threat to pull the plug on Cablevision's 3.1 million customers in New York a day before the Academy Awards, there was still no word Saturday night on whether ABC's parent company and the cable operator have reached a decision.

Cablevision Systems Corp. spokesman Jim Maiella (may-EL'-ah) said no update was available on negotiations between the cable operator and the Walt Disney Co. as of about 9 p.m. A Disney spokeswoman didn't immediately respond to a message requesting comment.

Disney is seeking an additional $40 million a year in new fees, according to Cablevision spokesman Charles Schueler. He said the company currently pays more than $200 million a year to Disney.

Disney said Cablevision charges customers $18 per month for basic broadcast signals, but does not pass on any payment for ABC to Disney.

Of course, normal folks know that there's two sides to every story and I could care less about missing the Oscars (too damn long). But here's what I do know: Cablevision has been getting in quite a bit of feuds lately with a variety of networks, not just ABC. And more importantly Cablevision is run by James Dolan, the inept owner of the New York Knicks (no playoff wins in over 10 years) and the New York Rangers (no appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals in 16 years). The latter is the reason why after almost a decade of Cablevision, I switched to Verizon today.