Comcast customers could lose WTNH

Comcast customers in Connecticut could lose access to WTNH later this month if the cable television provider can’t reach a new retransmission agreement with the station’s Texas-based corporate parent.

Texas-based Nexstar Media Group has begun running message “crawls” across the bottom of the screen during some of its prime time programming on WTNH, urging viewers to contact Comcast. WTNH is one of 200 stations that

Nexstar owns in 116 media markets across the country.

Here in Connecticut, Nexstar also owns WCTX, which is an affiliate of the MyNetworkTV. WTNH is an ABC affiliate.

The current retransmission agreement between Comcast and Nexstar is scheduled to expire at the end of the month, according to Kristin Roberts, a Connecticut-based spokeswoman with the cable provider.

Roberts downplayed the chances of Comcast losing the right to retransmit WTNH and WCTX programming. “Comcast’s agreements with broadcasters expire from time to time,” she said. “We are currently negotiating with Nexstar to continue carrying the signals of its stations. So long as Nexstar reciprocates our good faith negotiations, we believe we could reach an agreement.”

A spokeswoman for WTNH’s programming department referred all Hearst Connecticut Media inquiries regarding the negotiations to Gary Weitman, Nexstar’s Texasbased chief communications officer. Weitman did not respond to multiple inquiries made by Hearst Connecticut Media on Tuesday.

But in a message on the WTNH homepage, the negotiations were described in more pointed terms.

“Despite our tireless efforts, Comcast has refused our fair offer and is making negotiations very difficult,” the message said in part. “Our offer is fair and now they may hold you the subscriber hostage. It’s not right.”

Rich Hanley, an associate professor of journalism at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, said “that kind of death grip rhetoric isn’t beneficial to either party,” in the negotiations nor to viewers.

“All disputes between cable operators and networks do harm to consumers in that they create uncertainty about where viewers can find their favorite programming,” Hanley said. “Local affiliates need to recognize that cable companies can continue to raise rates because they run the risk of losing viewers to streaming services.

It’s so easy now to cut the cord now.”

At the same time, he said, money from retransmission fees paid to the local stations by cable companies “is really a critical part of the local affiliates’ revenue.”

Comcast is one of the state’s largest cable television service provider with 14 service territories covering more than 80 towns, according to data from the Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority.