Comcast, DIRECTV drop Altitude Sports in contract dispute

A 15-year partnership dissolved late Saturday as the long-running deal between Altitude Sports and two of its major distributors, Comcast and DIRECTV, expired.

Despite recent talks between the two sides, there was no deal in place as of Sunday. One person familiar with negotiations described the two sides as “not close.”

Late last week Altitude Sports, the Kroenke-owned regional sports network of the Nuggets, Avalanche and Rapids, among others, was dropped by DISH Network.

There remains the possibility, however remote, that the split could jeopardize fans’ ability to watch the preseason and season openers of their respective teams.

The Avalanche open its preseason Sept. 17 and open the regular season two weeks later on Oct. 3. The Nuggets open their preseason Oct. 8.

As of Sunday morning, DIRECTV customers read this message when turning to Altitude:

“Altitude unfortunately forced AT&T to take this channel down. AT&T made a fair offer to keep the channel up, but Altitude rejected it. Customers have made clear they want more choice over the channels they pay to receive in their home.”

The message continued that their “goal is to offer” Nuggets, Avalanche and Rapids games but won’t do “bad deals on behalf of our customers.”

Kenny Miller, the executive vice president of Altitude, insisted that what Comcast and DIRECTV were offering wasn’t a sustainable business.

“I don’t know if it’s confident, it’s hopeful,” Miller said of the possibility of reaching a deal before the respective season openers. “I keep going back to the fact that they’re regional sports network owners and they know what production costs and rights