“Walking Dead” channel threatens to kill some Horry County access unless cable fees are hiked
Fans of the popular TV show “The Walking Dead” may miss the rest of this season’s zombie drama unless independent cable operators, including Horry Telephone Cooperative, reach an agreement with the AMC channel which wants to raise prices.
The deadline for the new contract between numerous cable operators in South Carolina and North Carolina is New Year’s Eve, but a statement from HTC on Monday indicates that discussions would continue even if they reach a stalemate.
“We remain hopeful that a reasonable offer can be reached before the current contract expires at midnight on December 31,” said Mike Hagg, HTC chief executive officer, in a statement.“If a new agreement is not reached, AMC Networks could force us to remove AMC, WE, and their other networks from our lineup.”
Hagg said network programming fees account for the vast majority of monthly cable bills, and that “unfair demands like those made by AMC are the reason why cable TV prices are out of control.”
“We can’t continue to accept unrealistic and unfair demands of programmers like AMC,” Hagg said.“We have no problem paying AMC a price that is fair, but an increase that amounts to almost 200 percent is harmful to our members, and we can’t agree to it.”
Nicole Hyman, senior marketing coordinator for HTC, said contract rules prevent them from disclosing specific price increase information, but she said that AMC is asking for more than 200 percent over current rates in Horry County.
If an agreement is not reached before the deadline, Hyman said cable operators will continue negotiations, and viewers can get progress updates on this website.
We have no problem paying AMC a price that is fair, but an increase that amounts to almost 200 percent is harmful to our members, and we can’t agree to it.
Mike Hagg
HTC chief executive officer“The Walking Dead” and “Breaking Bad” spinoff “Better Call Saul” are not scheduled to air until February.
If negotiations ultimately fail and HTC is forced to remove the channels, cable subscribers will begin seeing message crawls across the television screen advising them of the changes.
However, if the cable companies and AMC agree to a rate hike, subscribers won’t see a change in their bill until April, when rates are annually adjusted, Hyman said.
Local independent cable operators also object to AMC’s demands that every channel it owns be carried along with AMC, which includes IFC, Sundance TV, WE, BBC World News and BBC America which airs the popular cult classic program “Dr. Who.” HTC already carries BBC America, WE, and IFC, but does not include BBC World News and Sundance in its lineup.
AMC said in a statement that they recognize challenges faced by independent cable operators in serving smaller markets and “will continue to endeavor to do everything we can to make them successful.”
Hudson can be reached at 843-444-1765 Twitter: @AudreyHudson
This story was originally published December 28, 2015 at 1:21 PM with the headline "“Walking Dead” channel threatens to kill some Horry County access unless cable fees are hiked."