Newsmax and DirecTV Kiss and Make Up, Finalize New Distribution Deal
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- Christopher RuddyAmerican journalist
Newsmax can call off their Republican allies threatening government intervention against DirecTV: The right-wing cable outlet and the pay-TV provider have finalized a new deal to carry the network after months of public beefing.
“Newsmax recognizes and appreciates that DirecTV clearly supports diverse voices, including conservative ones,” Newsmax CEO Christopher Ruddy said in a press release announcing the new deal. “As a standalone company, DirecTV helped give Newsmax its start nearly a decade ago as it continues to do with upcoming news networks, which is why we are pleased to reach a mutually beneficial agreement... over the next several years.”
DirecTV CEO Bill Morrow similarly gushed: “This resolution with Newsmax, resolving an all-too-common carriage dispute, underscores our dedication to delivering a wide array of programming and perspectives to our customers. Through our persistent negotiations, we reached a resolution under mutually-agreeable business terms allowing us to deliver the conservative news network at the right value – a reflection of the free market at work.”
According to the press release, the pro-Trump cable channel will return to DirecTV’s service on March 23. The network was pulled after the previous agreement had expired on January 25, kicking off an ugly two-month battle that featured Newsmax and its GOP supporters accusing DirecTV and its corporate partners of colluding with Democrats to silence conservative speech.
While Newsmax maintained that the pay-TV provider was practicing “political discrimination” by “de-platforming” the network and refusing to pay it a “fair and equitable” license fee, DirecTV insisted this was merely a standard business dispute over costs. Specifically, the satellite carrier said it didn’t feel it should pay Newsmax increased fees for content the right-wing network provides free elsewhere.
“This deal marks the end of a months-long carriage dispute that stemmed from financial differences with Newsmax and is ending with an agreement that comes at no additional cost to our customers,” a DirecTV representative told The Daily Beast on Wednesday. “It has always been our desire to provide Newsmax, and never about limiting conservative voices, a view that Newsmax now recognizes and accepts.”
The representative added: “The terms of the renewal—which includes a multi-year distribution deal—were not disclosed.”
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