DirecTV drops Comcast's G4 in latest tussle between media giants

DirecTV has pulled the plug on G4, the Comcast-owned channel that caters to young men with a mix of programming about video games and pretty girls.

The move was not unexpected. Back in September DirecTV gave Comcast notice that it was dropping the channel when their current deal expired at the end of the month. Comcast, the nation's largest cable operator, was able to persuade DirecTV to extend the contract through October in the hopes of reaching a new pact.

But DirecTV, which has about 19 million subscribers, thinks interest in G4 is too small to justify carriage. The satellite broadcaster's new Chief Executive Mike White has indicated that he wants to find a way to cut programming costs and to reevaluate what channels are essential and what ones can be cut loose.

Comcast has countered that G4's ratings have been on the rise and that the company has offered DirecTV the same deal it has had to carry the network for the last few years. G4 had cost DirecTV about five cents per subscriber, per month, according to people familiar with the agreement.

This is not the first time DirecTV and Comcast have feuded over a channel. In 2009, DirecTV stopped carrying Versus, Comcast's sports channel and that dispute lasted seven months and included name-calling between the two media giants.

Given that Comcast, the nation's No. 1 cable operator, is in the process of trying to acquire programming giant NBC Universal -- a deal that rival distributors such as DirecTV have concerns about -- one might wonder if the situation involving G4 is an isolated incident. Comcast has a sports channel in Philadelphia that it does not offer satellite distributors. There are also certain conditions that rival media companies want put on the Comcast-NBC merger. Perhaps DirecTV really doesn't think G4 is worth five cents a subscriber or perhaps there is a bigger agenda at play here.

For now, DirecTV has not said what it will replace G4 with and viewers are created with a message telling them the channel has moved.

-- Joe Flint

Related:

Comcast and DirecTV not playing games with G4

For the record: This post was updated to reflect what DirecTV is telling subscribers about G4 and that Comcast's Philadelphia sports channel is offered to rival cable and telco distributors but not satellite broadcasters such as Dish and DirecTV. 

 

 

Comments

[mike]

This is trully a dark day. Damn you Direct TV people for pulling the plug on G4 channel. What gives you the right to decide weather or not we as the subscriber can have the G4 on your guides. I might just have to chat with the President of the United States. About this. Last time this happened it was when I was with Dishnet work. For too many years the you corperate types do what you think is best for us. And you don't even chat with us the subscribers who love G4 and your Sat service.

[Tom]

Just watched a show called "Wired for sex". All the "sex" was blurred out. Why would anyone watch such a program if they would be offended by a bare breast or other body part?

[Elias]

Wow just read about this take down. That is brutal! As a dyed in the wool Star Wars tattoo having raising my kids on The Simpson's geek for life I couldn't swing not having my AOTS. I'm lucky to be a DISH customer (and employee) and still get all my chewy G4 goodness (though I do miss Olivia Munn!.

[ApolloFC]

Good move. The only watchable shows aired were/are Xplay, AOTS, & Sasuke. Xplay is basically a video podcast to me, I find AOTS stupid, and they've ruined Sasuke/Kunoichi with their pointless additional commentary (no one cares about playboy models that much k?) I still watch the original version of Sasuke...subtitles aren't needed to enjoy something... so I'm quite ok with this move.