The feud between the Triangle's cable TV provider and Walt Disney, the owner of ESPN, ABC 11 and other channels, is reaching a climax.
Time Warner Cable and Disney officials have been in negotiations for months, but they haven't agreed to terms of a new contract. If they don't reach a deal by midnight Wednesday, when their current contract expires, the dispute could lead to blackouts for millions of cable subscribers across the country - just in time for football season and the new fall TV lineup.
Time Warner Cable has about 2.1 million customers in the Carolinas, including 830,000 in the region from Raleigh to the coast.
In The News & Observer on Sunday, Time Warner Cable ran a full-page ad blaming Disney for the blackout threat and directing customers to a website: www.rolloverorgettough.com . It argues that networks such as ESPN are responsible for driving up the cost of cable and that the cable company is protecting customers.
Disney has its own website, www.ihavechoices.com, which contends that the fight is Time Warner Cable's fault. The site explains how viewers can get their programming online or through other pay-TV providers.
Such private contract disputes have become much more heated in recent years and often get resolved at the last minute amid public posturing.
"We've made significant progress in just the last day or so," Keith Poston, Time Warner Cable's spokesman in the Triangle, said in a phone interview on Sunday. "Right now both companies are very focused on getting a deal done before Wednesday."
Broadcasters such as Disney want to collect new fees from cable providers to boost revenue and offset weaker advertising sales.
Time Warner Cable doesn't want to pay more for programming that is increasingly available for free online.
The talks involve transmission rights to Disney's cable channels, such as ESPN, ABC Family and Disney Channel, as well as the 10 TV stations the media conglomerate owns across the country, including WTVD, Raleigh's ABC 11.
"We're very focused on reaching a fair agreement with Time Warner Cable, and we will not comment on the specifics of the negotiations," ESPN wrote in a statement.
Time Warner Cable officials also are in negotiations with Capitol Broadcasting, the Raleigh-based owner of WRAL and Fox 50.
Their contract expired at the end of June, but the companies have extended it several times as discussions continue.
"We don't believe there will be an interruption there," Poston said. "The best thing for the viewers is that there is no programming interruption."
