EchoStar Settles in TV Station Battle

I reported last week that DISH Network's parent company EchoStar recently lost a court ruling that would force them to stop providing local stations to some of their rural customers. However, EchoStar announced on Monday that it will pay $100 million to settle the nine-year long legal battle.

The company is settling with the ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox Affiliate Associations to allow it to continue broadcasting network channels including those that do not originate in a subscriber's home region. These are known as distant network channels. As part of the settlement, EchoStar agreed to requalify its distant network subscribers and terminate transmission of those channels later this year to the "small percentage" of customers who are not eligible to receive them today. EchoStar also agreed to expand its local network channel service to 175 markets, from 165, by the end of 2006.

The decision to settle follows EchoStar's failure last week to get an emergency stay from the U.S. Supreme Court to freeze a federal appeals court order barring it from rebroadcasting any of the networks' shows. The settlement did not include the 25 stations owned and operated by Fox Network, which late last week declined EchoStar's offer and pulled out of the discussions.

EchoStar cautioned in their statement that the settlement is contingent on confirmation by the U.S. District Court in Florida.