Over the last few days, some DirecTV and DIRECTV NOW customers have noticed that they had lost local affiliates from their service. This is the result of a dispute between AT&T and local station owners Northwest Broadcasting, Deerfield Media, Roberts Media, Second Generation of Iowa, GoCom Media, MPS Media, Howard Stirk Holding, and Waitt Broadcasting.
While all of the affiliates were lost from DirecTV, only a subset of the channels were affected on DIRECTV NOW because many of them were not yet carried by the streaming service. This is the fourth major carriage dispute for AT&T in as many months — the service recently renegotiated deals with Viacom and A+E, while dropping NFL Network.
It is unlikely that the channels will disappear forever, but it is not unheard for local channel disputes to last multiple months. Last year, PlayStation Vue and Sinclair Media Group were in an extended battle that saw many locals dropped from the service, only to return a few months later.
Channels Impacted By The Dispute
| Market | Affiliate | Station Group |
|---|---|---|
| Alexandria, LA | KLAX | Northwest Broadcasting |
| Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX | KBTV | Deerfield Media |
| Bend, OR | KMTR | Roberts Media |
| Binghamton, NY | WICZ, WBPN | Northwest Broadcasting |
| Cedar Rapids-Waterloo-Iowa City-Dubuque, IA | KFXA | Second Generation of Iowa |
| Champaign-Springfield-Decatur, IL | WSRP | GoCom Media of Illinois |
| Chattanooga, TN | WFLI | MPS Media |
| Cincinnati, OH | WSTR | Deerfield Media |
| Eugene, OR | KMTR | Roberts Media |
| Eureka, CA | KVIQ, KIEM | Northwest Broadcasting |
| Flint-Saginaw-Bay City, MI | WEYI | Howard Stirk Holdings |
| Gainesville, FL | WNBW | MPS Media |
| Idaho Falls-Pocatello, ID | KPVI | Northwest Broadcasting |
| Medford-Klamath Falls, OR | KMVU, KFBI | Northwest Broadcasting |
| Mobile, AL | WPMI, WJTC | Deerfield Media |
| Rochester, NY | WHAM | Deerfield Media |
| San Antonio, TX | KMYS | Deerfield Media |
| Sioux City, IA | KMEG | Waitt Broadcasting |
| Spokane, WA | KAYU | Northwest Brodcasting |
| Syracuse, NY | WSYT, WNYS | Northwest Broadcasting |
| Tallahassee, FL-Thomasville, GA | WTLF | MPS Media |
| Twin Falls, ID | KPVI | Northwest Broadcasting |
| Wilkes-Barre-Scranton-Hazelton, PA | WSWB | MPS Media |
| Yakima-Pasco-Richland-Kennewick, WA | KFFX | Northwest Broadcasting |
| Yuma, AZ-El Centro, CA | KSWT, KYMA | Northwest Broadcasting |