DirecTV, ABC Family settle dispute

ABC Family will keep its slot on DirecTV Inc. after The Walt Disney Co. and
the direct-broadcast satellite operator reached a new distribution deal
Wednesday that included renewing ABC Family's carriage deal.

DirecTV had threatened to pull the channel off its lineup March 31, when the
current deal expires.

The new agreement also covers SoapNet distribution, some retransmission of
ABC stations and pay-per-view programming.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

Earlier, DirecTV said Disney was looking for a 35 percent increase over ABC
Family's subscriber fees from 2002, which Kagan World Media estimated at an
average of 17 cents per subscriber.