Media General has provided Dish with an extension of its retransmission-consent agreement into September.
The parties faced an 11:59 p.m. deadline on June 30 for their current retrans deal, but that pact has been extended for 90 days, according to the station owner. As such, Dish subscribers will continue to be able to view programming on Media General stations in 17 markets as the parties continue to try and negotiate a new agreement.
"As we continue to work toward an equitable agreement with Dish, we have chosen to protect our viewers from a loss of signal by extending our current contract," said Jim Conschafter, vice president, broadcast markets at Media General, in a statement. "Our highly-rated television stations are important assets to our local communities. This extension ensures that viewers may continue to watch their local news and lifestyle programs as well as top-rated primetime programming as we continue to do everything we can to negotiate a fair, market-based agreement. We appreciate our viewers' patience and feedback. We have the best interests of our viewers in mind as we work hard to reach a successful outcome during this period."
Dish officials could not be reached for comment by press time on Friday afternoon.
