ABC and its affilates aren't available in the New Orleans area. LSU airs on one of these channels tonight and I can't watch the game.

Hello @RSargent, we fully understand how these negotiations have affected our customers, and we want to assure you we are working hard to resolve this situation. We appreciate you sticking by us during this dispute. We are sending you a direct message to review all your options to lower your bill. Maria, DIRECTV Community Specialist

Read the TOS channels and programing are subject to change at anytime.  The content providers send the same programing to all TV providers.  The FCC will not allow any TV provider to supply any content from outside of the DMA(Designated Marketing Area) you are in. 

Get an antenna 

@RSargent 

It is not "ABC and its affiliates", but Nexstar owned stations. Obviously one of those stations is an affiliate of ABC. So the issue is not with ABC itself, but your local affiliate stations which are owned by Nexstar.

No price reduction is obligated. As long as you receive a single local channel, you are getting what you pay for. DirecTV does not change the package price per area based on locals received, but have them the same price for everyone. Only if you got no locals at all would you get a no-locals version fo the package which is cheaper (don't know if there are any areas still like that or just people still on those grandfathered packages from before locals were available where they lived).

It would be expected that those at Nexstar are hoping that by continuing to withhold the feed that it would upset us customers even more to leverage us to convincing DirecTV to cave to their higher rates. Just be aware that the more DirecTV agrees to pay the more our bills go up to help offset it.

This is not a breach of contract as you believe. Nothing guarantees any channel will always be there. Package includes locals in general, but no specific one is obligated. Terms of Service (ToS) verify that programming may change at any time, as such there is no breach.

https://www.directv.com/legal/directv-residential-customer-agreement/

Our Programming Changes. Many factors affect the availability, cost and quality of programming and may influence the decision to raise prices and the amount of any increase. These include, among others, programming and other costs, consumer demand, market and shareholder expectations, and changing business conditions. Accordingly, we reserve the unrestricted right to change, rearrange, add or delete our programming packages, the selections in those packages, our prices, technologies used to deliver the Service, and any other Service we offer, at any time. 

@RSargent 

Oh didn't you know, according to the DTV fanboys  on this site, DTV is doing you a huge favor by not having  your local station available. If I have to pay $11.00 a month to have Peacock so I can now watch my local NBC affiliate, why would I be upset if I had to pay DTV and extra $5.00 a month to have it?

Do the freaking math. 

@Juniper 

So what are Nexstars rates now? What would they be if DTV caved? I would imagine less than what I'm paying to have Peacock ($11.99 a month). 

Let's see if DTV raised their rates $4.99 a month and I am now paying $11.99 a month, that would save me $7.00 a month over what I'm being forced  to pay now in order to get my local affiliate. 

DTV has been raising the rate about $10 per month the past few years so that is sightly less.

I will not pay Peacock for an additional service and I would prefer not to pay anything more for local channels (whether I receive them or not).

Nexstar can be gone forever and I shall move on. I go to pay TV for what my locals don't provide.

My response is the same no matter the TV provider. I am not a Nexstar (or any local affiliate owner) "fanboy".

@Juniper 

Do you not see the irony, DTV has forced 1000's of their subscribers to pay a higher rate to get their local affiliates, from a 3rd party provider, than they more than likely would have paid DTV had they reached an agreement with Nextstar and had to raise their rates.

They did this all in the name of "saving their customers money", when in fact many of their loyal customers are being forced (if they want to see their local affiliates) to pay a higher rate then what DTV would have had to ask.

With all due respects, if you don't give a darn about the locals, then there's really no point to you offering your input on the matter. This has more to do with those who are affected by this dispute and absolutely nothing to do with folks like you who couldn't care  less. 

Perhaps you should find your way over to the " Folks that don't care if they have their local stations" thread. 

@4CDAD Guess what locals are FREE over the air with an antenna why don't you get one??? Yes I know that some people can't get over the air signals and that's unfortunate but I have NEVER  relied on pay TV for locals. Why don't you ask next star why they and other network owners CHARGE pay TV providers to be retransmitted when the networks are FREE ota. 

DTV hasn't "forced" anyone to go to another provider and it is Nextstar that removed the feed when they could have allowed DTV and Dish to continue to provide the channels while they talk.

@shannon02 

DTV could have kept them until OCT 21st while negotiations were on going. They chose not to. No they are not physically forcing anyone to do anything, but if  you felt that's what I was saying then there's no point in continuing this conversation. 

@4CDAD 

This does affect me. The higher rates those channel owners get means my bill goes up that much more. So like anyone else I am free to weigh in on the situation. Threads are not restricted to just those who are pro-Nexstar.

DirecTV's operating costs go up then so do our bills (hence the annual price adjustment). They cannot just absorb the entirety of it every time from every channel. So saving us money is saving them money, regardless of the spin put on it.

By Federal regulations, DirecTV and other TV providers have to get the locals from the affiliate owner (3rd party) when the station is not owned by the Network (ABC, Fox, etc.) directly. They are restricted that they may only provide locals that are from your Designated Market Area (DMA). That situation was lobbied by the locals to Congress to keep that control.

Everything I have stated has been an honest perspective. And though I do not agree with you, I have at least done so politely. Saying "with all due respect" has no value when you insult with "simple minded" insults and the like. Let us at least keep discussion with a sense of maturity.

And a big view I have is why should TV providers and us customers (by way of our monthly bill) have to keep paying more (or practically anything at all) for channels that are free over our regular airways.

If I could opt out of Nexstar affiliate stations and just let the people who cannot seem to function without them pay for them, I would. But as it stands, all customers end up funding for every local (whether received or not, desired or not) as they are not itemized or cost adjusted for where you live.

@Juniper 

no you said you don't care about the local affiliates. I guess you care enough to lecture us all on how lucky we are DTV pulled the plug early when the could have kept them until Oct 21st. You keep conveniently ignoring that part. Why???