News

Attention DISH customers

DEDHAM, Mass. — Boston 25 has been removed from the service of DISH Network after the satellite provider refused to agree to a fair deal for a new retransmission consent agreement with Cox Media Group. If you are currently affected by DISH’s decision to deprive you of important local news, football, and programming during these critical times, make your voice heard! Call DISH today at 1-800-333-3474 and demand that they get your local programming back.

DISH has been stalling negotiations for months while it pursued a misguided legal action against CMG. Despite multiple rulings rejecting DISH’s legal maneuvers, DISH still refused to do a fair deal and has now blacked out 13 CMG stations, including Boston 25.

As the court highlighted, CMG cannot prevent DISH from retransmitting the stations. They go dark only if DISH so chooses. CMG is hopeful that DISH will abandon its well-worn path of blacking out TV stations to the detriment of viewers in favor of meaningful negotiations that bear a mutually beneficial deal for all parties.

CMG said: “During these times of uncertainty, it is more important than ever that our viewers know their trusted local stations are there for them, providing the news and information they need to make decisions for their families. CMG stations take pride in being resources for our communities, and we will fight to continue to fulfill this responsibility.”

Boston 25 programming remains available for viewers to access over the air, and this dispute will not affect the vast majority of viewers, who are customers of other video providers. It should be noted that Boston 25 has reached agreements with virtually every other major cable and satellite distributor.

Call DISH at 1-800-333-3474 and tell them to restore Boston 25/WFXT so you can watch your favorite football teams this weekend. 


HOW TO WATCH BOSTON 25 NEWS:

You can always watch Boston 25 News for free on our mobile livestream, our Boston 25 Now mobile app, and our Boston 25 Smart TV app available on Roku, Amazon Firestick, and AppleTV. You can also watch Boston 25 over the air with an antenna.

HOW TO WATCH BOSTON 25 NEWS ON ROKU:

HOW TO WATCH BOSTON 25 NEWS ON AMAZON FIRE TV STICK:


1. What is happening?

By law, Boston 25 must negotiate carriage agreements with satellite companies like DISH. Usually, these deals are reached without any disruption to your service. In fact, our company has negotiated dozens of agreements with only the rarest of disruptions. Unfortunately, so far, DISH has refused to agree to a fair market deal with CMG for the Boston 25′s programming and services that customers value. DISH has been relying on a series of legal maneuvers and actions to stall negotiations. Despite losing a recent court ruling DISH is still refusing. Because Boston 25 has yet to secure a deal with DISH, you will lose live access to the shows, sports and local news on Boston 25, which you rely on and are paying for. We are hopeful DISH will abandon its well-worn path of blacking out TV stations and come to the negotiating table with CMG.

2. As a DISH customer, what can I do to continue to watch my favorite shows on Boston 25?

The best thing viewers can do is Call DISH at 1-800-333-3474. Tell DISH that you pay them a lot of money to watch your favorite shows on Boston 25, including [popular shows, local news, etc].

3. Why does Boston 25 charge cable and satellite operators a fee to carry their programming?

Despite what you may have heard, this dispute is not about Boston 25 seeking large fees. Boston 25 is among the highest-rated channels on DISH. Producing and broadcasting high rated, top-quality programming is very expensive. We invest millions of dollars in our local news, weather, emergency programming and entertainment content. To keep doing that, we need a fair deal from DISH and all our distributors. We have carriage agreements with every other major cable and satellite company that is carrying Boston 25 and are seeking to be treated fairly by DISH.

5. Won’t rates to subscribers go up if DISH has to pay Boston 25?

Whether rates go up depends on decisions made by DISH. Like all cable and satellite companies, DISH is already charging you to receive Boston 25 as part of your monthly bill. We do not control how much DISH pays to other channels or how it manages its business. DISH should stop over-paying for channels its customers watch less and prioritize channels like Boston 25, that its subscribers turn to every day. We have and will continue to negotiate with DISH in good faith in an effort to successfully complete a deal with them.

6. Since DISH stopped carrying Boston 25, will I get a refund on my bill?

It is up to DISH to resolve such questions with its customers. But you could call DISH at 1-800-333-3474 about a refund and let them know you are no longer getting what you pay for – your favorite newscasts and programming from Boston 25.

7. Is there anything the public can do to help make sure that Boston 25 is back on DISH?

The best way for you to encourage a resolution is to register your support of how important it is for them to carry Boston 25 by calling DISH at 800-333-3474. You pay DISH a lot of money. It will listen to your voices.

You can also view Boston 25 Over the Air with an over the air antenna available at retail. Or you can contact and easily switch to any number of other providers that are committed to providing you with all the programming you watch every day:

Regardless, we will continue to work hard to try and get a successful outcome to this negotiation so that you regain live access to your favorite programming, but the ball remains in DISH’s court to step-up like its competitors and peers have done.