Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - New York Gov. Kathy Hochul calls on Charter, the parent company of Spectrum, to issue refunds to customers as its dispute with Disney lingers.
Cable customers are currently without ESPN, which will air "Monday Night Football" and other key sports programming heading into the fall.
"It's simple: if you pay your cable bill, you deserve to get the services you pay for," said Gov. Hochul on Friday. "An ongoing corporate dispute is forcing customers to miss some of the highest profile televised events of the year – the least these companies can do is provide a refund. Disney and Charter must continue negotiating in good faith to ensure affordability and consumer choice. I also urge Disney to continue providing its programming under the terms of the prior agreement while negotiations continue. My Administration is committed to consumer protections for all New Yorkers."
Hochul is urging the companies to resolve this dispute as soon as possible.
"As the contract negotiations continue, more customers are becoming aware of the lapse in certain programming and understandably have questions about refunds," says Hochul.
She adds New Yorkers have lost access to channels that broadcast a variety of different programming, including some of the highest-profile televised events of the year: The U.S. Open, the Bills playing the Jets on "Monday Night Football", and family-friendly shows.
Hochul says her directive to the Department of Public Service is to reduce confusion and ensure that all customers are refunded. DPS sent a letter to Charter on Friday as part of their efforts to hold the company accountable and swiftly deliver refunds to customers who have been affected by the lapse in Disney-owned programming.
Charter subscribers can tune to WKBW-TV, Channel 7 for Monday's Bills-Jets game.
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