The disagreement between Scripps and Comcast is over, meaning Comcast subscribers can once again watch WXYZ-TV and WYMD-TV on their cable service uninterrupted.
“We’re pleased to have reached a new agreement with the E.W. Scripps Company and thank our customers for their understanding during the negotiations,” a Comcast spokesperson said in a statement Tuesday. “We will continue providing credits to eligible customers for the period when the channels were temporarily unavailable.”
WXYZ Detroit also addressed the end of the dispute on social media Tuesday.
“Our parent company, Scripps, has reached an agreement with Comcast, and WXYZ & WYMD are back on Xfinity for subscribers today,” a message posted to WXYZ’s social media read. “We appreciate our viewers’ patience and look forward to serving them once again on the Xfinity service with local news, weather, live sports and entertainment programming.”
The dispute goes back to late March when Xfinity subscribers were hit with a “this channel is unavailable,” message on their screens when trying to watch Channels 7 or 20 locally.
It was part of a Comcast Xfinity blackout across 19 Scripps markets, after Comcast’s agreement with Scripps expired at 5:59 p.m. Eastern time on Tuesday, March 31.
Among other inconveniences, the 35-day blackout affected viewers trying to watch Sunday’s Game 7 of the first round of the NBA playoffs between the Pistons and the Magic.
agraham@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Scripps, Comcast reach agreement to end WXYZ-TV blackout
Reporting by Adam Graham, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
