Just part of negotiations, though
TORONTO – Within its most recent bills to some of its cable TV customers, Rogers Communications noted that as of January 1, 2019, their roster of channels will be a little lighter.
“From time to time, we adjust our channel lineups to reflect the changing viewership trends of our customers. As of January 1, 2019, Stingray Juicebox, Stingray Retro, Stingray Loud and Stingray Vibe, will no longer be in your TV package,” reads the note at the bottom of the bills.
All four music video channels are ones which Stingray purchased from Bell Media in 2016.
“Rogers’ decision to send out this notice to a small number of subscribers is (in our view) part of Rogers ongoing negotiation with us towards the conclusion of a long-term blanket agreement covering a suite of Stingray services,” said Stingray’s senior vice-president of marketing and communications Mathieu Peloquin in an email to Cartt.ca.
“The music video channels in question are currently offered by Rogers only a-la-carte to a small number of subscribers – and only in standard definition. As part of our negotiations, we anticipate that these same channels will soon be distributed on Rogers’ broadly distributed tiers – and in high definition. We are currently making significant inroads with these same channels on Bell, Telus, Vidéotron and Shaw. We expect that our distribution of these music video channels (and our new French offerings) will shortly reach approximately eight million subscribers across the BDUs in Canada.”
As for Rogers, the company’s response certainly was not equivocal saying the channels are gone forever. “We’re focused on offering our customers the content they want and delivering great value. We are constantly reviewing our channel lineups to make sure they resonate with our customers,” said a spokesperson in an email.
