If you’ve been trying to watch ESPN, the Disney Channel, or other Disney-owned networks, you may be frustrated that those channels are no longer available (if you’re a Spectrum customer, anyway).

Although Disney has talked about how things might be changing for its TV networks, including ESPN, this is not the reason for the blackout of these networks. Instead, Disney is in the middle of a dispute with Charter Communications (who owns the Spectrum TV service). This dispute has left MILLIONS of people without access to Disney-owned channels. Now, Disney has commented on the situation.

The dispute between Charter and Disney is over contract fees: the two companies have not yet come to an agreement, so Charter has removed Disney-owned networks from its service. This includes ESPN, ABC, ESPN, FX, and the Disney Channel.

Earlier this week, Charter CEO Chris Winfrey said, “This is not a typical carriage dispute” and mentioned that they’ve been pushing for a deal with Disney that could give its customers “access to Disney’s ad-supported streaming services like Disney+ and ESPN+ at no additional cost.”

Now, Disney has released a statement where it notes that “disputes between cable companies and content providers aren’t new.” However, Disney points out that consumers face a serious issue losing ESPN as Labor Day weekend is one of the biggest sports weekends of the year. Disney also pointed out the popularity of ESPN with Charter consumers.

“Although Charter claims that they value their customers,” Disney wrote, “they declined Disney’s offer to extend negotiations which would have kept Disney-owned networks up for consumers in the middle of perennial programming events like the US Open and college football.”

Disney went on to state: “Even though Charter also claims to value Disney’s direct-to-consumer services, the cable company is demanding these different services for free—as they have stated publicly—which does not make economic sense. Moreover, it does not make sense for consumers who desire the flexibility to have our streaming platforms as standalone services.”

Disney also said that Labor Day weekend should be a relaxing holiday, but “Charter has made it a stressful one for its customers—many of whom have been experiencing up to three-hour hold times to cancel their cable subscription after Disney’s networks went dark.”

Disney did stress that it values its relationship with those who view its networks and “is hopeful Charter is ready to have more conversations that will restore access to its content to Spectrum customers as quickly as possible.”

“Consumers should also know that they have many options today and can choose from competing pay TV providers that offer Disney’s entire portfolio of networks and programming, as well as TV streaming services that can be accessed by downloading an app or over a broadband connection.”

We’ll keep an eye on the situation and keep you updated, so stay tuned to DFB for more.

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What do you think of the dispute between Disney and Charter Communications? Let us know in the comments!

The post NEWS: Disney Comments on “Stressful” Cable Dispute With Charter/Spectrum first appeared on the disney food blog.