Category Archives: Cable
Dish Subscribers Will Have Access to Breaking Bad Premiere
At the end of last month, Dish Network dropped AMC from its service. However, all is not lost for fans of AMC’s Breaking Bad. The network is making the season 5 premiere of Breaking Bad available via a live stream at www.amctv.com/breakingbad4dish. Dish customers will be able to register for access to the live stream beginning today at 3pm. The live stream will begin this Sunday at 10pm, which is the same time Breaking Bad will begin its fifth season on AMC.
Viacom Stops Free Streaming of Its Shows
The fight between Viacom and DirecTV has officially affected everyone. Since DirecTV decided to direct their customers who want to watch Viacom shows to their corresponding websites, Viacom has decided to pull full episodes of The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, SpongeBob Squarepants, iCarly, Jersey Shore, Teen Mom, and more. However, full episodes do remain on Hulu.
Viacom Channels Go Dark on DirecTV
Last night at midnight, 20 million DirecTV subscribers lost 17 different Viacom channels. The channels lost include Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, MTV, and more.
DirecTV and Viacom conflict of carriage fees continues. DirecTV says Viacom wants a 30 percent increase in fees, which comes out to an additional $1 billion. Viacom’s Vice President for Corporate Communications Mark Jafar wrote on his company’s blog that the increase amounts to “a couple pennies per day, per subscriber”, that DirecTV has been paying “the same bargain rate” for Viacom programming for 7 years, and that Viacom “accounts for 20% of all viewing on DirecTV.”
USA Today reports that DirecTV subscribers who tune into Viacom channels will now see a “mix” channel of programming from other networks, such as Bravo, FX, and TBS. DirecTV is also making eight Encore movie channels, which are usually part of premium packages, available for free to all of its customers until July 31.
For more on DirecTV’s side of the argument, check out directvpromise. More on Viacom’s view can be found on the company’s blog and whendirecttvdrops.
Viacom Channels Could Go Dark On DirecTV
DirecTV is currently fighting with Viacom over their carriage agreements. If a settlement is not reached by tonight, 20 million DirecTV subscribers will lose 26 (including SD and HD) Viacom channels.
The 17 networks affected (without their corresponding HD channels) are:
- Palladia
- Centric
- Tr3s
- CMT
- Logo
- NickToons
- VH1 Classic
- TeenNick
- Nick Jr.
- Nick@Nite
- Spike
- BET
- VH1
- TV Land
- Comedy Central
- Nickelodeon
- MTV
For DirecTV’s side of the argument, check out directvpromise. Viacom’s view can be found on the company’s blog and whendirecttvdrops.
Episodes Review: Does Sean Forgive Matt?
The second season of Episodes has been superb so far. Sunday’s show was only the second episode. Considering how good the series has been, it’s probably not slowing down. The main arc of this season is about repairing damages and it’s working very well. The main issue is simple in that it is very difficult for everyone to move past the turmoil of the first season. The biggest struggle is not for the civility of Sean and Beverly Lincoln, but for Matt LeBlanc to win Sean over. Everything came together extremely well.
The episode opens with Sean and Morning Randolph in bed together. Randolph is leaving and Sean seems confused. He feels that their sleeping together deserves more attention. He asked if they should talk about what happened and Randolph simply said “I had fun.” Sean was confused again, and he asks, “That’s it?’ This really highlighted the emotional states of the characters well. Sean isn’t used to the dynamic of the one night stand. After all, he’s been married for several years. Sex that doesn’t mean much is new territory for him. That being said, the subtexts of the scene were executed very well. There were a few moments of silence between the two as if to communicate an uncertainty that they are both getting comfortable with. In this sense, there is still a feeling of emptiness. He’s separated from Beverly and he isn’t cheating. Out of familiarity, he almost seems to crave for the situation to be more complicated than it actually is. Instead, Randolph has the right idea, simply telling Sean she would see him tomorrow.
Fourth of July Marathons
Fourth of July Marathons are ubiquitous with the holiday, which is why every network appears to have one.
Here is a long, yet still incomplete list of marathons sorted alphabetically by show.
America’s Funniest Home Videos (11am-11pm, ABC Family)
America’s Got Talent (9am-5pm, Oxygen)
American Greed (11am-6pm, CNBC)
Cajun Pawn Stars (7pm-3am, History)
Criminal Minds (8am-5pm, A&E)
Dancing With the Stars (8am-2pm, GSN)
Anderson Cooper is Gay
Anderson Cooper has officially confirmed what the internet already suspected: he’s gay. Cooper came out in an email sent to Andrew Sullivan of The Daily Beast.
In the email, he wrote,
“Recently, however, I’ve begun to consider whether the unintended outcomes of maintaining my privacy outweigh personal and professional principle. It’s become clear to me that by remaining silent on certain aspects of my personal life for so long, I have given some the mistaken impression that I am trying to hide something — something that makes me uncomfortable, ashamed or even afraid. This is distressing because it is simply not true.”
The full email can be read at The Daily Beast’s website.
Watch The Newsroom on YouTube
If you missed the premiere of The Newsroom and want to catch it before tonight’s episode at 10pm, you can watch the full first episode for free on YouTube.
First Season Recap of Episodes
The Showtime original comedy series Episodes is returning for a second season tonight and there’s a lot to look forward to. The first season was excellent. This series follows husband and wife comedy writing team, Sean and Beverly Lincoln. The couple comes to Los Angeles to remake their hit British sitcom Lyman’s Boys. The problem is they lose control of the show along the way. The network retools the premise without their permission.
Assuming the star of their British show will continue to perform the role in America, the Lincolns offer him the part. He is asked to audition anyway in an American accent and fails miserably. With no star lined up, the network goes a completely different direction by getting Matt LeBlanc to play the lead. Instead of following a headmaster at an elite prep school like the original, the U.S. version follows a smooth-talking hockey coach and is retitled Pucks!. The pilot gets worse every day. This show has done a great job of satirizing how difficult it is to work with a television network, but that isn’t what makes the show. It’s the characters’ chemistry.
Epix Announces Comedy Unbound
Comedian Jim Norton
The premium cable channel EPIX has announced a new monthly comedy showcase called Comedy Unbound. The show gives EPIX alumni a platform to perform new specials. The showcase kicks off with Jim Norton: Please Be Offended premiering on tonight. Each special will air on the last weekend of every month.
CEO Mark Greenberg said that the network has had great success with their original comedy specials since its launch and that the network is committed to featuring the most talented comedians today. He wants them to feel free to test boundaries as they please.
Comedian Jim Norton said, “My experience with EPIX has been unlike any other network. I’ve worked closely with the EPIX team throughout the entire process, including promotion, which is an incredibly rare luxury for a performer.” Other comedians feel the same way.
Comedy Unbound will also feature Kevin Smith, Austrailian stand-up Jim Jefferies, and Ben Stiller. Sherri Shephard, Eddie Griffin, and Lewis Black will also perform specials. The show will air new showcases on the last weekend of every month.
Wait! What's A Dial? 