Dispute with TEGNA

It's Tegna that's price gouging for something that's FREE over the air with an antenna 

Who you should be complaining to is Tegna.  It was Tegna that pulled the channel(s) in the first place because Tegna could have left the channel(s) on during negotiations but pulled the feed to use us, customers, to feed their demand for more money from Directv to carry their channel(s) feed(s).  If you feel so strongly call Tegna and tell them how you feel about them pulling the channel(s). You are right that this is ridiculous and that they need to stop the price gouging.

@Mswinkle 

Your comment should be directed at Tegna. They are the one requesting the rate hike, just like 3 years ago. TV providers like DirecTV try to minimize that cost as best they can. If their operating costs go up than so do our bills, simple economics at that.

Realize that companies cannot give the service away. They have to remain profitable. To expect that they should continuously lose money just so you can your locals is greed as well.

You want locals, plug in a regular antenna and get the free broadcast. They are not obligated to you. Pay TV is luxury entertainment so doesn't have to lose money just because you cannot afford it.

Time you figured it out and understand the reality for once.

If I remember correctly there was a $5 Direct TV increase around Jan. 2023 and another $5 increase around Oct. 2023. I don't know what those two increases were for but it wasn't due to Tegna.

I shop around each year for things like auto insurance.  If I can find insurance for less and still get the same coverage and quality then I move on.  I'm adding Direct TV to that list.  I don't care who/what is causing the increase for my auto insurance anymore than I care what causes the increase for Direct TV.

The best price wins as long as the service is the same or better.  I'm not getting the Direct TV services/channels I'm paying for NOW, including the charge for unlimited DVR that I record ABC with.

If anyone wants to suggest another service I'm all ears.....

EDIT: OTA isn't the answer either unless you're blessed with clear line of sight and short enough distances.

Tegna, stop price gouging scrooge!

I will deal without your channel!! 

I can stream anyyhing you have to offer, if not I will buy an antenna for locat channels. Screw you scrooge!!

They will never see this on here.

@BBrower  The annual price increase is to cover last years price increases mostly from Nexstar, Tegna when settled will be part of next years price increase.

@BBrower 

DirecTV has a annual price adjustment. Notification is in December with new rates in January (this year happened in November so a couple months early). That is how it has been for the last several years.

At least one of the was in part because of Tegna. They did this 3 years ago. When a carriage negotiation completes that is a factor in the next price adjustment.

Local affiliate owners like Tegna are raising the rates each time. So going with another provider doesn't save you as none of them are immune. This is just DirecTV's current turn with Tegna.

Fine you don't care that Tegna (like others) keeps raising the rates. Just be prepared wherever you go the rates will raise again and keep doing so.

Tegna's negotiation does not affect your DVR charge as that has unaffected by whatever channels are available. DVR is a flat service for all customers regardless of programming package. Also as long as you are getting a single local channel than you do get what you are paying for as there is never a guarantee of any specific channel always being there.

This situation is a big reason why I recommend a regular antenna. Those are unaffected by carriage negotiations as is whatever is in range. Might even include sub-channels that aren't carried.

So for those that can use antenna for the free broadcast. For others, watch something else in your many other channels while being patient for the negotiation to complete. Hopefully it is reasonable short like last time and they will not pull a long holdout like Nexstar did to their viewers.

@HectorHaley1 

This is the DirecTV forum. As your vent is aimed directly at Tegna I would see about going to their site and sending feedback.

@Juniper - "Local affiliate owners like Tegna are raising the rates each time. So going with another provider doesn't save you as none of them are immune. This is just DirecTV's current turn with Tegna." - Doesn't invalidate the shop for the best price and service just like auto insurance. Its possible that another service is/was better at negotiations for Tegna/others and/or was better at keeping costs down. It could also work out that Direct TV is the best price/service. Homework will tell. None of us are strangers to companies slowly raising rates and treating us like the frog who doesn't notice as the water in the pot goes slowly from warm to boiling.  I worked for a huge corporation that raised every customer's rate every two year anniversary by just a little...if the customer called and complained the rate was set back to the original price.  I'm not saying that is what Direct TV is doing but what I am saying is "when the rate goes up for whatever reason start shopping around".

We'll have to agree to disagree on the DVR .... My wife watches a great deal of ABC with the DVR so she can fly past the commercials which is why I paid for the unlimited DVR.  She's not only not flying past the commercials...she's not even getting to watch ABC.

I tried the OTA antenna approach and unfortunately we're not getting many channels clearly and ABC is one of them. As for waiting patiently and watching something else....that's not what I'm paying for.

The beauty of streaming services, Roku and smart TVs is that its simple and quick to find another.

Anyone want to suggest a Direct TV replacement?  Hopefully one with a free trial.

Could be your new providers contract with Tegna, Nextstar hasn't come up yet which maybe why their price is lower, so you will go through this again.  Streaming service that offer live channels have this problem.

@BBrower 

Too many think they will never go through this by switching to another provider. So I mentioned so you had the full picture.

Paying for DVR is just that. You are not paying for any specific channel. You pay that amount as long as you have a single DVR, not matter what channel selection you have. So the DVR service fee is based on what equipment you have, not the channels. No provider changes those fees based on level of package or what channels you get, that is solely because of equipment. You cannot choose to turn it on or off either. Only way to remove is to not have a DVR in the first place.

It is unfortunate that regular antenna doesn't work for you. Just mentioning as some people thought the transition to digital locals was turning off the free broadcast completely so any who come across the thread know those transmissions still exist. If it did work then I suspect you would have no pay TV at all as seems locals are what really matter for you. If that is the case then I would consider going all the way down to the Family plan to get DirecTV's cheapest price as all packages have the same access to locals.

I just hope that Tegna keeps this relatively short like they did 3 years ago. Personally I would rather go without a local for a short time and not feed into the channel to encourage the industry to keep caving to those higher rates instead of switching providers every time a carriage agreement comes up. But that is just my perspective.

totally agree with above. I wonder how the sponsors/advertising companys feel about the thosands of views being blocked from seeing their ads !!!!!!!!??!!! Seems to be yet another reason to TRY to justify rate increass........... by blaming eachother, and the customers end up paying either way. The only win, win, is for the two in the (Edited per community guidelines) contest, not "us".

How this affects advertising companies is a good question. I wouldn't be surprised if their agreement has a clause regarding carriage negotiations to further protect the channel owner.

Each company is working in their best interest. As the more DirecTV pays means the more we as customers pay, that is why I side against the network owner (Tegna this time) as their winning out means higher cost for me.

Wish those who have their lives set around their locals and cannot stand being without them for any length of time would be the only ones to pay for those increases from the locals. Instead all customers are affected, even if they don't live in that area, because they are spread out over all of us as locals do not get itemized for their regions like RSNs or taxes.

To each their own....I've paid for this month.  I won't be paying for another month without the local channels.  In the meantime I'll be looking into alternatives. As I said before....hopefully I can find a free trial or even better, another service with the local channels and DVR that is less expensive NOW.

EDIT: Xfinity raised my rates.....so I looked into alternatives and found Direct TV was less expensive and moved my service to Direct TV. Shopping around before because of rates worked and now shopping around for rates AND local channels might as well. Ya never know....it just might turn out in the future that Direct TV is the best deal once the all the channels are back.