Why KCRG-TV9 is temporarily unavailable on DIRECTV

As some may now be aware, KCRG-TV9's signal is no longer available on DIRECTV. Our hope is that DIRECTV can work with us to have the KCRG-TV9 signal restored to their lineup soon. As always, those subscribers to that service may continue to receive our signal with an antenna, for free.

Our viewers have had many questions about this situation, including: Why would KCRG-TV9 charge DIRECTV (or any other provider) to carry programming that is freely available over the air?

The short answer is that cable and satellite providers such as DIRECTV charge subscribers a fee and make a profit distributing our programming. We ask only that we are compensated at a fair market rate for our high-quality and popular content when it is packaged as part of their product.

In order to be able to invest as we do to cover local news, provide live local event coverage on 9.2 and continue our efforts and support of local social and non-profit programs, we simply must be fairly compensated for providing our high quality and popular service to cable and satellite providers. Besides that, it's only fair.

Imagine you plant an apple tree. You feed and water and nurture it, and offer the apples freely to anyone who wants to come to pick them for themselves. Your apples become so popular, in fact, a store owner wants to pick your apples to sell to his customers and make a profit by doing so. Would you give that person all the apples he desired without cost? No. The scenario above is exactly what we have here.

Another important consideration is that while KCRG-TV9 previously had received payments from ABC - our national affiliate - for broadcasting their national lineup, we must now pay ABC for the right to provide their content, at considerable cost. To ask us to then turn around and provide that content to a for-profit company without appropriate compensation is simply unfair.

It's not fair to us, and it's not fair to all the other providers that have negotiated in good faith with us on this issue. The head scratcher for us is why DIRECTV does not seem to understand this, when so many other local cable providers in the KCRG-TV9 coverage area do.

In the past year, we reached agreements with 51 other providers without any interruption in service, and with significantly less debate. We reached out to DIRECTV in August of last year and have been in discussions with them since October.

DIRECTV company pays significantly larger sums than we are discussing to purchase programming that has significantly fewer viewers than our news, weather and sports programming, and that of ABC. So why haven't we been able to reach agreement?

Perhaps it's because DIRECTV isn't local and doesn't understand our area. Perhaps it's because they view us as a small market unworthy of much of their time. We don't know.

What we do know is that we will continue to work to minimize the impact on their customers and our viewers without compromising our ability to employ local folks and invest in our local community.

' Chris Edwards is vice president of sales and marketing for The Gazette Company, the parent company of KCRG-TV9 and The Gazette. Comments: (319) 398-8213 or questions@kcrg.com