CBS Affil Deal Ends Cash Payday

[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Allison Romano]
Under a new 10-year affiliation agreement, CBS will pay two Hearst-Argyle stations about $1 million each over two years in network compensation, but then the network will not pay out any more money for the remainder of the deal. The deals highlight what has becoming a source of major frustration for local TV station owners. Historically, the broadcast networks have paid affiliates to carry their programming and the fees were a major source of cash for TV stations. In recent years, however, the networks have scaled back those payments and, in some cases, eliminated them altogether. In fact, the cash flow is actually changing directions. It is now common for affiliates to pay fees to the networks to support billion-dollar sports rights deals. For example, ABC affiliates contribute to the network’s Monday Night Football deal.
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