Broadcasters Seek Cable-TV Fees

Television-network owners News Corp. and CBS Corp. are pushing cable operators to pay monthly fees to carry their broadcast TV stations. Traditionally, over-the-air broadcast networks haven't received cash fees from cable-TV providers. But broadcasters, struggling through an advertising slump, see a potential new stream of revenue by following the path of cable channels, which supplement ad sales with billions of dollars in fees paid by the companies that pipe news and entertainment content into homes. News Corp., which owns the Fox network, is asking cable operator Time Warner Cable Inc. for cash payments of as much as $1 per household per month, according to people familiar with the matter. The battle between News Corp. and Time Warner Cable is notable because it pits one of the most-watched U.S. networks against one of the biggest TV distributors. Their current contract expires at the end of this year, say people familiar with the matter. If an agreement isn't reached by then, News Corp. could opt to pull the Fox TV stations it owns from Time Warner Cable's lineup. That would affect millions of households in markets including New York and Los Angeles.