NEW YORK — A month-long standoff that prevented millions of viewers from watching hit shows such as “Under the Dome” and “NCIS” — and threatened to interfere with the start of football season — ended this week after Time Warner Cable and CBS resolved a programming dispute.
The deal covers more than 3 million homes in New York, Dallas and Los Angeles that hadn’t been able to receive programming from CBS or CBS-owned channels since Aug. 2. Broadcasting resumed Monday evening on the East Coast.
The companies had been fighting over how much Time Warner would pay for programming on CBS and other channels, including Showtime Networks, CBS Sports Network and the Smithsonian channel. Terms of the deal were not immediately disclosed.
The disagreement came at a touchy time for networks and cable companies as more and more Americans are turning to alternative ways to watch TV, including online or on Internet-connected TVs. Added pressure was on the two companies to reach an agreement with CBS holding deals to broadcast NFL and Southeastern Conference football, as well as the start of the U.S. Open tennis tournament.
