THE Starz cable network last Friday said it demanded that distributor Altice USA Inc stop making what Starz called false statements after the two sides failed to reach a contract renewal.
Starz, which is owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, said in a statement that Altice was advising its customers that Starz did not engage in extension discussions with Altice and pulled its signal from the cable company on January 1.
“This is patently false,” Starz said it wrote in a cease-and-desist letter to Altice. Starz said Altice “unilaterally pulled down the Starz signal,” without providing any notice, in the midst of active negotiations.
Altice spokeswoman Lisa Anselmo said the contents of the Starz letter “were completely false and without merit.”
The pay TV distributor announced on Monday it would no longer carry Starz’ channels to its 3.4 million Optimum and SuddenLink TV customers, after the two failed to reach an agreement on pricing.
