US: WarnerMedia accuses DOJ of “collaborating” with Dish in HBO dispute

According to a report from CNBC, AT&T’s WarnerMedia has accused the US Department of Justice (DOJ) of “collaborating” with Dish Network in a high profile dispute over carrying HBO and Cinemax.

WarnerMedia’s HBO, known for its award winning TV series “Game of Thrones” and “The Sopranos,” went dark on Dish’s satellite television service on Thursday, November 1, after a disagreement over a new distribution deal.

“Dish’s proposals and actions made it clear they never intended to seriously negotiate an agreement,” said Simon Sutton, HBO president and chief revenue officer.

AT&T responded with their statement: “The Department of Justice collaborated closely with Dish in its unsuccessful lawsuit to block our merger,” a WarnerMedia spokesman said. “That collaboration continues to this day with Dish’s tactical decision to drop HBO not the other way around. DOJ failed to prove its claims about HBO at trial and then abandoned them on appeal.

“The merger created for AT&T immense power over consumers,” said Andy LeCuyer, DISH senior vice president of programming, in a prepared statement. “It seems AT&T is implementing a new strategy to shut off its recently acquired content from other distributors.”