Spat

EchoStar [DISH] subs got another reprieve Fri when a federal judge granted a 10-day temporary restraining order that keeps Viacom [VIA] from pulling signals for its cable nets and O&O CBS stations from DISH Net. It’s a case that could set precedents for retrans consent. The judge failed to grant the DBS provider’s request for a preliminary injunction to keep Viacom from pulling programming, so unless an accommodation is reached, DISH subs could lose Viacom programming March 8. Talks essentially have broken down between the two; unless drastic headway is made, this could be in the courts for some time. Both sides claimed victory Fri. The next court date would be May 7, when a scheduling conference would take place. An initial temporary restraining order was issued Jan 16, with the judge eventually extending that order until March 3, alleviating fears that subs would have missed the Super Bowl.