Sky viewers are set to lose 12 TV channels including TLC, Eurosport and Animal Planet in just six days' time amid a fierce row with Discovery over a new deal.
US media giant Discovery Communications has threatened to withdraw its channels from Sky from next Wednesday over claims that it 'refuses to pay a fair price'.
Sky – which says it has been 'overpaying Discovery for years' - is not renewing its contract, meaning dozens of hit shows will disappear from its programming.
Discovery Communications has threatened to withdraw its channels from Sky over claims that it 'refuses to pay a fair price' Discovery claimed Sky paid more for its shows ten years ago, and added that it has raised investment in original content by about a third since 2010.
Shows that are set to be lost include Cake Boss and Say Yes to the Dress on TLC, Gold Rush and Idris
Discovery – which has spent £1billion on pan-European rights to the Olympics – is now threatening a blackout of Discovery channels from Sky's platform.
Discovery Communications Inc's UK unit said yesterday that negotiations with Sky Plc for a new carriage deal have reached an impasse over a price dispute.
The firm added that all 12 channels in its portfolio would disappear from Sky and Now TV after January 31 if the dispute is not resolved, affecting 5.5million people.
But Sky said the price expectations for the Discovery portfolio are 'completely unrealistic' and it will not renew its contract on the terms offered by the firm.
A Discovery spokesman said:
'Sky and Now TV subscribers in the UK and Ireland could soon lose all of Discovery's channels and programmes. Every week, more than five and a half million people watch one of our shows on Sky.
What Sky customers are going to lose
The following Discovery channels will vanish from Sky from February 1:
Discovery HD
Discovery History
Discovery Home & Healt
Discovery Science
Discovery Shed
Discovery Turbo
DMAX
Eurosport1
Eurosport2
Investigation Discovery
Quest
TLC
Animal Planet
The following shows on these channels will also be lost on Sky:
- Gold Rush
- Fast N' Loud
- Idris Elba: Fighter
- Ed Stafford
- Cake Boss
- Say Yes to the Dress
- Tattoo Girls
- Bondi Vet
- River Monsters
- Tanked
- World Superbikes
- US and Australian Open
'Our fans are amongst the most loyal in TV and we have invested significantly to bring world class channels and high quality programmes to the UK for nearly 30 years.
'We are committed to finding a solution with Sky in order to keep bringing you the channels you love.'
Discovery also claimed Sky paid more for its shows ten years ago, and added that it has raised investment in original content by about a third since 2010.
The row comes after Sky faced an 83 per cent increase in the cost of its Premier League football rights this season after a huge fight with BT.
The company also has a contract said to be worth £275million over five years with US network HBO for shows such as Game of Thrones and Westworld.
A Sky spokesman said:
'Despite our best efforts to reach a sensible agreement, we, like many other platforms and broadcasters across Europe, have found the price expectations for the Discovery portfolio to be completely unrealistic.
'Discovery's portfolio of channels includes many which are linear-only where viewing is falling.
'Sky has a strong track record of understanding the value of the content we acquire on behalf of our customers, and as a result we've taken the decision not to renew this contract on the terms offered.
'We have been overpaying Discovery for years and are not going to anymore. We will now move to redeploy the same amount of money into content we know our customers value.'
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