DirecTV customers could lose 26 channels at midnight

SALT LAKE CITY — About 20 million DirecTV customers could lose 26 channels at 12 a.m. Wednesday if the company can't make a deal with Viacom, according to The Consumerist.

The 26 channels customers could at least temporarily lose include MTV, Nickelodeon and Comedy Central, according to the article.

"DirecTV refuses to consider a fair deal that recognizes the value of Viacom programming," Viacom said in a statement.

DirecTV says Viacom wants a 30 percent jump in fees it charges DirecTV for carrying its networks, according to the article. The price jump would end up costing "more than a billion dollars extra."

"If Viacom wants so much more, then we believe your family needs to be able to choose which Viacom networks you want to pay to keep and which ones you don't," DirecTV wrote, according to the article.

The contract between Viacom and DirecTV was set to expire on June 30 but was extended through , according to The Consumerist.

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