Disney executives have responded to allegations made by DirecTV executives in the contract dispute that led to ESPN, ABC and other Disney-owned channels disappearing from the satellite TV provider’s platform as of September 1.

On September 3, DirecTV executives made bold statements about how Disney’s actions have hurt consumers and driven viewership declines for linear channels like ESPN, ABC, Disney Channel, Freeform, FX and National Geographic. DirecTV has been scathing in its public comments, suggesting that Disney is flexing its corporate muscle at a time when it is battling anticompetitive allegations in a lawsuit that has delayed the launch of Venu, Mouse’s sports streaming joint venture with Warner Bros. Discovery and Fox Corp.

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On Wednesday, Disney released a statement denouncing DirecTV as an attempt to “distort” the reality of the pay-TV market. The two sides have been arguing for months over the contract renewal. Even though the power outage has occurred, the two sides continue to try to reach a compromise.

“DirecTV continues to misrepresent the facts regarding our ongoing negotiations. Our priority is to reach a market-friendly agreement that meets the needs of DirecTV and its customers while recognizing the value of our premium content and the significant investment required to create and acquire it. We believe there is a path to a fair and flexible agreement that strikes this critical balance and works for all parties, especially the consumer,” Disney said in a statement attributed to Disney Entertainment presidents Dana Walden and Alan Bergman and ESPN CEO Jimmy Pitaro.

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Disney also claimed that, based on its analysis of Nielsen data, approximately 90% of DirecTV households viewed some form of Disney-owned content on the broadcaster’s platform in each month of 2023 — a high ratio that makes Disney content “the best performing” on DirecTV, according to Mouse.

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