Alpine Communications’ General Manager has issued the following statement:

Currently, Alpine Communications is in negotiations with AMC Networks concerning renewal of a contract for networks such as AMC, WE tv and IFC, which expires on December 31, 2015.  AMC Networks is demanding a rate increase that is 163% more for the same exact networks, and are using the strength of AMC to push for higher rates and more subscribers for their less-popular channels, including BBC America, BBC World and Sundance Channel.  While we plan to maintain carriage of these networks, in an effort to be open about our discussions, we notified customers that AMC Networks may pull their signals.

Our website, TVOnMySide.com, will keep our community up to date on our discussions with AMC Networks, and we welcome our customers to join in the conversation at this site.

“Programming fees account for the bulk of our customers’ monthly bills in Elkader, Guttenberg, Garnavillo, Elgin, and Marquette.  Our goal is to protect our customers from significant programming fee increases,” he added. AMC Networks has demanded a rate increase that is 163% higher than last year’s fees for the same channels you get today, or they may pull them from your line-up.

“We will keep the community informed of our progress in these discussions,” said Chris Hopp

You may have seen a message from AMC Networks about possibly losing networks such as AMC, WE tv and IFC, and we’re glad you called for more information. We are currently in discussions with AMC Networks, who is demanding a rate increase that is 163% more for the same exact networks, and they are using the strength of AMC to push for higher rates and more subscribers for their less-popular channels, including BBC America, BBC World and Sundance Channel.

Significant network fee increases directly impact your bill and we’re on your side to keep these fees as low as possible. To get the facts and be informed, go to TVOnMySide.com.