Your Favorite TV Channels Could Soon Be Gone if Viacom and Charter Deal Expires

Imagine turning on your TV and realizing that dozens of your favorite channels had suddenly disappeared. You keep flicking the remote, and all you see as you switch the channels is a dark screen; no MTV, no BET, no Comedy Central or VH1. They were just there yesterday, but now they appear to no longer exist.

Sounds scary, right?

It's a frightening scenario that could very well become a reality for millions of cable subscribers if Viacom and Charter Communications, the parent company of Spectrum, don't reach an agreement for their carriage deal on Sunday. The nation's leading companies' current deal is set to expire on Sunday, and more than 16.5 million customers could be affected by the blackout if Viacom and Charter can't settle their dispute over channel pricing.

The dispute came following Charter's decision to move a number of Viacom networks like Comedy Central, BET, MTV, VH1 Nickelodeon and Nick Jr. to the higher tier of cable subscriptions. Currently customers on Spectrum plans are able to watch 23 channels under Viacom's umbrella, which makes up about 20 percent of all cable viewership, without an additional charge under a basic cable subscription. The changes would cause subscribers to see a substantial uptick in prices, which Viacom hasn't approved.

"Viacom has made a series of very attractive offers to Charter that are consistent with terms we've recently reached with other large cable operators. Importantly, these offers would enable Charter to lower Spectrum subscribers' bills, while also giving them more access to shows across Nickelodeon, BET, MTV, Comedy Central and other Viacom networks," Viacom said in a statement on Tuesday.

The cable company added Charter "continues to insist on unreasonable and extreme terms" that could result in customers seeing a "disruption in their service."

Charter responded to Viacom with a statement of their own claiming that the company has tried to negotiate a new deal in "good faith" and "have offered a good price" on an extended carriage deal.

Viacom has already started to notify customers of a potential blackout if a deal isn't reached by deadline.

If the cable companies can't come to terms and the 23 networks go dark on Sunday, Viacom could see a 16 percent decline of its affiliate revenue, equating to a loss of some $760 million dollars, according to Deadline.