TV stations I'm pretty sure have been receiving some revenue from cable and satellite providers for carrying their content for some time now. Just because it is free over an antenna doesn't mean they should provide it free to them. After all, that is a big selling point for cable and sat that they provide local network programming.
However, I am also sure that at the end of these contracts, local stations are asking for increased revenue to provide their "free" programming. I think it is ironic how the content providers (cable channels), not just local stations, always make the cable and satellite companies seem like the "bad guys" in these negotiations, threatening to drop our poor station for no reason. Dish has had the reputation for a long time of playing hardball in these negotiations in an effort to keep programming costs down. While it is inconvenient and a hassle to miss getting a station while this process goes on, I kind of admire Dish for trying to keep our costs down. I'm glad I got an antenna for emergency backup a while back, and still have a Dish receiver that has an input for it for recording purposes.
