TV stations look at retransmission money as the golden goose and as they see viewership drop and advertisers spending less, they continue to go back to the cable and satellite companies demanding more money to carry their signal.

It is straight up greed.

One FTVLive reader gives their take as to how stations going dark can be stopped.

Here is their take:

“Since local tv stations are licensed by the US Government to serve in the public interest, retrans fights should never be allowed to reach the point of a blackout. When station groups and carriers reach an impass, the dispute should automatically go to a federal mediator to decide the price. Going dark should not be permitted based on the idea of being licensed in the public interest. Problem solved.”