The problems between Viacom and Time Warner Cable Inc have been ironed out. The problems are linked to the threat by Viacom to pull 19 of its cable channels from the Time Warner cable channel. The channels that were supposed to be pulled out include Nickelodeon, MTV, VH-1 and Comedy Central. The threatened pullout was supposed to happen right after the two-year contract between the two media outfits have expired. If the pullout pushed thru, then it can be expected that a huge backlash may happen since viewers will definitely miss ‘SpongeBob SquarePants’ and ‘Dora the Explorer’. These two shows are considered to be very popular and huge draws. The new agreement happened minutes into 2009 as Viacom has granted the extension that will allow for the two media outfits to continue talking. With the extension of the deal, this then effectively avoided the non-appearance of Viacom’s programming that can be seen in 13.3 million homes that are being served by the Time Warner Cable Inc. The details of the deal will be finalized in the coming days.

After getting the news that they will no longer get the services of MTV and Nickelodeon, the angry and irate consumers contacted the Time Warner Cable call centers and said that they wanted these shows back. With the agreement, the management of the Time Warner Cable has expressed its pleasure. Viacom executives also showed gladness after reaching the said deal. In order to appeal to its consumers and to the other parties involved, Viacom has purchased newspaper advertisements that showed the tearful Dora the Explorer and an on-screen crawl on the channels was placed to tell the viewers about the programming blackout. Ads like these made by Viacom worked and these motivated viewers to call up Time Warner.

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