A CBS executive said on Thursday that negotiations with Time Warner Cable have "gone badly off course" and accused the cable company of trying to negotiate terms that would limit CBS's ability to do business with such online TV services as Netflix and Amazon.com.
The comments, made at a New York City hearing on Thursday, came on the seventh day of a blackout that has deprived more than 3 million Time Warner Cable customers from watching CBS stations in large U.S. markets including New York and Los Angeles.
Despite the war of words, both companies confirmed on Thursday that they are negotiating again.
If the two companies fail to strike an agreement by Sunday, Time Warner Cable customers in the affected cities will miss golf's PGA Championship, the final tournament of the four major golf events this year.
Rory Whelan, Time Warner Cable's regional vice president of government relations, in testimony at the same hearing, accused CBS of "coercive bundling practices" and said CBS's blocking of Time Warner Cable's Internet content exhibits conduct "beyond the pale." Testimony from both executives was provided to Reuters by the companies.