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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Police investigating expensive bike theft in east Medford ... BLM fee complicates Bandon golf course deal ... Assailant will spend no more time in jail ... Police investigating expensive bike theft in east Medford ... BLM fee complicates Bandon golf course deal ... Assailant will spend no more time in jail ... JACKSON COUNTY Comcast deal dropped along with Pac-12 Charter will continue to provide cable TV Comment By Damian Mann Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Posted Apr. 28, 2015 at 5:10 PM Updated Apr 28, 2015 at 6:08 PM By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Posted Apr. 28, 2015 at 5:10 PM Updated Apr 28, 2015 at 6:08 PM » Social News Cable television customers in most of the Rogue Valley won’t be watching Pac-12 college games anytime soon. A deal between Comcast and Charter Communications, which provides cable service to most of the county, has gone off the rails, along with the possibility of the popular Pac-12 network airing on most local TVs. “Our deal with Charter — it is off,” said Tim Goodman, director of government affairs for Comcast. “We were disappointed in the decision.” Aside from Ashland Fiber Network customers, local residents rely on Dish Network to receive the Pac-12 broadcast feed, which is also aired at many sports bars. Comcast, which does air the Pac-12 network, was set to take over the local Charter territory if the deal went through. Comcast will be sending out letters to more than 80 Charter franchises throughout Oregon notifying them that the merger was dead, Goodman said. Comcast attempted to buy Time Warner in a $45 billion takeover bid. As part of that deal it would have swapped some properties with Charter and would have taken over Charter's Southern Oregon operations. Even though the deal is off the table, Goodman said the cable TV business is likely to go through more changes in the future. “Three years from now, things may be totally different,” he said Charter, which has about 11,000 customers in Medford, is reportedly in merger talks with Time Warner, after posting better revenues over the past year. “There are lots of rumors out there,” Goodman said. Anita Lamont, a spokeswoman for Charter, said, “It is speculation and rumor, and we don’t comment on that.” She said she would need more time to find out whether Charter would ever offer the Pac-12 games. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler recently sent out a letter saying the FCC had “serious concerns” about a merger with Comcast and Time Warner. “The proposed merger would have posed an unacceptable risk to competition and innovation especially given the growing importance of high-speed broadband to online video and innovative new services,” Wheeler stated. The merger of Comcast and Time Warner would have created a company with the most broadband and video subscribers in the nation, Wheeler said. Kim Hart, spokeswoman for the FCC, said there is no FCC application from Charter for Time Warner, and she said the FCC doesn’t comment on speculations about a possible deal. “We don’t even have a merger before us at this point,” she said. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 541-776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] . Follow him at www.twitter.com/reporterdm . By Damian Mann Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Posted Apr. 28, 2015 at 5:10 PM Updated Apr 28, 2015 at 6:08 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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