Media General has posted notices to local affiliate websites warning Dish customers that they could lose the stations as of Thursday.

“After granting Dish six weeks of contract extensions, we have yet to reach an agreement,” Media General states. “We continue to work hard to reach a new agreement, however, as a trusted source for news and information, it is important to keep our viewers informed when a contract deadline approaches and a new agreement has not yet been reached.”

The posting further urges customer to call Dish and complain about the potential loss. “You should also let Dish know that you do not want to be charged for programming that you may not receive if an agreement is not reached,” it adds. A list of alternative service providers is given on the Media General sites.

Dish is responding via its dishpromise.com: “We are still in negotiations and do not understand why Media General has chosen to involve our customers at this time.

“There is still time to reach a mutually beneficial deal. Negotiations regularly happen right up to the deadline and more often than not they are settled without issue.”

In its FAQ section at the site, Dish underlines that disputes between pay TV providers and channel owners are not uncommon, stating that last year there were 107 channel blackouts across the industry.

“That is why switching your pay TV provider is not the answer,” Dish says. “Switching gives channel owners validation of what they are demanding and encourages them to raise rate demands. That ultimately drives up the cost for everyone. Sticking with Dish tells channel owners that they need to be reasonable and fair.”