Disney and TWC near deal on rights row

Disney is closing in on a deal that will wring more money from the US cable giant Time Warner Cable (TWC) for carriage of the Disney television channels.

The tussle is the latest example of the shifting balance of power between content providers and carriers. Disney had been running ads warning TWC cable customers that they could soon lose access to channels including the sports leader ESPN and the network ABC, home to Modern Family, which won the Emmy for best comedy on Sunday.

But the two sides called off negative ad campaigns at the weekend because of progress in their talks. Disney wants more money for supplying its channels on cable. TWC wants access to more Disney shows to put on its video-on-demand services. In common with other media giants, Disney is exploring new services for its content, including rental on Apple's iTunes.