The Disney Carriage Standoff and Rewriting the Cable Bundle

Between August 31 and September 11, 2023, Spectrum customers lost access to ESPN, ABC, FX, and the rest of Disney's cable lineup — right as the NFL season was starting. Charter CEO Chris Winfrey and his team forced Disney to the table over what they called a "broken pay-TV model" and walked away with a "transformative" deal that included Disney+ and ESPN+ bundled into the cable subscription. Two years later (June 2025), the deal expanded again to include Hulu and restored cancelled channels. This module walks candidates through the standoff as a case study in courageous, high-stakes business judgment — a frame that Spectrum interviewers actively recognize.