While the new offering delighted many customers, it alienated network owners and their advertisers. Multiple media companies sued over the technology, resulting in a settlement in 2016. Charlie Ergen, who co-founded Dish and is chairman of EchoStar's board of directors, was known for his pugnacious and erratic approach to negotiating carriage deals when he directly oversaw Dish as CEO. Sling currently does not carry CBS as a result of that aggressive stance, and prominent networks like HBO and Univision have gone dark for long periods, sometimes permanently, as Dish has taken a hard line with programmers. Those who have done business with Dish and Sling in recent years say Ergen's imprint is still readily apparent in many of the company's decisions. In an interview with Deadline earlier this month about the new offerings, Seth Van Sickel, SVP, Product and Operations at Sling TV, said programming partners were briefed about the company's plans for the short-term subscriptions.