NORTH COUNTRY -- North Country cable viewers are unable to see their local NBC affiliate from Plattsburgh. Contract talks have broken down between Time Warner Cable and Hearst Television, owner of WPTZ. Hearst blacked out the station’s signal from the cable system Monday night.

Time Warner Cable says Hearst is demanding a 300-percent increase in the fees paid to carry the station. A spokesperson says that’s way out of line and the cable company is determined to stand up for its customers.

WPTZ says Time Warner Cable terminated negotiations, and claims the cable company refused to pay a reasonable fee relative to what it pays for significantly less popular channels. While the dispute continues, Time Warner Cable is piping in NBC network programming from an affiliate in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania.

Time Warner Cable is the parent company of YNN.