FINAL UPDATE: WSJ.com is reporting this morning that an “agreement in principle” was reached between Time Warner Cable and Viacom shortly after midnight. No details have been disclosed.

UPDATED: Dueling press statements: Time Warner Cable | Viacom
Viacom is running this ad in major markets to generate support for their side:

Time Warner Cable customers turning on MTV, Comedy Central, or Nickelodeon this morning will likely see a scroll at the bottom of their screen warning that they could lose the channel by midnight tonight.

At the core of this alarming news is an ongoing carriage contract dispute between the cable operator and Viacom, and 19 cable channels are at risk for Erie viewers. According to the Huffington Post this morning, “Media giant Viacom Inc. said its Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central and 16 other channels will go dark on Time Warner Cable Inc. at 12:01 a.m. Thursday if a new carriage fee deal is not agreed upon by then. The impasse over carriage fee hikes would mean ‘SpongeBob’ and other shows like ‘The Daily Show’ will be cut off to 13 million subscribers.”

Meanwhile negotiations reportedly continue at the most senior executive level.

In the balance are the following channels: Comedy Central, CMT: Pure Country, Logo, Palladia, MTV, MTV 2, MTV Hits, MTV Jams, MTV Tr3s, Nickelodeon, Noggin, Nick 2, Nicktoons, Spike, The N, TV Land, VH1, VH1 Classic, and VH1 Soul.