In addition to a smaller fee increase, AT&T is pushing for the ability to sell CBS’s streaming service as a separate option, which could give it more flexibility and lower costs by potentially removing the channel from its basic bundle.

Early Saturday morning, DirecTV customers who tuned to CBS got a message saying that CBS had removed the channel. As an alternative, the company suggested signing up for its streaming service, All Access, or trying a free service called Locast.

CBS is in an unusual spot. As a free-to-air broadcaster, it doesn’t rely on pay-TV operators to carry its signal. But of the 119 million homes that get the channel, about 90 million get it through a pay service, like AT&T, representing billions of dollars a year in licensing fees.

The blackout comes during the summer season when broadcasters typically see the smallest audiences. Networks unveil their biggest bets in the fall, and CBS will feature its newest lineup of shows in a little more than a month.

It also marks the beginning of the football season, a high ratings generator. The NFL consistently generates the biggest audiences and has helped CBS claim its crown as the most-watched network. CBS plans to show half a dozen matchups on the first Sunday of the new season on Sept. 8.

Both AT&T and CBS are in the midst of significant transformations. CBS has been bruised by scandal. It ousted its chief executive, Leslie Moonves, in September after a dozen women said he had sexually abused them. He has denied the charges. The network is also discussing a potential merger with its sister company, Viacom, the cable network giant that oversees MTV and Comedy Central. Both companies are controlled by the Redstone family, now led by Shari Redstone.

AT&T, in a bid to distinguish itself from its rival Verizon, spent more than $80 billion to acquire Time Warner last year. The deal gave it a suite of content providers, including HBO, CNN and the Warner Bros. film studio. The company plans on offering a major streaming service to compete with Netflix, Hulu and others, based largely on the brand clout of HBO. The service would also help AT&T offer special discounts to its customers, potentially keeping them from defecting to other services.