Now Patriots fans with DirecTV can focus on the New York Giants and the Super Bowl.

DirecTV announced late Thursday that an agreement had been reached with the parent company of Boston's NBC affiliate, lifting a potential television blackout that outraged viewers.

DirecTV released a brief statement that said little about the actual agreement with Sunbeam Television Corp., but assured customers in Boston and New Hampshire they would be able to watch the Patriots play the Giants next weekend.

“We are pleased to have reached an agreement to end the Sunbeam blackout and regret that any of our customers were forced into the middle of a business dispute where they should never have been in the first place,” the DirecTV statement said. “We believe, like many, the public interest is best served by allowing customers to keep their local broadcast stations as we negotiate future agreements, rather than being denied access by broadcast stations and used as leverage in what should be a private business matter.”

DirecTV spokesman Tom Tyrer would not elaborate on the company statement.

“I don't know whose fault it is and I don't really care,” Michael “Moto” Maguire of Peterborough told the New Hampshire Union Leader Thursday. “They ought to provide something to the people who are paying for the service.”

McGuire has been irked since his NBC feed on DirecTV was cut in the middle of Jay Leno on Jan. 14.

McGuire was actually one of the more fortunate New Hampshire residents; he still had NBC coverage through the satellite provider, which was allowed under Federal Communications Commission rules to channel the network's New York feed, but only to some parts of the state.

Paul LoPresti of Bow had been trying to spread the word via Twitter that NBC was available to at least some subscribers in the Granite State.

“I'm glad they reached an agreement for everybody,” said LoPresti, a native New Yorker. “I'm glad that it's going to work out for the Patriots' fans, too, but I'm still going to root for my Giants.”

Customers felt stuck in the middle of negotiations between DirecTV and Sunbeam, owner of Boston NBC affiliate, WHDH.

At J.W. Hill's Sports Bar and Grille, which is a DirecTV subscriber, a crisis was averted.

“It would have been pretty lonesome, I think,” said owner Kathie Standish. “It would have been a ghost town.”

After the blackout began Jan. 14, DirecTV urged customers to contact Sunbeam, which countered with a brief explanation on the WHDH website of the contract dispute and DirecTV's 800-number.

Pressure came from members of Congress, including U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-NH, who asked the Federal Communications Commission to step in on Wednesday. U.S. Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts sent a letter to both DirecTV and Sunbeam Television Corp. urging a quick lift to the blackout for the region. U.S. Rep. Charles Bass, R-NH, also wrote the FCC.

“I am thrilled that Patriots fans across New Hampshire will be able to watch the big game. This was important news not only for the fans, but also for businesses that rely on broadcasting the Super Bowl to bring in patrons and revenue,” Shaheen said. “I applaud both parties for coming to an agreement so that subscribers can enjoy the services they paid for and focus on what matters: cheering on the Pats.”

Patriots fans shut out by TV squabble