Fubo might drop SportsNet New York (SNY), due to a new carriage dispute. The sports network began warning viewers of the issue over the weekend, confirming that a channel blackout is becoming more likely.
Considering SNY is a regional sports network, the dropping of the channel would only affect Fubo subscribers in SNY’s broadcast territory.
In spite of warning viewers, SNY hasn’t confirmed a deadline of when a new deal needs to be agreed to avoid the channel being dropped. SNY has, however, launched a webpage detailing the issue and confirming that FuboTV subscribers would lose access to SNY’s coverage of the Mets, Jets, and all of New York’s professional and collegiate sports teams, if a new deal is not agreed.
Typical of disputes like this, SNY is advising Fubo subscribers of their options, including the different live TV streaming services that continue to provide access to the sports network. Specifically, SNY details DirecTV (via Internet), DirecTV Stream and Hulu Live TV as streaming alternatives to Fubo.
While neither Fubo nor SNY has confirmed the specifics of the dispute, carriage rates are very often the reason. In Fubo’s case, the live TV streaming service already charges a regional sports fee in many locations. For example, subscribers in New York typically pay $15.99 a month, on top of the normal cost of a Fubo live TV package, for access to additional sports networks, including SNY.
If a new deal was agreed at a higher rate, it is not unreasonable to assume that the cost of the RSN fee could also increase, accordingly, which might be what Fubo is now trying to avoid happening. At the same time, as Fubo is a live TV streaming service that places a major emphasis on live sports, it seems likely that Fubo will want to avoid losing the channel.
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