YouTube TV subscribers have lost access to the Tennis Channel. This is only the latest in a string of disputes between live TV streaming services and channel owners that has resulted in the loss of access for customers.
YouTube TV now has more than three million subscribers, making it one of the most popular options for streaming live TV in the United States. Due to this popularity, whenever a change occurs in pricing, channel lineups, or any other important aspect, it has the potential to affect a significant number of users.
YouTube TV is currently in the process of emailing subscribers advising the service’s deal to carry the Tennis Channel has expired. The email goes on to explain that the Tennis Channel will no longer be available to stream starting from 11 pm ET on November 30, 2020. Essentially, in a matter of hours the channel will be removed from the YouTube TV lineup.
This not only affects live TV access, but also on demand and even recorded content. As a result, anyone who has Tennis Channel recordings in their cloud DVR library will see they have been deleted at the same time.
The latest lost channel
Gaining and losing channels has become a major issue for consumers in 2020. While it was an issue before as well, there has been a lot of movement during this year, and not just for YouTube TV. For reference, the Tennis Channel is owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group. This is the same company that YouTube TV previously failed to agree a new deal with, resulting in the removal of many Fox RSNS earlier in the year.
Again, it is not only YouTube TV who has encountered channel disputes and removals, which has resulted in the overall market becoming a lot murkier and making it difficult for consumers to choose one live TV streaming service and stick with it for any sustained period of time.
Of course, whether the Tennis Channel matters is going to be a highly individual thing and for some, they may not be as concerned with losing that channel. Even if that is the case, this still represents an additional decrease in value, considering they are still paying the same price for less YouTube TV channels than what they were offered when signing up.
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