More than 40 MLB, NBA and NHL teams have local TV rights tied to the Fox RSNs currentlyGETTY IMAGES
YouTube TV on Thursday tweeted that it will no longer carry the Fox RSNs beginning Saturday, which "coincidentally (or not)" is on the opening weekend of MLS season and "exactly four weeks" from the start of MLB play, according to Pete Grathoff of the K.C. STAR. YouTube TV is the "second streaming service" to drop Fox' RSNs since last September, when SlingTV "reached an impasse" with the nets, which were bought by Sinclair in August (K.C. STAR, 2/28). In Chicago, Phil Rosenthal writes these standoffs are "rarely permanent, but they can stretch on," noting there are more than 40 MLB, NBA and NHL teams "whose local TV rights are tied up" in the Fox RSNs. Rosenthal: "The fact YouTube TV is cutting off its subscribers from them is ironic in that the service has in recent years been the presenting sponsor of the World Series and NBA Finals" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 2/28). ENGADGET's Jon Fingas wrote this kind of "fight is all too common in the conventional TV space, but it's still relatively rare in the streaming-only world." Typically, services like YouTube TV and others have been "willing to raise rates rather than risk losing important channels." Clearly, YouTube has "had enough -- while it probably can't stop the price creep that's all too common with TV, it appears uncomfortable with hiking prices much further" (ENGADGET.com, 2/27).
