Diamond Sports Group announced Wednesday that it has renewed its carriage deal with Fubo, which ensures that Bally Sports regional sports networks (RSNs) will remain on the streaming service’s basic subscription level.
Although it is currently in the midst of bankruptcy proceedings and questions remain about the future of the RSNs, Diamond still operates 18 channels carrying various MLB, NBA, WNBA, NHL, and college sports games throughout the year.
Fubo subscribers will continue to have access to Bally Sports Detroit, Bally Sports Florida, Bally Sports Great Lakes, Bally Sports Indiana, Bally Sports Kansas City, Bally Sports Midwest, Bally Sports New Orleans, Bally Sports North, Bally Sports Ohio, Bally Sports Oklahoma, Bally Sports San Diego, Bally Sports SoCal, Bally Sports South, Bally Sports Southeast, Bally Sports Southwest, Bally Sports Sun, Bally Sports West and Bally Sports Wisconsin.
“With the vast majority of our distribution partners in multiyear carriage agreements, Diamond remains focused on completing our reorganization and emerging as a sustainable, profitable business,” Diamond CEO David Preschlack said in a statement.
This is the fourth carriage renewal agreement that Diamond has reached in recent weeks, including Charter, Cox, and DirecTV.
The company is, however, still in the midst of a carriage dispute with Comcast. Bally Sports RSNs are currently dark for their subscribers.
Last week, Major League Baseball warned that Diamond Sports Group’s Chapter 11 reorganization plan was unfeasible given the Comcast disruption.
“[T]hese chapter 11 cases now hang by the thinnest of threads,” MLB and the 12 clubs with Bally Sports coverage said in a statement. “Unless Comcast and the Debtors can come to a new agreement, it is highly likely that the loss of carriage of the Debtors’ broadcasts by Comcast, and the resulting loss of licensing fees from Comcast, will render the Plan unconfirmable, thereby wasting time and estate resources to the detriment of MLB, the Signatory Clubs, and other interested parties.”
While adding Fubo (1.51 million subscribers) helps Diamond in its efforts, not being able to reach Comcast’s reported 13.6 million subscribers is a blow to its efforts to prove financial solvency.
[Sportico]
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.