A carriage dispute between Verizon and Cox Media Group has left NFL fans in several markets across the country in limbo.
According to multiple reports, Verizon blacked out Cox-owned affiliates in several markets after a prior distribution agreement expired on Dec. 15. Those channels have not yet been restored to Verizon Fios customers.
Cox owns 13 local television stations across the country, but only two such stations overlap with the coverage area of Verizon Fios in the northeast United States: WFXT, a Fox affiliate in Boston, and WPXI, an NBC affiliate in Pittsburgh. Unfortunately for NFL fans in those markets, the New England Patriots are scheduled to play their Week 18 game on Fox, and the Pittsburgh Steelers are scheduled to play their Week 18 game on NBC’s Sunday Night Football.
In other words, Verizon Fios customers in both markets are at-risk of being unable to watch critical Week 18 matchups this Sunday. The Steelers play the Ravens in a win-and-in AFC North title game, while a Patriots win over the Dolphins keeps New England’s hopes alive for the No. 1 seed and first-round bye in the AFC.
Luckily for fans stuck in this scenario, there are options. Pittsburgh-area Fios customers can purchase a Peacock subscription to watch the Steelers game uninterrupted. And New England-area Fios customers can purchase Fox One for the Patriots game. Fans can also utilize a digital antenna to access these channels for free, so long as they live in an area with good signal.
Neither of those options are ideal, however, especially for customers already paying a monthly cable subscription.
The Week 18 NFL schedule does provide Cox some unexpected leverage in this negotiation. The league does not decide on television assignments for Week 18 games until Week 17 is almost complete, meaning there was no way of knowing that both the Steelers and Patriots would be airing on channels that are blacked out to a portion of cable subscribers in each market. Perhaps the added pressure will be enough for both sides to strike a deal before Sunday.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.