Carriage dispute knocks NBCU channels off Fubo
Carriage dispute knocks NBCU channels off Fubo
The streaming service has promised customers a credit should the blackout continue.
A season that should be fostering kindness and warm feelings between compatriots has instead turned to bitterness for two major players in the entertainment world. NBCUniversal channels have now been blacked out on Fubo’s airwaves, and the two sides now face the high-pressure negotiations that made life unpleasant for YouTube TV staffers over the last month as that streaming service worked through its own carriage fights.
Key Details:
- Gone dark: NBCU channels are now blacked out on all Fubo plans.
- Way too much: Fubo says NBCU is asking for rates that are “egregiously” higher than what other programmers charge.
- Digging in?: Fubo has refused to budge in carriage talks with major programmers in the past.
On its website, Fubo says that NBCU is making outsized carriage fee demands to continue offering its channels on the streaming service. Fubo wasn’t afraid to use strong language in its protest of NBCU’s demands, which it says are to blame for customers losing access to those channels as of 5 p.m. ET on Nov. 21.
“Unfortunately, NBCU has offered terms regarding pricing and packaging that are egregiously above those offered to other distributors,” Fubo says. “There is no basis for this discrimination and, as a result, Fubo subscribers would either be denied important content or be forced to pay what we believe to be exorbitant costs.”
NBCU, of course, is laying the blame at Fubo’s feet in the dispute, saying it has not approached the streamer with terms that other pay-TV companies have also not accepted.
“Fubo has chosen to drop NBCUniversal programming despite being offered the same terms agreed to by hundreds of other distributors,” NBCU said in a statement. “Unfortunately, this is par for the course for Fubo — they’ve dropped numerous networks in recent years at the expense of their customers, who continue to lose content.”
As alluded to by NBCU, there is reason to fear that NBCU’s channels like Bravo, CNBC, Golf Channel, MS NOW, and others won’t be back on Fubo’s airwaves any time soon. While Fubo says it is “diligently working with NBCU in good faith” to bring the channels back, the streamer also dropped Warner Bros. Discovery-owned channels in 2024, and they have yet to be restored.
While there are other outlets that carry NBCU channels, viewers are likely tired of having to worry about bouncing between distributors to get the channels they want when they should be focused on the holidays. If the networks aren’t restored by Thursday, viewers could miss both the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade and the Cincinnati Bengals vs. Baltimore Ravens game that evening. Perhaps the pressure of that deadline will induce the two sides to make a deal, but if not, the dispute could drag on fr quite a while.
Fubo
Fubo is a live TV streaming service offering a robust lineup of approximately 150 premier channels, with plans starting at $63.99 per month. This entry-level package provides access to local broadcast affiliates 18 of the leading 35 cable channels channels, and valuable regional sports networks (RSNs).