Updated: Optimum TV Could Lose MSG Networks Tomorrow In Carriage Dispute

By Phillip Swann
The  TV Answer Man – Follow me on X.

MSG Networks, the regional TV home of the New Jersey Devils, New York Knicks, Rangers and Islanders, is threatening to remove its channels from Optimum TV as soon as tomorrow in a carriage dispute between the companies.

Updated: Optimum lost the MSG Networks channels early New Year’s Day morning.

The RSN (regional sports network) says at its web site that “MSG Networks and Optimum have an agreement that expires soon. Optimum subscribers could lose access to hundreds of exclusive live game telecasts of the Knicks, Rangers, Islanders, Devils and more. You can make your voice heard and share your frustration by calling, emailing and posting on social media to let Optimum know that if they don’t keep MSG Networks, they won’t keep you as a customer.”

Optimum TV, which is owned by Altice, and offers TV service in the tri-state New York area, counters that “MSG Networks is demanding exorbitant programming fees – which could raise our customers’ cable bills – and, to add insult to injury, MSG Networks is requiring us to make their channels available to the vast majority of Optimum video subscribers, which would force customers to pay for content they may not want to watch. We refuse to allow any entity to force our customers to pay more than they can afford. And with direct-to-consumer options like MSG+ available on the Gotham Sports app, customers who want to watch it have alternatives so that non-viewers don’t have to pay for content they don’t want.”

The Gotham Sports app, which offers the MSG games via streaming without need of a cable or satellite subscription, starts at $29.99 a month.

Optimum TV has also established a web site to inform viewers of the carriage dispute with MSG. You can see it here.

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The TV Answer Man is veteran journalist Phillip Swann who has covered television for more than three decades. He will report on the latest news and answer your questions regarding new devices and services that are changing the way you watch television. See the bio for Phillip Swann here.