MSG Networks to launch streaming service for Knicks and Rangers Games

• MSG Networks, which features Knicks, Rangers and Devils games, is launching a streaming service.
• MSG+ will launch this summer and will cost $29.99/month or $309.99/year.
• MSG is the latest regional sports network to launch a streaming service as customers continue to move away from their traditional cable TV package.

MSG Networks, James Dolan’s cable TV channel that broadcasts local professional sports in New York and New Jersey, is launching its own streaming service.

MSG+ launches this summer with games for the NBA’s New York Knicks, as well as the NHL’s New York Rangers, Buffalo Sabers, and New Jersey Devils. The streaming service will cost $29.99 a month or $309.99 a year, according to a company announcement Wednesday.

MSG Networks also said it recently launched an ad-supported free-to-air streaming television channel, or FAST, called MSG SportsZone, which is available nationally on Vizio TVs and the Plex streaming platform. Additional platforms will be coming soon. The FAST channel features MSG Networks sports betting and classic gaming programming.

MSG+ will only be available in a region where MSG networks are already on cable television. Traditional TV subscribers will also get free access to MSG+.

The launch comes as regional sports networks in particular felt the pain of consumers ditching their cable TV package in favor of streaming services instead. However, watching local sports teams is often difficult for those who cut the cord, as few online packages carry regional sports networks, and networks have been slow to offer their own direct-to-consumer options.

These networks also need to be careful when pricing their streaming options so as not to disrupt the pay TV model and break contracts with distributors. Pay-TV contracts with regional sports networks help support the billions of dollars in fees the networks pay to professional sports teams to broadcast their games.

Launching consumer streaming services is an attempt to keep or win back customers who have cut the cord. Last year, New England Sports Network, the local broadcaster for MLB’s Boston Red Sox and NHL’s Bruins, launched streaming for a similar price of $29.99 a month, or $329.99 a year.

Meanwhile, Diamond Sports Group launched Bally Sports+ last fall at $19.99/month or $189.99/year.

MSG Networks’ new streaming service will also allow fans to purchase individual game streams for $9.99 per game. This offer has not yet been made available to other regional sports networks that have created a live streaming platform.

However, cable TV providers have noticed over the past year that the number of customers dropping packages has increased, exacerbating their problems.

Diamond’s Bally Sports is on the verge of bankruptcy due to a heavy debt load. It is reported that Warner Bros. Discovery wants to get out of the regional sports network business.