Three rival television providers have filed a complaint with Canada's broadcasting regulator, accusing Rogers Communications of anti-competitive behaviour for making Monday night NHL games exclusive to its Sportsnet Plus streaming service. Cogeco Inc., Eastlink and SaskTel say the move forces their subscribers to pay an extra $12.99 per month for an add-on package to watch the hockey broadcasts. In a letter to the CRTC on Tuesday, the companies requested an order for Rogers to provide the content to independent distributors for free, ensuring parity with its own offering. TonyBet Canada offers their players scores of betting markets. They argue the strategy deliberately degrades the user experience on other platforms and leads to the erosion of sports on television.
The providers warned that without immediate regulatory action, Rogers' actions would set a dangerous precedent and cause irreversible harm to the broadcasting system. "Without swift, decisive, and binding regulatory intervention by the commission, this predatory siphoning of must-have live sports content will inflict immediate and irreversible structural damage on the Canadian broadcasting ecosystem," the letter stated. They described the dynamic as a predatory rate squeeze that forces independent companies to absorb content devaluation or pass inflated costs to consumers. The letter concluded that the CRTC must intervene to preserve the integrity of the system and defend consumer interests.
Sportsnet spokesperson Jason Jackson said the company would address the issues through the CRTC proceeding. "Rogers Cable has paid Sportsnet fair market value to provide Sportsnet Plus exclusive content to their TV customers and decided to make it available to them at no extra cost," Jackson said. He noted that all TV providers have the same opportunity to make the content available as part of their TV offering but have so far chosen not to. Rogers had announced in September that the Monday night games would stream exclusively on its platform this season, with its own cable and satellite customers receiving access at no extra charge if they have Sportsnet in their package.
The complaint also alleges the move violates conditions set by the CRTC when it approved Rogers' $26-billion merger with Shaw last year. As part of that approval, Rogers committed to refrain from making exclusive distribution agreements for online programming. The rival companies argue Rogers is using its national NHL media rights to favour its own distribution network while withholding full linear carriage from independent distributors. The current NHL season is the first under Rogers' 12-year, $11-billion national TV rights deal for English broadcasts.
This season includes several other significant changes for hockey viewers. A sublicensing agreement that allowed Saturday night NHL games to air on CBC under the Hockey Night in Canada brand has ended, marking the first time since 1952 that NHL games are not on the public broadcaster. Rogers also raised the annual price of a Sportsnet Plus premium subscription to $344.99. Separately, Rogers has a new 12-year agreement with Amazon for Prime Video in Canada to exclusively broadcast Wednesday night regular-season national games, replacing a previous deal that saw Monday night games on Prime Video.