FuboTV Loses NBCUniversal Channels in โContent dispute
New York, NY – โFuboTVโ subscribersโค lost access โto nbcuniversal‘s suite of channels this โฃweekend as a โcarriage dispute between the two companies escalated, impacting liveโค coverage ofโข major sporting events including NFL’s โคSunday โคNight football and Premier League matches.โฃ The blackout affects Fubo’s 1.63 millionโค subscribers.
The dispute centers on financial terms for continued distribution of โNBCUniversal’s networks. NBCUniversal stated it offered Fubo the โขsame terms accepted by hundreds โof other distributors, accusing Fubo of a patternโ of droppingโ networks “at the expense of theirโ customers.” Fubo has not publicly detailed its reasoning,โ but the โฃloss of channels underscores a growing trend ofโ content providers and streamingโ services โฃclashing over costs โฃand control in a rapidly evolving mediaโ landscape.
The immediate impact of the blackout โmeant FuboTV โcustomers were โunable to watch NBC’s collegeโ football programming, the Tampa Bay โBuccaneers versusโ Los Angeles Rams โฃNFL game, and several Premier League โcontests. While NBCUniversal suggestedโ fans could access content via its Peacock streaming service, several Premier League games – including Chelsea’s matchโ against Burnley and Leeds โUnited’s game versus Aston Villa – were not available โฃon Peacock, leavingโค fans without viewing options.
The situation sparked immediate backlash online. One X user wrote, “Wokeโ up this morning at 5:30 to watch Chelsea play only to find out @Fubo no longer has Universal/NBC channels. Literally the only reasonโ I payโค for this service is to watch soccer games. time to cancel the subscription, I suppose.”
The dispute also raises concerns about potential โคdisruption to NBC’s weekday NBA coverage ifโ a resolution isn’t reached. โขThis blackout follows aโฃ similar two-week dispute between Disney and YouTubeโ TV, which concluded โon November 14thโ with a new multi-year agreement restoringโฃ access to ESPN and ABC forโข YouTube TV’s approximately tenโ millionโข subscribers.
