Some Braves fans had hoped the start of the season would prompt a deal to make the regional sports networks that televise the team’s games available on two popular streaming services.
That didn’t happen.
The season opened Thursday with Bally Sports South and Bally Sports Southeast – the networks formerly known as Fox Sports South and Fox Sports Southeast – still not available on YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV. Both of those streaming platforms dropped 21 regional sports networks, including the two based in Atlanta, from their TV lineups in October because of a carriage dispute with the networks’ owner, Sinclair Broadcast Group.
The continuing dispute boils down to a disagreement about how much YouTube (owned by Google) and Hulu (owned by Disney) should pay Sinclair to carry the networks.
In response to questions/complaints from baseball fans during season-opening games Thursday, both YouTube and Hulu posted on social media that they had no update on the matter.
Bally Sports South and Southeast, which also televise Hawks, Dream and Atlanta United games, remain off satellite TV provider Dish Network, which dropped them in 2019 in a carriage dispute, and several other streaming services as well.
However, the networks are available on one streaming service: AT&T TV’s “choice” package ($84.99 per month without a contract). They also are available through cable companies, including Comcast’s Xfinity, and satellite TV provider DirecTV.
