LAS VEGAS — Kraken fans got a jolt from Comcast-owned Xfinity on the eve of the team's season opener Tuesday night, with the cable provider telling them in an email the cost of watching the NHL squad on ROOT Sports Northwest would rise significantly.
In fact, the monthly cost of watching not only the Kraken, but also the Mariners, Portland Trail Blazers and anything else on ROOT Sports NW will climb $18.50 after Xfinity, against the wishes of the teams involved, placed the regional sports network (RSN) on its highest-tier Ultimate TV package. The move, announced by Xfinity in a Tuesday afternoon email to subscribers, is the latest salvo in an ongoing clash playing out nationwide between RSN properties such as ROOT Sports NW and the providers that distribute their broadcast content.
Xfinity is the largest distributor of ROOT Sports NW in the immediate Seattle area — with just fewer than half the network's viewers in that geographical region. Comcast on Wednesday plans to announce a $5 monthly promotional offer for six months for those wanting to watch ROOT Sports NW on Xfinity, but Tuesday's move to bump the RSN off its prior plan to the more expensive package will likely mean fewer eyeballs on the teams in question as not all viewers are expected to upgrade.
"The sports broadcasting landscape is experiencing significant change," Kraken president Victor de Bonis said in a release. "We want our games to be available to as many fans as possible, especially as we drop the puck for our third season today."
Viewers would need to upgrade if hoping to see the Kraken's game Thursday night against Nashville. Tuesday's season opener against the Vegas Golden Knights was a national broadcast on ESPN that ROOT Sports NW was not involved with.
The Mariners have owned a majority stake in ROOT Sports NW since 2013, with AT&T SportsNet serving as a minority partner that handles TV infrastructure and negotiates carriage deals for the RSN such as the one with Xfinity.
"The Seattle Mariners are disappointed that Xfinity has moved ROOT Sports into a package that is more expensive and less accessible to fans," Mariners senior vice president of marketing Kevin Martinez said in a release. "Xfinity is the largest television provider in the Pacific Northwest, and their decision makes it harder for those who live here to watch their favorite teams."
For several years, cable and satellite TV customers have complained about having to pay for RSN content within their bundled packages when a majority don't even watch sports. But RSN content is expensive because it costs far more to produce than most programming, given the rights fees charged by teams to broadcast their games.
Providers such as Xfinity have felt the pressure from cable "cord cutters" ditching cable TV bundles and moving to streaming packages that are largely sports-free and tend to be cheaper. As a result, they've taken increased steps to lower those costs during harder-than-usual negotiations when contracts come up for renewal.
"We're happy to continue offering Root Sports Northwest to our customers and making it available on a package that includes the most sports content," Comcast said in a statement. "We'll also be providing credits to our customers on our digital basic package who to do not receive the network."
An industry source said Xfinity's recent renewal agreement with ROOT Sports saw the cable company insist upon either moving the RSN to the more expensive package or else pulling it off its list of offerings entirely. ROOT Sports ultimately relented.
A statement put out Tuesday afternoon by ROOT Sports stated: "We are disappointed that Xfinity has moved ROOT Sports to the Ultimate package. The timing is less than ideal as the Kraken and Trail Blazers are heading into the regular season, and we feel for the teams and their fans. We strive to make these live games accessible to as many people as possible and will continue to pursue opportunities that allow fans to watch their favorite teams. Fans can visit rootsports.com/provider-finder to see all available options in their area."
In its email to subscribers, Xfinity portrays the switch as "a move to provide you with savings" and states: "Because Regional Sports Networks (RSN), like ROOT Sports, drive significant expense for our customers, we've removed this channel from your current TV package and will be reducing your RSN fee. Until this fee reduction goes into effect, you'll soon see a $8.95 credit in your monthly bill."
Xfinity customers flooded social media with angry comments about the move, some especially upset at the cable company for portraying the decision as a cost savings — though that's exactly what it will be for a majority of viewers who don't watch sports regularly. Many industry estimates suggest most of the customers paying for sports networks within their cable bundles don't even watch them.
But for those who subscribe to Xfinity primarily to watch ROOT Sports NW — including some new Kraken fans who signed on just so they could see the team's games — the decision feels like a bait-and-switch.
One fan on the social media platform X blasted Xfinity for "forcing customers to upgrade their TV package to get ROOT Sports" while angrily tweeting at the company: "Literally the only reason I pay for your outrageous TV package is to watch ROOT Sports NW ... So now I have to pay more to upgrade to a new package that I don't want?"
A potential solution for some could be streaming services that specialize in RSN offerings. But options are slim in that regard, with FuboTV two years ago reaching a deal to include ROOT Sports for customers of its sports streaming service — though its monthly fees tend to be more expensive than other streaming services that don't carry RSN programming.
