MSG Networks and Altice USA announced that both sides have come to an agreement that brings the regional sports channels—and thus Knicks, Rangers, Islanders and Devils games—back to Optimum video subscribers.
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
Altice, Optimum’s owner, blacked out the channels on midnight of New Year’s Day after the two sides were unable to renew the carriage agreement. The two sides engaged in a rather heated war of words throughout January.
Though MSG Networks claimed it would accept a lower carriage fee and a move to a higher-priced video package, Altice was unmoved by the overture. Even a willingness to go to a third-party for arbitration was dismissed by Altice as a “PR stunt.”
Several state officials and Congress members in the affected markets spoke out against the lack of negotiations and demanded that Altice issue refunds to customers who were being charged for the blacked-out channels. Two weeks ago, New York governor Kathy Hochul even pushed for the state’s Department of Public Service to get involved in restarting negotiations.
However, all of that appears to be a thing of the past. The 52-day impasse came to an end less than an hour before the NHL resumed play after the 4 Nations Face-Off all-star break. Optimum subscribers were then able to tune to see the Rangers lose 8-3 to the Buffalo Sabres after giving up five goals in the first period.
MSG Networks carries games for the Islanders and the New Jersey Devils. Optimum made no mention of those markets in a statement. “We will continue to work with programming partners that are willing to join us in advocating for choice, value, and flexibility while placing customers at the center of all we do in today’s ever-evolving TV ecosystem,” the company said in an email.
Recently, Steve Cohen’s Point72 Asset Management upped its stake in Sphere Entertainment, which houses MSG Networks. Cohen, who owns the New York Mets, now holds 2.1 million shares, which amounts to a 7.3% stake in the group. Sphere is controlled by James Dolan, who also controls the Knicks, Rangers and Madison Square Garden itself via MSG Sports.
Cohen improved his position as MSG Networks continues to negotiate terms of its unpaid debt. In October, $829 million in debt came due for the regional sports network. MSG Networks and its lenders have agreed to multiple extensions, with the latest pushing the deadline for a deal to March 26. The rights fees for the Knicks and Rangers from MSG Networks are roughly $180 million this year.
(This story has been updated in the sixth and seventh paragraph with the score of Saturday’s Rangers game and statement from Optimum.)
