TV providers say Rogers' Monday hockey move inflates prices, 'erodes' sports viewing

Summary

• Three Canadian TV providers—Cogeco, Eastlink, & SaskTel—accused Rogers Communications of violating competition rules by moving Monday night NHL broadcasts exclusively to its Sportsnet Plus streaming service.
• The companies claim Rogers is inflating fan bills by charging a $12.99 monthly add-on fee for Monday night games unless subscribers already have Rogers TV or Sportsnet Plus.
• The rivals petitioned Canada's broadcasting regulator, the CRTC, to order Rogers to immediately distribute the content to independent companies for free to ensure parity.
• The competitors argue this strategy degrades the user experience on other platforms & erodes sports on television by preventing distributors from creating comprehensible sports lineups.
• This shift is part of broader changes for the 2026-27 NHL season, which includes ending a sublicensing agreement for Saturday night broadcasts on CBC's Hockey Night in Canada.
• Rogers increased the annual cost of Sportsnet Plus to $344.99 & announced a 12-year exclusive agreement with Amazon Prime Video for Wednesday night national games.
• The 2026-27 season marks the first year under Rogers' 12-year, $11-billion national TV rights deal for English broadcasts.