SAN BRUNO, Calif.—YouTube TV will no longer carry Sinclair Broadcast Group regional sports networks as of Oct. 1, as the SVOD service shared through a series of tweets.
Following an extension negotiated in March of this year that kept Sinclair RSNs on its service, YouTube TV notified its subscribers that the extension is set to end on Oct. 1. The goal of the extension, according to YouTube TV, was to keep the RSNs available for subscribers through the end of the NHL, NBA and MLB seasons—the NHL wrapped up earlier this week, while the NBA Finals and MLB playoffs are beginning and are available on national TV networks.
The networks that will no longer be available to YouTube TV subscribers include Fox Sports Arizona, Fox Sports Carolinas, Fox Sports Detroit, Fox Sports Florida, Fox Sports Indiana, Fox Sports Kansas City, Fox Sports Midwest, Fox Sports New Orleans, Fox Sports North, Fox Sports Ohio, Fox Sports Oklahoma, Fox Sports San Diego, Fox Sports South, Fox Sports Southeast, Fox Sports Southwest, Fox Sports Sun, Fox Sports Tennessee, Fox Sports Wisconsin and SportsTime Ohio.
In addition to the channels being dropped, YouTube TV says that library recordings from the Fox RSNs will also no longer be available.
“This was a difficult decision made after months of negotiations,” tweeted YouTube TV. “We hope we can bring FOX RSNs back in the future.” Subscribers set to lose these channels were to be notified by email, per YouTube TV.
No official comment from Sinclair has been released on this decision.
