Diamond reaches retransmission deal with Comcast for Bally Sports RSNs

Diamond Sports Group and Comcast have reached a carriage agreement for the distribution of Diamond’s 15 Bally-branded regional sports networks to Xfinity TV customers, ending a nearly three-month blackout of the channels.

Under the agreement, subscribers to Comcast’s Xfinity Ultimate TV package in Bally Sports markets will gain access to live, local MLB, NBA and NHL games and pre- and post-game content on Diamond’s RSN channels, effective Aug. 1, 2024.

Additionally, Xfinity Ultimate TV customers will be able to stream Diamond’s RSN content by authenticating using their Xfinity credentials on the Bally Sports app.

The agreement notably does not move the channels to Comcast’s lower-priced tiers. Diamond had reportedly been pushing for Comcast to include the RSNs in lower, less expensive TV packages. Comcast had reportedly rejected that idea — and appears to have gotten its way on that point.

“Entering a new carriage agreement with Comcast, our third largest distributor, is a critical step forward in our restructuring effort, and we are pleased that fans will again be able to access broadcasts of their local teams through Xfinity. With certainty on our distribution, we are focused on finalizing an agreement with the NHL and resolving our ongoing negotiations with the NBA,” said David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond Sports, in a statement.

“We appreciate Diamond Sports working with us to reach a solution that returns the Bally Sports RSNs to our Ultimate TV customers in a way that reflects the changing video marketplace for local sports,” said Greg Rigdon, president of content acquisition for Comcast. “We look forward to making these networks available on Aug. 1, so customers can enjoy watching their favorite teams again.”

The carriage agreement with Comcast follows Diamond’s previously announced distribution agreements with Charter Communications, DirecTV, Cox Communications and Fubo.

Financial terms of the carriage agreement with Comcast were not disclosed.

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Despite involving 15 networks, the blackouts had a more limited impact because subscribers only get the networks designated for where they live. This is different from other retransmission battles with companies that own multiple channels included in many multichannel video programming distributor packages.

Bally Sports networks are expected to change their name later in 2024, reportedly to FanDuel branding.

Diamond operates 18 total RSNs, but only 15 were in Comcast markets.