Little news has emerged in the three months since the first report about MSG’s plans to launch a direct to consumer service, MSG+.
At the time, MSG+ was expected to be launched during the current 2022-23 season. However, those plans have been knocked back a few more months.
Per SportsPro Media, MSG+ is now expected to launch closer to the start of the 2023-24 NBA and NHL seasons. MSG’s bread and butter is those two sports, owning the local rights to the Knicks, Rangers, Islanders, and Devils.
Given MSG’s lack of an MLB team, this decision makes sense to me. Launching MSG+ for the final 25 to 30 games of the NBA and NHL seasons then going dark on live games for six months doesn’t seem like the best way to attract customers.
The pricing information for MSG+ has yet to be revealed, but I’m curious how it will work. The RSN has six months with a ton of live games, and six months with next to no live games. Who would pony up for a year-long subscription when you’re mainly using the service for half of the year?
Anyway, the timeframe of MSG+’s launch being pushed back means it likely won’t be the first RSN DTC offering to launch in New York. YES Network is aiming to launch their own service by Opening Day of the Yankees season in six weeks or so.
