YES Network, the New York Yankees cable channel, is joining the streaming game. Ahead of Thursday’s MLB Opening Day, the network announced that it’s now offering a direct-to-consumer streaming option for local fans who want to watch games without signing up for a cable or satellite package.
The new option will run $25 per month if purchased on a monthly subscription or $240 if purchased annually. As part of a special launch promotion that runs through April 30, YES will offer the service at a discounted rate of $20 per month (through the end of 2023) or $200 per year.
Once signed up, fans will then be able to watch games and other YES programming via the network’s website or its YES app, which is available on iOS, Android, Samsung TVs and smart TV platforms including Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV and Google TV.
In addition to Yankees games, the YES Network also broadcasts games for the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets and the WNBA’s New York Liberty. The network says that its new streaming option will be available in its “regional coverage territory,” which consists of New York state, Connecticut, northeastern Pennsylvania, and north and central New Jersey.
YES’ move marks the latest major regional sports network to offer an option to cord-cutters who want to watch their local teams without springing for a pricey cable, satellite or streaming TV package. The new option also comes amid a continued rise in cord-cutting and turmoil among regional sports networks.
Diamond Sports Group, which owns the Bally’s Sports regional sports networks and airs the local games for 42 teams across MLB, NBA and NHL, filed for bankruptcy earlier this month. Warner Bros. Discovery, which broadcasts games for six teams across the three leagues on its AT&T SportsNet offering, similarly said earlier this month that it plans to exit the regional sports business.
