There might not be a more upsetting experience for sports enthusiasts than losing access to their favorite teams ‘ games on television because of a carriage disagreement between a regional sports network and a cable or satellite technician.
Two state senators have made it clear that they want both sides to continue discussions to deliver Knicks, Rangers, Islanders, and New Jersey Devils matches back to their customers because Altice, the owner of the Optimum wire system, and MSG Networks are at odds with one another in the New York metropolitan area.
Assemblywoman Michaelle Solages, who represents the 22nd Assembly District in Long Island’s Nassau County, and state Sen. Jamaal Bailey, who represents pieces of The Bronx and Westchester County, were among the first regional leaders to call attention to the deadlock. Since the outage ended at midnight on January 1st, they have kept in touch with both sides.

James Dolan, user of the Knicks and Rangers, and the MSG programs exchanged rumors on social media on Thursday. The Knicks, Rangers, and Islanders responded to the state senator and assemblywoman in kind by tweeting a distinct statement.
” Sports is the world’s greatest social money”, Bailey said in a telephone interview. But when people are going through difficult times, they want to lay down in front of their TVs for a few days and watch their team. In addition to me being a very fascinated Knicks lover who’s even an Optimum client, I thought it was important to climb in for the constituency, for myself and for everybody”.
A new carriage deal will be appreciated by their constituents, but it’ll be critical for both carrier and channel. Both Bailey and Solages ‘ districts represent over a half-million residents, all within Altice’s coverage map, and as is the case around the country, many of them have already cut the cord in recent years. The operator closed out Q3 with 1.94 million video subscribers, down 13 % vs. the year-ago 2.23 million.
Guggenheim’s Curry Baker sent a note to investors in which he estimated that in 2025, Altice is projected to pay MSG$ 127 million in carriage fees—or about one-third of the network’s distribution revenue, with the bulk of the remainder coming from Verizon Fios and Charter’s Spectrum system. MSG will lose$ 347, 945 per day for as long as the blackout continues.
Assemblywoman Solages says the impasse reflects one of those serious concerns, even though there are those who think elected officials should concentrate their energies on other” serious” issues rather than a staring contest between billion-dollar companies.

” People are right now going through affordability crisis, and rates of everything are increasing”, Solages said. With the cost of attending these sports live, New Yorkers are in need of affordable programming.
Politicians have spoken out about a carriage dispute before in the late 2000s during some of the most well-known legislative flexes when several U.S. senators spoke about the availability of the NFL Network. Even those battles did not feature a rumored direct intervention by an elected official like what happened in 2012 in New York.
A 48-day blackout of the MSG RSNs by Time Warner Cable ( now Charter ) began on midnight of New Year’s Day that year. In about half of the city, including their hometown of Manhattan, the Knicks and Rangers were out of the game. The conflict had finally reached critical mass when Jeremy Lin joined the Knicks ‘ starting lineup to begin the” Linsanity” run that February.
It was reported that then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo relied on the public’s demand to bring Dolan and Glenn Britt, the late Time Warner Cable’s CEO and chairman, back to the table to agree a deal. Former NBA commissioner David Stern and then-state attorney general Eric Schneiderman are also credited with forming a new agreement at the time.
Solages and Bailey said in the early stages of the dispute that such high-level influence wasn’t likely to occur. ” The tools that we have as legislators, … I’m not ready to use ( them ) because I think it’s too early in the process”, Solages said. ” I believe it would be unacceptable for us to be using legislative tools to coerce two parties to join together,” he said.
” As legislators, you’re generally very mindful about the concept of government overreach, certain things private actors should be able to take care of themselves”, Bailey said. There are times when you have to use the power to influence others, such as saying that our respective constituents are paying attention as well as the legislators themselves.

This is not the first time the lawmakers have partnered through sports. In response to Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin’s cardiac event two years ago, Solages and Bailey co-sponsored the Athletic Training Licensure Act, which made athletic training a licensed profession in the state. Governor signed the bill, too. Kathy Hochul in December 2023.
Due to the high level of interest in the games, Bailey, a former high school basketball player, and Solages, a former athletic trainer, can have a significant impact on the issues facing the sport in the halls of government.
” We can focus on state issues, national issues, international issues”, Solages said,” but it’s about the everyday moments in people’s lives that are equally as important as those big-ticket items. When someone turns on the channel and doesn’t view their sport or entertainment, it really impacts them. Because it’s not just about losing access. It’s losing those cherished traditions, the joy and camaraderie while these games are being played”.
Anthony Crupi provided additional reporting.