Sportsnet jacks up streaming prices in Canada and fans aren’t pleased

As one of the two major sports properties in Canada, tuning into Sportsnet has been a daily routine for many fans across the country since its launch in 1998.

But on Thursday, many fans began wondering exactly what their future with the network would be, given that a sudden price hike was dropped on its consumers.

Subscribers of the Sportsnet+ package — a standalone digital service — found out they were getting a substantial price hike, kicking off in the September billing period.

Both the standard Sportsnet+ deal at $199.99 and the premium package at $249.99 per year were bumped up to $249.99 and $324.99 annually, respectively. Monthly standard packages also saw an increase from $24.99 to $29.99, and the premium packages went from $34.99 to $42.99 per month.

Consumers, as you can imagine, weren’t exactly happy, with social media lighting up over the reported changes to the cost.

Even former NHLer Marc Methot, who made US$33 million over the span of his career, weighed in on the price increase after recently cancelling his family’s subscription and called the price “ridiculous.”

“Sportsnet+ is the most comprehensive live sports streaming experience in Canada. This update reflects that great value for sports fans looking for the best sports content in the country, while remaining competitively priced with other options in the market,” a Sportsnet spokesperson wrote to Offside.

What do Sportsnet+ consumers get?

One of the major properties that the Sportsnet brand produces is the NHL rights in Canada.

The biggest difference between the two tiers of the digital subscription is the existence of out-of-market NHL coverage, with over 1,000 games on the platform.

Rogers stepped up earlier this year to secure the record-setting C$11-billion deal over 12 seasons, starting in 2026, an extension of their current deal.

The current Canadian NHL television rights deal with Sportsnet was set to expire at the end of next season after originally starting in 2013 at a $5.3 billion deal.

Other things on the service include: MLB (including most Toronto Blue Jays games), NBA (including half of the Toronto Raptors games), WNBA, UFC non-PPV events, TGL, Grand Slam of Curling, TNA Wrestling, MotoGP, FA Cup, FA Women’s Super League, United Rugby Championship, Gallagher Premiership. Super League Rugby, National Rugby League, and FIBA events.

A full list of the breakdown of the two tiers and available devices to stream Sportsnet+ on is available on Sportsnet’s website.