Update: You can read the full letter to FCC Chairman Carr here.
Sports streaming was supposed to make live games easier to watch. Instead, it has become a maze of subscriptions, price hikes and corporate consolidation, and now lawmakers want the FCC to step in.
According to Front Office Sports, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Pat Ryan are preparing a letter to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr urging the agency to use its “broad authority” to scrutinize the rising cost of sports streaming and the shrinking number of places fans can actually find the games they want to watch. Their push comes as the FCC’s Media Bureau is already collecting comments in MB Docket No. 26-45 on sports broadcasting practices and marketplace developments. The public notice says there has been a surge in games moving behind streaming paywalls and asks whether the shift is helping or hurting consumers, broadcasters, and access to free over-the-air sports and news.
The timing is notable. The FCC says it wants feedback on how fragmentation is affecting consumers and whether it is making it harder for broadcasters to meet their public-interest obligations, including local news and public safety information. Front Office Sports also reported that the docket had drawn more than 8,000 public comments, many from viewers frustrated by how expensive and confusing sports viewing has become. The comment deadline has already passed, but reply comments are due April 13, 2026.
According to FOS, Sen. Warren and Rep. Ryan wrote that “anticompetitive practices and corporate greed” have forced fans to pay more to follow their favorite teams, while citing that NFL games are “scattered” across 10 different platforms and networks. Additionally, the report notes that the lawmakers wrote that mergers, highlighting Disney’s Hulu + Live TV and Fubo, have led to “decreased competition in the sports streaming market.”
This is not a brand-new fight. In 2024, lawmakers warned the Department of Justice that the proposed Venu Sports joint venture between Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery could control more than 80% of nationally broadcast sports and more than half of all national sports content, giving the companies too much power over prices and competition. That venture was eventually scrapped in January 2025, with the companies saying they would not move forward with the service.
Subscriptions Increase As Sports Go Digital
In their forthcoming letter, FOS notes that the lawmakers also expressed concerns about the MLB.TV-ESPN dynamic. Since the ESPN app is the official streaming home of MLB.TV, including out-of-market MLB games and select local rights, the lawmakers wrote that they have “additional concerns about a lack of competition that could lead to the entities limiting fans’ access to the games they want to watch on television or via streaming, while increasing the overall cost for access to those games,” per the report. They also wrote that the deal “raises serious concerns about potential downstream effects on consumers and competitors.”
That broader concern continues to grow as more sports go digital and media giants merge. Last week, Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery outlined plans to integrate CBS Sports and TNT Sports in the third quarter of 2026 if their broader merger clears regulators. The latest sign that sports rights and sports networks continue to move toward larger corporate combinations.
At the same time, March Madness has shown just how valuable live sports still are to streamers. CBS Sports and TNT Sports said the 2026 NCAA Tournament opened with its most-watched first-round opening day ever, with 9.8 million viewers across CBS, TNT, TBS, and truTV, while Paramount+ and HBO Max simulstreamed the action.
For fans, the problem is not just consolidation. It is the cost spiral that has followed it. Netflix raised U.S. prices again in March, lifting its ad-supported plan to $8.99, its Standard plan to $19.99, and its Premium plan to $26.99, marking its second increase in just over a year. This comes after the streaming giant has increased its sports inventory over recent years with live NFL games, WWE content, boxing spectacles, MLB events, and the return of Rhonda Rousey and Gina Carano in an upcoming MMA superfight.
Other streamers have increased pricing while expanding their sports lineups as well. NBCU’s Peacock raised prices in July 2025, boosting Premium to $10.99 and Premium Plus to $16.99 while also testing a new cheaper tier. That price increase came months before the NBA returned to NBC after a two-decade absence. Plus, Peacock has strengthened its Sunday night lineup with Sunday Night Baseball and 60+ MLB games this season.
Last year, Paramount+ added the UFC in a massive seven-year, $7.7 billon deal, boosting the CBS Sports roster, which includes college sports, NFL, WNBA, PGA Tour, Zuffa Boxing, and others. With the company investing in its streaming service, subscribers did see a price hike on January 15, with the Essential and Premium plans increasing $1 each.
Many have become frustrated with the fragmentation across the sports landscape. A live sports fan today may need an antenna for some games, a streaming subscription for others, and yet another service for a different league or regional matchup. That is why the Warren-Ryan push may resonate with so many cord cutters.
The FCC’s own notice acknowledges that games are increasingly spread across multiple video distribution platforms, making it harder for consumers to navigate the sports landscape. An analysis by Reboot Online predicts that subscription services will increase 70% by 2035. What used to be simple is now expensive, fragmented, and constantly changing.
According to FOS, the letter closed by urging the Commission to act “to protect sports fans from growing consolidation” and to promote competition in sports media. For now, the lawmakers’ letter has not been published publicly at the time of publication, but the message is already clear. Washington is paying closer attention to the sports streaming boom as fans question why it costs so much to watch sports now, and how many subscriptions are too many.
Credit: Front Office Sports