YouTube TV insists NFL Sunday Ticket buffering problems have been fixed
In its first year of hosting NFL Sunday Ticket, YouTube TV has already encountered some errors. In Week 8, the streaming service encountered multiple outages, causing frustration among football fans.
YouTube’s global head of media and sports partnerships, Lori Conkling, suggested that those issues have been resolved. Moving forward, fans should be able to watch games without any problems.
“It’s completely mitigated,” Conkling said, per Sports Illustrated. “People can have confidence in this Sunday, but it is top of mind for us that we are responsible for delivering the exceptional experience that we have promised to our viewers. So we take that very seriously, and we have done everything possible to ensure it does not happen again.”
This year marks NFL Sunday Ticket‘s first on YouTube TV. Previously, the league had a deal with DirecTV as the soul provider of the package. It wasn’t uncommon for the company to experience issues in previous seasons, especially as streaming became more prominent.
NFL fans spend a good chunk of change on the service to watch as many games as possible. It’s understandable that they’d be frustrated when YouTube TV experiences technical difficulties. Hopefully, the issues have truly been fixed and fans won’t have to worry about this in Week 9 … or any other week.
NFL Sunday Ticket jumped to YouTube TV before 2023 season
The rights to Sunday Ticket were previously owned by DirecTV, which paid the NFL $1.5 billion annually. The package allowed subscribers to access games that are not televised in their local market. It also offered the popular RedZone Channel, which alternates between games to show key plays such as touchdowns and turnovers.
“We’re excited to bring NFL Sunday Ticket to YouTube TV and YouTube Primetime Channels and usher in a new era of how fans across the United States watch and follow the NFL,” league commissioner Roger Goodell said in a release. “For a number of years we have been focused on increased digital distribution of our games and this partnership is yet another example of us looking towards the future and building the next generation of NFL fans.”
“YouTube has long been a home for football fans, whether they’re streaming live games, keeping up with their home team, or watching the best plays in highlights,” said Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube. “Through this expanded partnership with the NFL, viewers will now also be able to experience the game they love in compelling and innovative ways through YouTube TV or YouTube Primetime Channels. We’re excited to continue our work with the NFL to make YouTube a great place for sports lovers everywhere.”
Since NFL Sunday Ticket’s launch in 1994, it has been an exclusive product for DirecTV’s satellite service.
On3’s Nikki Chavanelle contributed to this story.