Telecasts absent on some carriers

What Youtube, Hulu should pay to carry networks is at issue.

Some Braves fans had hoped the start of the season would prompt a deal to make the regional sports networks that televise the team’s games available on two popular streaming ser- vices.

That didn’t happen. The season opened Thursday with Bally Sports South and Bally Sports Southeast — t he networks formerly known as Fox Sports South and Fox Sports Southeast — still not available on YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV. Both of those stream- ing platforms dropped 21 regional sports networks, including the two based in Atlanta, from their TV line- ups in October because of a carriage dispute with the networks’ owner, Sinclair Broadcast Group.

The continuing dispute boils down to a disagree- ment about how much YouTube (owned by Google) and Hulu (owned by Disney) should pay Sinclair to carry the networks.

In response to questions/ complaints from baseball fans during season-opening games Thursday, both Youtube and Hulu posted on social media that they had no update on the matter.

Bally Sports South and Southeast, which also tele- vise Hawks, Dream a nd Atlanta United games, remain off satellite TV provider Dish Network, which dropped them in 2019 in a carriage dispute, and several other streaming services as well.

However, the networks are available on one stream- i ng service: AT&T TV’S “choice” package ($84.99 per month without a contract). They also are available through cable companies, including Comcast’s Xfinity, and satellite TV provider Directv.