OneSoccer began as a streaming service but seeks to extend its reach by getting its live coverage on major cable systems. In a filing with the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, it alleged Rogers is refusing to carry it because it competes with the Rogers-owned Sportsnet channels—and sometimes outperforms them, as when the Canadian men’s team was pushing to qualify for the World Cup. If Rogers concludes its buyout of Shaw, whose cable component the CRTC has already approved, the lack of competition will be even worse, OneSoccer asserted. (The Globe and Mail)

Talking point: Carriage on cable means revenue from subscribers whether they watch or not, and potential viewership that makes a channel more attractive to advertisers. OneSoccer isn’t satisfied with a Rogers offer to include it in Rogers’s Ignite service rather than bundling it with other regular channels, and it wants the CRTC to intervene. The fight is reminiscent of an attempt by the upstart Sun News channel to get mandatory carriage as a news station in basic cable packages, like CBC’s and CTV’s news channels; the CRTC refused and Sun News shut down not long after.