MSG Networks on Friday introduced a take care of its lender JPMorgan that permits the regional sports activities channel to keep away from chapter — and probably pave the best way for a merger with the YES Community.
Below phrases of the out-of-court debt restructuring, MSGN — which carries the Knicks, Rangers, Islanders, Devils, Sabres and Gotham FC — slashes a JPMorgan mortgage to $210 million from greater than $800 million.
In trade, Knicks proprietor James Dolan — whose Sphere Leisure owns and controls MSGN — has agreed to scale back the rights charges that MSGN pays the Knicks and Rangers, growing the community’s skill to make its curiosity cost, the sources mentioned.
Sphere’s shares on Friday have been lately up 10% at $29 on the information. The corporate confirmed the information, which was solely reported by The Submit on Thursday, in securities filings earlier than the market open.
MSG and YES — which airs the Yankees and Brooklyn Nets — now companion on the Gotham Sports activities App, with entry to each networks costing $41.99 a month. Clients also can elect to pay $29.99 a month for MSG or $24.99 a month for YES.
MSGN had confronted a deadline at midnight Monday to keep away from chapter, and acquired an extension to Thursday because the community and financial institution feverishly tried to hammer out a truce.
After the JPMorgan restructuring, Dolan is prone to begin advertising MSGN on the market, sources mentioned. With this new lighter debt package deal and decrease media rights charges, Dolan hopes to have a better time discovering a purchaser.
The cable community was dropping cash partly as a result of it paid $187 million in 2025 to broadcast Knicks and Rangers video games as a part of a 20-year settlement that ended in 2035, based on public filings.
On the open market, a cable community would pay significantly much less for these rights because of cord-cutting, sources mentioned.
Now, the Knicks charges get lowered by 28% and the media contract solely runs till the tip of the 2028-29 season, and the Rangers charges get lowered by 18% and in addition finish after 2028-29, based on Friday’s public submitting.
The individually traded Madison Sq. Backyard Sports activities that owns the Knicks and Rangers will get a 19.9% stake in MSG Networks in return.
MSGN had been in default since October however had not been put in chapter.
JPMorgan was in a tricky spot, since if it put MSG Networks in chapter, the MSGN media rights contract with the Knicks and Rangers may have been terminated, and if a 3rd occasion then negotiated for these rights, MSGN with out them would have been practically nugatory.
