BZZR’s television app, which will allow subscribers to directly stream Rangers games, remains unavailable for some of the largest brands on the market. The app can be downloaded on Apple TV, Fire TV and Chromecast, but for Roku, Samsung or LG users, a wait remains as the second half of the regular season nears and a firm date for its availability has yet to be given.
The Rangers maintain that they’ve used all available resources to accelerate timelines to provide those options for subscribers as they’ve hurried to make this midseason switch after concerns about their former provider’s long-term viability led to an impromptu split. BZZR will stream its first game Friday when the Rangers face the Atlanta Braves.
Those who watch games through DirecTV, Fubo or Spectrum are not impacted by the switch, but those who previously streamed games through Victory+ and are without a BZZR television app available are left with two options to watch games in the interim. They can be streamed directly on BZZR’s website and mobile app, or they can be “cast” from either format onto a Smart TV. Most modern televisions manufactured in the last five years have screen-mirroring capabilities, though the process to do so is less streamlined than a built-in app, and it is trickier for those who’re less technologically adept. The Rangers emailed a step-by-step guide on how to do so with Chromecast and Apple Airplay in an email to subscribers after Wednesday’s switch.
Over 25% of all Victory+ subscribers have transitioned to BZZR since Wednesday’s announcement, per a team official, and only 3-5% of them required additional assistance to do so.
The availability concerns have caused some subscribers to demand refunds, but because those payments were made directly to Victory+ and not the Rangers, the team said that it has “requested that V+ make refunds to subscribers as requested and appropriate” in a social media post. The Rangers transitioned seasonlong Victory+ subscriptions to BZZR at no cost. Victory+ did not respond to a request for comment on the matter of refunds, but in a separate prepared statement, thanked Rangers fans for their “enthusiasm and support.”
“Victory+ congratulates the Rangers on this next chapter and sincerely thanks the Rangers organization for the opportunity to partner together to provide a service during a time when fans were looking for an answer,” the statement read. “Most importantly, we thank Rangers fans, whose enthusiasm and support helped make the partnership a success.”
Rangers broadcasts averaged over 100,000 viewers per game on Victory+ last year, but due to concerns about the financial solvency of its parent company and the platform’s long-term viability, the club severed ties after 1 1/2 seasons to ensure that games will be streamed without interference for the remainder of this season. Per Sports Business Journal, which reported that the Anaheim Ducks left the platform soon after the Rangers did, Victory+ “has had trouble making its minimum guarantee payments to teams in multiple leagues.”