Rogers recently announced that the annual subscription to watch hockey has been increased from $250 to $325 – after already increasing it from $200 to $250 in January. There has been an outpouring of rage by workers against Rogers – social media critical of Rogers is going viral.
Despite big layoffs recently Rogers is not in financial trouble, reporting $20.6 Billion in revenue in 2024. They even own the Blue Jays and 75% of the Maple Leafs. Rogers just recently signed a contract for near-exclusive rights to cover the NHL in Canada for $11 Billion. ‘Near-exclusive’ because other platforms get just enough coverage to ensure that you can never simply put the game on. Coming home from work and putting on the hockey “to relax” is a miserable experience of channel-flipping, frantic internet searches to figure out where the game is covered, and shameless prompts for subscriptions – and that’s before you get the “premium” experience of coverage blackouts and sports betting ads. Moved across the country for work or school? Work a night shift? Get ready to pay extra to follow your team abroad or catch up later!
Ultimately, hockey is not that important. It’s not essential to survival for workers, but even in the world of circuses – not bread – the corporations flaunt their greediness and disdain for the working class. Workers are mad that they are getting massively gouged for a terrible service that barely works, with no recourse other than not watching hockey. Talking with coworkers and friends, they want to force an end to Rogers’ greed. Capitalism is creating its own gravediggers!
I am going to find free online streams and use the money saved for more revolutionary books. Workers are coming to an even better solution to this problem:
Expropriate the bosses!
