Evoca TV, Altitude carrier, to “discontinue operations” at end of year if it can’t secure additional funding – The Denver Post

Fans may soon lose an option to watch live Avalanche and Nuggets games on television in the Denver metro.

Evoca TV, a television service founded in 2018 that has carried Altitude TV on its platform since January, sent out an email informing subscribers that it will shut down operations Dec. 31 if it is unable to secure more funding.

“We have seen tremendous growth and have thousands of loyal subscribers,” a portion of the email read. “However, this is a difficult economy for a company like ours to raise the funding that we need to grow. Should we be unable to raise more capital, we are sad to say that Evoca TV will discontinue operations and programming on December 31st, 2022.”

Evoca TV is different from other streaming services in that its “Next-Generaton broadcast technology” is accessed through the internet, 5G and traditional broadcast signals. It first began broadcasting Altitude TV last January, providing Denver metro consumers an avenue to access Avalanche, Nuggets, Rapids and Mammoth games.

Altitude TV went dark on all three of Colorado’s largest television providers — Comcast, DirecTV and Dish Network — when its contracts with each carrier lapsed in September 2019. The regional sports network continues to be unavailable on Comcast and Dish, but did come to an agreement with DirecTV in October 2019.

Altitude sued Comcast after they were unable to come to an agreement, alleging violation of antitrust laws. The lawsuit went to mediation earlier this year, but there remains no resolution to the dispute. In October, Altitude launched a public campaign with a roving billboard truck in an attempt to pressure the cable giant into a deal. Still, no movement.

If Evoca TV ends up shutting down, the only local options to access Altitude will be through DirecTV and FuboTV, a sports-first streaming platform that also carries several news, lifestyle and entertainment networks.

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