Kayo defends price hikes amid technical difficulties, outage that enraged fans

A round of footy marred by technical issues through broadcaster Kayo should have the AFL concerned about the ramifications of extended outages.

The sports streaming service experienced significant issues on Thursday night, with fans locked out of both AFL and NRL games when matches got underway.

Those outages came amid a re-design of the app, which immediately experienced teething issues.

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Various issues continued across the weekend, with many fans taking to social media to express their disappointment.

That outrage has only been fuelled by the service's significant price jump. After sitting at $35 a month for its premium package for multiple years, Kayo jumped to $45.99, meaning if you pay for a full year, you'll be slugged $552.

But for AFL viewers, the problem of technical issues could reach a level beyond annoying, if something was to go wrong on a Saturday.

In the league's new broadcast rights deal, the AFL season is entirely behind a paywall on Saturdays, a move that has been widely panned by fans.

In order to watch the code on a Saturday, you will need a subscription to Kayo or Foxtel, with free-to-air broadcaster Channel Seven now just showing games on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays.

The AFL's new rights deal, which began in 2025, is worth an eye-watering $4.5b, but soon after the deal was signed, Foxtel was sold by News Corp to international streaming company DAZN for $3.4b.

Kayo's price increases have followed since, with reports out of The Age suggesting DAZN isn't particularly keen on footing the bill.

As the start of the 2026 season showed, the streaming service still has its technical issues - as all do.

If these occur on a Saturday, with no secondary television broadcast available, it could be a disaster for the AFL.

Foxtel chief Patrick Delaney spoke with The Age in February about the price hikes, saying it's worth it for the best live sports product in the world.

"It reflects our continuing investment in really quality sports rights. You have got to remember Kayo isn't just any streamer. It's actually probably the best streamer in the world, 50 sports live. No one has got that anywhere in the world. No one in Australia comes anywhere close," Delany said.

"It's one thing to have 50 sports. It's one thing to have the top-tier of AFL, NRL, cricket and motorsports. These things are expensive. But what we have done is maintain great value, and we have kept our baseline price pretty low."

Delaney also stated that most technical issues are generally the fault of the user, as opposed to the streaming service.

"I would say this, most of the issues end up being inside a consumer's home because there is no coincidence between running a 4K livestream of sport and the kids being on their computers and everybody else doing things," he said.

"It's not necessarily because there are a lot of users from our end.

"It's usually because in the home, either the Wi-Fi or the broadband is being stretched. That's not to say we are perfect. That is one of the things in and around streaming, specifically in sports. It's more complicated to stream but, by and large, while we are not perfect, I think we are pretty good, and I would urge people to just check out their home set-ups."

Wide World of Sports contacted Kayo for comment on the technical issues that occurred on Thursday.

"On Thursday night some customers experienced an issue whilst trying to log in for a short period of time. Our teams quickly resolved the issue, ensuring strong viewership across our live sports for the rest of the weekend," a Kayo spokesperson said.

​And regarding the recent price increases.

"While we invest $1 billion every year in sports rights and production which helps sporting leagues and clubs fund participation programs and community facilities, we have worked hard to ensure the monthly subscription for entry level Kayo remains the same at $29.99 per month, ensuring our world leading 50-sports live remains accessible for sport fans, while Premium with two streams remains a great option for families at $45.99 per month.​"

The AFL has gone out of its way to appease both broadcasters, adding value to their $4.5b purchase with the expansion of Opening Round, the return of State of Origin and the introduction of a Wildcard Round.

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