Game 1 of Celtics vs. Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals was a thriller that came down to the wire – but don’t ask YouTube TV subscribers how the game ended.
The streaming platform, which functions as an alternative to cable and broadcasts many of the major networks, had a sudden failure for its TNT broadcast during the closing minutes of Miami’s 123-116 victory.
Fans all across the country got an error message while watching the broadcast, with some even being fed ads for “The Little Mermaid” instead of the game.
“I’ve watched the little mermaid trailer 50 times now, fix your app YouTube tv,” one Twitter user wrote.
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“YouTube TV charging $80/month but is having issues during the Conference Finals!!!!! This is ghetto,” wrote another.
The Heat stole home-court advantage with their series-opening win at TD Garden, riding the momentum of a massive 46-point third quarter and a 35-point performance from Jimmy Butler to victory.
Of course, cord-cutters missed the final moments – and many expressed concern about the product, as it is set to host NFL Sunday Ticket for the first time in the fall after obtaining the rights from DirecTV.
“YouTubeTV really wants us to believe they can handle NFL Sunday Ticket and they can’t even get it together for game 1 of the ECF. Not even game 6 or 7…” a Twitter user commented.
The NFL typically draws viewership up to five times that of the NBA – so if their system can’t handle an influx of basketball viewers, it may become a problem when football season starts in September.
