Dish Network could be nearing a split with sports cable network ESPN over rights fees, reports the New York Post.

Trouble started brewing when ESPN announced a $15.2 billion, eight-year rights extension deal with the NFL for "Monday Night Football," the story says.

The problem is that Dish, which is negotiating a new carriage deal with ESPN, is unwilling to pass along big fee hikes to its satellite-TV customers, the piece says. Instead, Dish wants Disney, which owns ESPN, to offer the sports network on a separate tier from its basic package, the story says.

Dish has already dropped other sports networks, including YES Network and MSG Channels, the piece adds.