Last week, I wrote about the fact that Major League Baseball is hiring an executive whose role will primarily be to oversee local broadcasts. The point, in a Sports Business Journal article cited in the link above:
MLB has already begun looking into creating a national product that would combine its local rights with its out-of-market Extra Innings package — an effort that would eliminate blackouts.
This is what every baseball fan wants, of course – the ability to watch any game from anywhere, regardless of location. Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts touched on this in an article by Meghan Montemurro in the Tribune over the weekend:
“The regional sports network ecosystem is under some pressure as people cut cords with cable,” Ricketts said. “I know the league is watching him very, very closely. I think the league also understands that some of these blackout policies don’t really serve the purpose they started a long time ago.
“Ultimately, I hope the league will create a system where any fan can watch any game anywhere. But there are legacy systems that we will have to work out.”
Tom Ricketts is absolutely right about string cutting and the pressure on the RSN system, and you can tell by that quote that the Cubs and MLB are well aware of this. It’s not like they ignore your cries of “no blackouts!”
Ricketts also talked about “legacy systems,” and that’s where I’m going to start, at the beginning of the cable television sports era, which began in the early 1980s. Yes, this is a history lesson, but it’s important to what’s happening now, so pull up a chair.
The local cable sports era began with channels such as WGN-TV, WTBS (Atlanta), WOR/WWOR (New York) and WSBK (Boston) being carried locally from their respective teams (Cubs, Braves, Mets, Reds Sox) from national cable and satellite distributors. This is what so many of you remember, being able to turn on your cable TV back then and watch up to about 145 games of your favorite team, in this case the Cubs. It is, as Ricketts said in the Tribune article, one reason the Cubs have such a huge national fan base:
“It definitely allowed the Cubs to be a national team,” Ricketts said. “We still have those fans. They have to get those games on the MLB package or somewhere else. So I don’t know that there will be a way to go back to that kind of special arrangement.”
There is no such way. Television is not used the same way now as it was in the 1980s, or even the 1990s, when regional sports networks began to emerge, emphasis on the word “regional.” That’s why this map was created:
That carved the USA into territories where RSN’s had exclusive rights to games. The reason why you were shunned if you didn’t live in the area, as some believed, was not to try and make you drive to a football ground five hours away and buy a ticket to the game. No, that was because if you (say) live in Iowa, split between six different teams (Cubs, White Sox, Brewers, Cardinals, Royals, Twins), you were supposed to get on the phone and call your cable/satellite provider and tell them to carry whatever RSN your team was on.
For a while, this actually worked. But as time went by, the amount of money RSN was asking for became more than cable/satellite providers were willing to pay. Cable/satellite bills were getting bigger, people started cutting the cord, and so there was even less reason for many local cable/satellite providers to carry RSN’s.
The Cubs were quite late to the RSN revolution, partly because the city of Chicago was one of the last major cities to go cable. Although some Chicagoland viewers had cable in the 1970s and most by the early 1980s, the city itself didn’t get cable until 1988. That’s why the White Sox’s creation of a local RSN called SportsChannel didn’t work. Co-owner Eddie Einhorn, who was from New York, had made SportsChannel work there – but for more teams and with greater cable penetration. It didn’t work in Chicago.
The Cubs didn’t have their first cable channel game until 1998, when Fox SportsNet began carrying Cubs games in metro Chicago and the Cubs market territory as shown on the map above. In 1997, WGN-TV still showed 143 games nationally; that dropped to 92 in 1998 and between 2000 and 2014, the number of Cubs games on cable varied between about 60 and 70 per year on FSN Chicago and its successor channels, Comcast SportsNet Chicago and NBC Sports Chicago.
Around this time MLB.TV was created, in 2002, to allow out-of-market fans to watch their favorite team. Twenty years later, this system still exists. If you live in a team’s market territory, you watch them on your team’s RSN – there are almost no games on broadcast TV anymore. The Cubs were one of the last teams to broadcast a significant number of OTA games, from 2015-19 carrying 70 OTA games on WGN-TV and ABC7 Chicago. Note that even though those OTA games were on WGN-TV, those were only local to Chicago. WGN America, the rebranded sports “superstation” dropped entirely by 2014. This confused some out-of-market fans who heard games were going to be broadcast on “WGN” and said, “Well, I get WGN, where are the games?” The “WGN” that the out-of-market fans watched was a completely different channel than WGN-TV in Chicago.
At the time WGN’s national contract expired, the Cubs announced a five-year deal for those games on WGN and ABC7 and said that after it expired, they were going to create their own channel.
Enter the Marquee Sports Network. In 2020, which, of course, was probably the worst time ever to launch such a channel, in the middle of a pandemic and with an empty ballpark, a 60-game season.
But the channel persevered, and for the past two years it has broadcast about 150 Cubs games.
Let me make a little aside right now to the main point of this article, and then I’ll come back to it. Some have told me that “Marquee promised to put every Cubs game in one place and they didn’t.” No, no they didn’t, if you think so you’ve misunderstood. Contractually, there are Cubs games (and games for all 29 other MLB teams) carried by national networks, including Fox, ESPN, YouTube, Apple TV+ and Peacock. Local RSNs, including the Big Marquee, cannot carry these games. It does not break any “promises” made. In 2022, the Big Ten carried 146 of the Cubs’ 162 games, which is about par for the course. We would expect around that in 2023 with the others going to the services indicated above.
That being said, yes, it is a problem for Major League Baseball to ask people to subscribe to multiple streaming/cable channels to watch games. They got their money up front, so I’m not sure MLB really cares about that. Granted and determined.
Now let’s talk about how the Tabernacle is distributed, and with that I’ll refer you once again to this map (and also post it again to break a wall of text!):
If you live in the market territories designated as “Chicago (Both),” which includes the Cubs and White Sox, you’ll get access to Marquee Sports Network programming – live games and other programming from the channel – by subscribing to it through your cable or satellite provider. At the moment, my understanding is that Pabell Fawr is carried in around 92 per cent of the market and here is a list of providers within the market. That includes streaming via DirecTV STREAM and fuboTV.
If you live outside the “Chicago (Both)” market territory, you must watch Cubs games via MLB.TV (online) or MLB Extra Innings (cable/satellite). That still watches Marquee programming, but it doesn’t subscribe to the channel itself, and only features live games, and in some cases pre- and post-game shows (you’ll see the latter is entered at login).
Currently, the only way to watch Marquee’s non-game programs outside the “Chicago (Both)” market territory is by subscribing to DirecTV, because last May the channel and DirecTV reached a national carriage agreement. Specifically, as stated in that article:
All Marquee programming is now available to everyone with a DIRECTV subscription, except for live Cubs games (and live Chicago Sky WNBA games). For live games outside the Cubs market territory, you will still have to subscribe to MLB.TV or MLB Extra Innings, even if you are a DIRECTV subscriber. DIRECTV will continue to carry live Cubs games on Marquee Sports Network on Channel 664 to those authorized subscribers who reside within the Cubs market territory.
Marquee is working to carry non-game programming with other national providers, as has been done by the Yankees IE Network. But as noted above, even if you have a provider that carries that programming but you’re outside the Cubs market territory, you’d still have to subscribe to MLB.TV or MLB Extra innings for live games.
Now, on to streaming. Some teams, mainly those with deals with Bally Sports RSNs, have already started over-the-top streaming arrangements. That means a cord cutter within his market territory can watch the team’s games by subscribing to the Bally Sports streaming service. Here’s how it works for the Royals, and for the Red Sox and here are general FAQs about those types of services. Like any other streaming app, you pay a monthly fee and you get the service – in this case, it would be watching everything the channel carries as long as you’re in the market.
That’s what Marquee wants to do. Basically, if you’re a cord cutter, you could still get live Marquee programming and games by signing up for Marquee’s streaming service, once they launch, for a monthly fee — but only if you’re in the ” Chicago (Both). )” market territory shown above. If you are outside the market territory you must still watch games on MLB.TV or MLB Extra Innings.
The Red Sox app listed above costs $30 per month. Bally Sports Plus costs $20 per month. Figure it would be somewhere in that range for the “Marquee Plus” streaming app. Remember, if this existed and you subscribed to it, you could only do it during the season and it could cost you about $150, which is basically the cost of MLB.TV.
That’s how it would work if Marquee launched a streaming app, and they’ve been working on it for almost a year. I wouldn’t be surprised if such a streaming app “Tent Plus” (or whatever they end up calling it) launches before the 2023 season begins.
And remember the quote from the Sports Business Journal above:
MLB has already begun looking into creating a national product that would combine its local rights with its out-of-market Extra Innings package — an effort that would eliminate blackouts.
It’s taken a while, and as Tom Ricketts says these are “legacy” deals that need to be unwound, but I think MLB actually gets it when it comes to blackouts – and I remember asking to Rob Manfred myself, at a Cactus League media day event, about those and his first words were, “I hate blackouts”—hey, look, something we can all agree on with the MLB Commissioner. In my opinion, it won’t be too long before you will, in fact, be able to watch any game anywhere without blackouts.
Yes, it will cost you. That, obviously, is the name of the MLB game. But it’s going to happen, and sooner rather than later.
What is the best live TV streaming service?
Which streaming service gives you live TV?
What is the best way to stream live TV for free?
The best free live TV streaming services To see also : Column: Footy, anyone? Niche fans cheer sports from afar.
- Pluto TV – Most free live news, hundreds of free content channels.
- Tubi’s 50,000 free shows and movies, free live news and sports channels.
- Sling Free – ABC News, CBS News, and Newsy plus dozens of free content channels.
- Roku Channel – Good variety of free content, free live news channels.
What is the most affordable live streaming service?
The cheapest live TV services for cord cutters are the free ones: Pluto TV and Xumo. See the article : Like Netflix, it’s also scary – Tuesday’s earnings report could be bad news. There are paid ones that cost very little, like Philo, Frndly TV, and Sling (especially the individual Blue or Orange plans).
What is the best live TV streaming service with local channels?
The best streaming services for local channels are Sling TV, Fubo TV, Hulu with Live TV, and DirecTV. There are also four other services that we will get to in this article. To see also : Online sports betting guide, terms, promotions, boosters, strategy: how to bet on football, golf and baseball. We hope this will be the most complete guide on how to get local channels on streaming services.
Does Hulu have regional sports networks?
Regional sports networks are determined by your Home location, and local affiliate networks are based on your physical location. This means that when streaming on-the-go with your mobile devices, you can keep up with your hometown sports teams as well as check the local news and weather.
Which streaming service has regional sports? NBC Sports regional networks (RSNs) will soon begin streaming on Peacock.
Can you watch regional sports on Hulu?
Yes, Hulu streams games from the top local, regional and national sports, as well as the major leagues. In March 2022, the offer expanded to include ESPN Plus, unlocking even more sports content.
Does Hulu have local sports channels?
Can I watch local sports and news in my area? Hulu Live TV subscribers can watch college football games on NBC, CBS, ABC, BTN, FOX, FS1, CBS, and ESPN. Click here to see which local and national channels are available to watch live in your area.
Does Hulu have regional sports fee?
Many Major League Baseball games air on regional sports networks, and these are not included in the Hulu Live TV plan. You also won’t have access to the MLB Network. However, you will be able to watch nationally televised games on ESPN, ESPN2, Fox, FS1, or TBS.
How do I get Marquee Sports Network without cable?
- DIRECTIONAL STREAM.
- FuboTV.
- Hulu Live TV.
- TV sling. Knockout stage. Final Rounds.
Can I subscribe directly to a marquee network? Users must subscribe to a cable or streaming package that includes the Marquee Sports Network and log into the app using their provider’s credentials. For more streaming and app questions, including troubleshooting tips and technical support, visit the Marquee Sports Network Streaming FAQ Page.
Is Marquee Network on Amazon Prime?
Marquee TV has announced its US launch on Amazon’s Prime Video Channels, the premier destination for subscription third-party networks and streaming channels. This platform will be the first and only Premier Video Channel dedicated exclusively to multi-genre performing arts.
What is the cheapest way to get Marquee Sports Network?
Watch Marquee Sports Network with Fubo TV So you’re looking for the cheapest way to stream Marquee Sports Network, Fubo TV might be your best bet.
What streaming service carries marquee network?
Marquee Sports Network is available on more than 50 cable providers in parts of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Wisconsin, as well as on the streaming platforms DIRECTV STREAM (formerly AT&T TV) and FuboTV for those consumers without traditional cable.
Who carries the marquee network?
The Marquee Sports Network is available in the Cubs’ home television territory in parts of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Wisconsin, and is carried on DIRECTV, U-verse TV, and more than 50 cable providers, as well as DIRECTV STREAM streaming platforms (formerly AT&T). Television) and fuboTV.
Does Hulu include a marquee network? No, Hulu Live does not offer Marquee Sports Network in its streaming channel.
Is Marquee Network on Amazon Prime?
Marquee TV has announced its US launch on Amazon’s Prime Video Channels, the premier destination for subscription third-party networks and streaming channels. This platform will be the first and only Premier Video Channel dedicated exclusively to multi-genre performing arts.
What streaming service has marquee?
The Fubo Pro plan lets you stream 111 channels including Marquee Sports Network and ESPN, NBCSN, FS1, or Bravo for 69.99. The Fubo Elite plan lets you stream 155 channels including Marquee Sports Network and ESPN, MLB Network, NBA TV, or NHL Network for 79.99.
