Sports Media

[Philsmania]

It is interesting how NBC Universal is the one broadcast entity that seems to be contracting--spinning off Verant, splitting with Comcast--while the others are rapidly expanding. News Corp/Fox buying Roku (a few years after selling 20th Century Fox studio and all non-sports and non-news cable channels) and the Paramount-WBD mega merger. Disney has no plans to spin off cable channels like NBC Universal did with the now-Versant channels and Paramount has no plans to do so with the plethora of channels they will own. I wonder why NBCU is seemingly shrinking.

[andyb]

The rights are not really with ESPN+ but more with MLB.TV. You can just subscribe over ESPN also.

The Nationals here are probably the basic model. $99 seasonal streaming package. A couple of the larger cable systems (Comcast and FIOS) have a dedicated Nationals channel that is active around games but does not show much other content other than repeats.

I think they had to offer this because they all had something like a $15 regional sports fee that got them both Monumental and MASN. They were not going to cut that fee so they had to create a cable channel.

Going forward I assume all the teams will be able to offer some games on cable or broadcast channels but you can also stream directly. Eventually it is probably 100% streaming but we are still years away from that.

I just wonder if a channel like NBC Sports Philly can survive if the sports rights revert back to the team.

[zambonir]

I think there are a few teams that put a small number of games OTA (as do the Phillies of course but that's still part of their RSN deal).

From what Gelb is saying NBC might just go away before Manfred even has to get the rights. No doubt that is part of their calculation, that it's coming. I'm sure teams like the Phillies and Dodgers are expecting that revenue to be replaced at least in part if it does happen, whether in a lump sum or because the share is higher.

[andyb]

I think there is a Milwaukee quote that they lost about 20% of their RSN revenue with the switch to an internal channel. Assume that would be the percentage cut the Phillies would face too.

The trick is for MLB to promote the streaming packages in a way that does not decrease revenue. That actually might require lower prices and more OTA games. They need viewers to sell ads and jerseys, etc. It needs to be a low priced garden not a high priced one.

This article summarizes the Gelb piece and adds a little context. Of course NBC going away is a Sixers and Flyers question too.

NBC Sports RSNs could be next to exit regional sports business

[zambonir]

Brewers said they lost $20 million. But their original TV deal was surely a lot smaller, and it had also expired in 2024. So that loss was just from their 2025 deal versus this year. Phillies still have a lot of years and $ coming from both NBC and their cut of the network.

What I don't really understand is why NBC still owns the Flyers, other than sentiment (which I do know is true). With the Flyers and Sixers now partnered up, starting a new Philly channel might be viable, if it suits the Phillies to somehow factor that in to the new leaguewide rights model.

AA story is interesting. Basically predicts someone will buy NBCU and then shutter the RSNs because that's not of any real value versus the other stuff.

[andyb]

Definitely reading too much of this site this morning. Sunday is NBC/Peacock day. It looks like the Phillies will still air on NBCSN. My question is whether YTTV picks up alternate feeds of NBCSN because I don't think these games will be on MLB.TV.

Announcers revealed for NBC Sports' 15-game MLB 'Star-Spangled Sunday'

Edit - I do see the game on my YTTV calendar as airing on NBCSN extra so I am good.

[schillingfan]

My biggest issue would be thwt MLB not blackout games like they do now.

[andyb]

My biggest issue would be thwt MLB not blackout games like they do now.

That is one of the big reasons they want to pool all the RSNs. The blackout rules are just dumb in today's streaming world.

I think they have one national package with/without local rights. More national games split off as well. Blackouts just need to go. I assume each area will be one or two teams' region but no longer be the region of teams from multiple cities like you get in New Jersey or the midwest (Iowa).

Things need to be simpler for consumers. They won't be less expensive, just simpler.

[EastFallowfield]

Why do you get different ads on the mlb stream if you look at it with a TV vs a phone in the same house with the same internet and same account?

[xogfog]

Double the revenue stream for the Phillies.

[zambonir]

I think it's just like web ads, they come off of a third-party server and are constantly changing/dynamic. But it's possible they sell (and charge a different rate) for different apps. Even ads themselves are pretty new, used to just be nothing because they didn't have the technology to insert their own ads instead of the local feed. On MLB app radio you still just hear what's on WIP.

[Philsmania]

It's also possible that NBCU is splitting of Comcast/XFinity because cable TV is a slowly-dying industry, aside from essentially becoming primarily an ISP.

Some suspect that Comcast may now target Charter/Spectrum to become an ISP giant to compete more strongly with Verizon while NBCU could either acquired by either Netflix, Amazon or Apple though all three also have reasons not to buy it or NBCU could itself instead target Sony in keeping with the pattern of studio consolidation.

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/30/business/media/comcast-nbcuniversal-merger-acquisition-charter-netflix.html

[andyb]

More likely there is just an algorithm that serves you one of about 100 different ads and the algorithm just operates independently on different apps. And those apps might have different inventories of ads.

Ads can be personally addressed these days. When you get a political ad that is more likely. For more normal ads though they are just targeting a demographic and they are guaranteed a certain number of impressions or ads served for the cost.

There is just no single feed of ads any more.

[BostonRoss]

When streaming games via either MLB video or audio, the same ads appear during every break. For someone who watches/listens to a lot of games, the repetitiveness is very annoying. Ads over conventional TV and radio are redundant, too, but not to the same extent. I make the effort to mute or skip commercials whenever possible, way more than I have done with conventional media.

I know that advertisers have studies showing that repeating messages is effective, I must be an exception, because I tend to avoid patronizing companies whose ads annoy me.

[andyb]

When streaming games via either MLB video or audio, the same ads appear during every break.

Those are untargeted ads similar to what they used to call "run of schedule" ads in radio. Basically you sell as many ads as you can for the highest price. Then you sell any remaining ads to people that have purchased that backup inventory for much less. They are not guaranteed specific placement. Just that a volume of ads will run.

MLB can certainly do a better job of diversifying those backup ads. They even have the ability to vary them by individual user. They don't because they are lazy or figure they don't make extra money by doing it unfortunately.

[zambonir]

Yeah it's just not a very robust ad market, nor originally an ad-supported product. I mostly just remember the MLB logo and generic music and in-house MLB ads before I moved back to Philly.

And it's not like the NBC Philly TV ads are that high-end either. Cure Auto and local car dealers.

[andyb]

Maybe ESPN has no intention of staying in the baseball media game?

ESPN expected to lay off Karl Ravech after three decades on air: Sources

Guessing this about finding somebody younger and cheaper, but I always thought he was pretty good for a national baseball announcer.

[EastFallowfield]

I'd have reduced the booth to one color guy first, no need for 3 yakkers even on a random Monday night LAD/PHI game.

[Philsmania]

Maybe ESPN has no intention of staying in the baseball media game?

Karl Ravech, Tom Pelissero among those laid off by ESPN in latest round of cuts:...

Guessing this about finding somebody younger and cheaper, but I always thought he was pretty good for a national baseball announcer.

Pre-MLB Network, Ravech used to be the MC for most of the stuff in Cooperstown on HOF Induction Weekend. Now, MLB has Brian Kenney doing it.

[EastFallowfield]

And in lighter news, someone tweeted about Kruk needing to wear a suit for a national broadcast this weekend.

Who cares if the TV guys are wearing suits?