Collapse of Regional Sports Networks (Diamond Sports Group files bankruptcy, Warner-Discovery looking to leave business, Xfinity drops Bally)

[Golden_Jet]

That's all well and good, but the fact is that's not remotely acceptable for most of the general viewing audience. And even for fans that like in effect taped delay live broadcasts to skip the ads as you both described, that's an option available for folks that join mid-broadcast and choose the start from beginning option already.

Choosing from start in midstream of a game does not allow skipping, if you’re going to do that, need to prerecord.

and if I’m watching a game, where I don’t need to watch commercials, I have zero need to go on a sports website, or use my phone, my concentration is on the game.
The only reason I’d be browsing is cause of the commercials.
Plus I save an hour of my time, to watch something else, or do something else.
It’s a win win scenario.

Why is not remotely acceptable for most viewers?

Are saying that because their addicted to their phones?

 

[No Fun Shogun]

Yes? People are absolutely addicted to their phones and the internet and that's becoming even more pronounced in the sports world with the degenerate spread of gambling into it. Give the sports audience an option between a live broadcast and something that's delayed more than just a handful of seconds, and you'll get almost everyone choosing the former over the latter barring extenuating circumstances like time zones and inopportune live viewing times.

 

[Golden_Jet]

Yes? People are absolutely addicted to their phones and the internet and that's becoming even more pronounced in the sports world with the degenerate spread of gambling into it. Give the sports audience an option between a live broadcast and something that's delayed more than just a handful of seconds, and you'll get almost everyone choosing the former over the latter barring extenuating circumstances like time zones and inopportune live viewing times.

That’s their problem then, I’ve converted so many to recording and starting late, at least the smart ones, I converted.

Time is money, so wasting an extra hour on a sporting event is dumb, unless you like to watch commercials.
If a NASCAR race, tennis, or some other long sport then I can save 2 hours.

Anyways enjoy your commercials, as no converting you it looks like.

 

[AtlantaWhaler]

That’s their problem then, I’ve converted so many to recording and starting late, at least the smart ones, I converted.

Time is money, so wasting an extra hour on a sporting event is dumb, unless you like to watch commercials.
If a NASCAR race, tennis, or some other long sport then I can save 2 hours.

Anyways enjoy your commercials, as no converting you it looks like.

I totally agree that recording and starting later is key.

However, the discussion started with the Bally's app not showing live games and replays not aired until the next morning. That may be where he's coming from.

 

[Golden_Jet]

I totally agree that recording and starting later is key.

However, the discussion started with the Bally's app not showing live games and replays not aired until the next morning. That may be where he's coming from.

Thanks for the info, if that’s the case, I’d be finding something different then to watch games.
That would be unacceptable for me.

 

[AtlantaWhaler]

Thanks for the info, if that’s the case, I’d be finding something different then to watch games.
That would be unacceptable for me.

Totally agree. The app, here in Atlanta, does show Hawks games live. But, for whatever reason (probably something in the contract where Bally's would have to pay the MLB a boatload), it only shows replays of Braves the following morning.

Not a chance I'm paying $20/month for that mess.

 

[timekeep]

That’s their problem then, I’ve converted so many to recording and starting late, at least the smart ones, I converted.

Time is money, so wasting an extra hour on a sporting event is dumb, unless you like to watch commercials.
If a NASCAR race, tennis, or some other long sport then I can save 2 hours.

Anyways enjoy your commercials, as no converting you it looks like.

I thought this was a younger generation thing, watching TV on their phones. I travelled with a business colleague recently and mentioned how crappy our TV stations selections were, he said he doesn't even turn on the TV. He has YouTube TV, I think, and watches on his cell phone. He is mid 40s. I guess I'm getting old. I have watched movies on my phone before but if it was any good ended up rerunning them once home on the big TV.

 

[DieSendungmitderMaus]

Choosing from start in midstream of a game does not allow skipping, if you’re going to do that, need to prerecord.

and if I’m watching a game, where I don’t need to watch commercials, I have zero need to go on a sports website, or use my phone, my concentration is on the game.
The only reason I’d be browsing is cause of the commercials.
Plus I save an hour of my time, to watch something else, or do something else.
It’s a win win scenario.

Why is not remotely acceptable for most viewers?

Are saying that because their addicted to their phones?

I don't exactly have hard data to back this up, but a big reason why people like watching sports is talking about it, the feeling of sharing the moment etc.- just look at GDTs here or how active twitter is during sporting events. It's a social experience and purposely living under a rock for a live game or even longer to watch it on tape delay takes a huge part of the enjoyment out of it. If watching a game on your own is how you enjoy it that's perfect for starting late or tape delaying, it's just not how a large part if any sports fanbase wants to take it in.

 

[SirJW]

The saga continues.

Comcast Has Reportedly Ended Talks with Bally Sports, Forcing An Emergency Bankruptcy Court Hearing Today | Cord Cutters News

Last month, Comcast dropped the regional sports networks (RSNs) Bally Sports from its lineup. According to Bally Sports, Comcast wanted to move the network to a more expensive package. This move could result in Bally Sports not being able to move forward. Now Comcast and Bally Sports have ended...

cordcuttersnews.com

Judge Pushes Diamond Sports, Leagues to End Disclosure Fight

As attorneys representing the NHL, NBA and MLB have come to realize, pay-TV operators aren't big on sharing their contractual data.

www.sportico.com

 

[LadyStanley]

Nashville Predators exploring TV options for 2024-25 amid Diamond Sports Group bankruptcy | Source

The Nashville Predators are seeking TV options for 2024-25 and beyond if Diamond Sports Groups is unable to carry games, according to a source

www.tennessean.com

Nashville pursuing options. Might do streaming service like VGK's KnightTime and/or OTA channel. With bankruptcy scheduled to be settled in late July, no announcement expected before then for viewing options for Preds fans.

 

[Kirk Van Houten]

'Brutal': The state of RSNs, bankruptcy and what it means for people who can't watch baseball

As Diamond Sports' bankruptcy chaos continues, fans who can't follow their teams on TV are "furious." What's next?

www.espn.com

"A confirmation hearing is scheduled for July 29-30, at which point a bankruptcy judge could determine whether Diamond, which runs the regional sports networks (RSN) for 38 MLB, NBA and NHL teams under the name Bally Sports, will move forward as a business or shut down entirely. It's a decision that could expedite drastic changes in a rapidly evolving media landscape and one that will have a major impact on MLB's strongly held desire to place media rights under a national umbrella. Before enticing a partner like Amazon, Netflix, Hulu or ESPN+, the league says it needs the rights -- blackout free, without the territorial exclusivity tied to traditional RSN deals -- for somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 teams, according to sources. And that's only possible if Diamond doesn't emerge from bankruptcy."

"That is the ideal scenario, but one the league seemingly no longer considers feasible. The worst-case scenario isn't that those contracts disappear, but rather, that Diamond emerges on unstable ground, prompting more of the same uncertainty that clouded last offseason and, if owners continue to cite unstable RSN deals as an excuse for not spending, seems destined to stain the next one. Somewhere between those two extremes lies MLB's pivot plan -- housing all media rights under one umbrella, rather than having teams cut RSN deals on their own. The approach would include maintaining a traditional linear-cable product while also bringing in a major streaming company that would serve as MLB's digital home. Through this, MLB officials say, blackouts would cease and some of the current-day fragmentation that has frustrated fans would dissolve. It's a plan some consider overly optimistic, packed with a lot of moving parts -- and it might work only if all 30 teams ultimately join."

"MLB currently holds the broadcasting and streaming rights for the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks, both of whom Diamond cut last year, as well as the Colorado Rockies, who lost their RSN deal when AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain ceased business operations in October. The Texas Rangers, Cleveland Guardians and Twins, who negotiated one-year deals with Diamond in February, could join them over the offseason."

Baseball exploring options a bit more faster than NBA or NHL.

 

[SirJW]

A good article about streaming and sports is included.
Trying a gift article link.

The Future of Streaming (According to the Moguls Figuring It Out)

Who will survive? Die? Thrive? And how? We talked to nearly a dozen top media executives and asked them to predict what lies ahead.

www.nytimes.com

 

[patnyrnyg]

'Brutal': The state of RSNs, bankruptcy and what it means for people who can't watch baseball

As Diamond Sports' bankruptcy chaos continues, fans who can't follow their teams on TV are "furious." What's next?

www.espn.com

"A confirmation hearing is scheduled for July 29-30, at which point a bankruptcy judge could determine whether Diamond, which runs the regional sports networks (RSN) for 38 MLB, NBA and NHL teams under the name Bally Sports, will move forward as a business or shut down entirely. It's a decision that could expedite drastic changes in a rapidly evolving media landscape and one that will have a major impact on MLB's strongly held desire to place media rights under a national umbrella. Before enticing a partner like Amazon, Netflix, Hulu or ESPN+, the league says it needs the rights -- blackout free, without the territorial exclusivity tied to traditional RSN deals -- for somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 teams, according to sources. And that's only possible if Diamond doesn't emerge from bankruptcy."

"That is the ideal scenario, but one the league seemingly no longer considers feasible. The worst-case scenario isn't that those contracts disappear, but rather, that Diamond emerges on unstable ground, prompting more of the same uncertainty that clouded last offseason and, if owners continue to cite unstable RSN deals as an excuse for not spending, seems destined to stain the next one. Somewhere between those two extremes lies MLB's pivot plan -- housing all media rights under one umbrella, rather than having teams cut RSN deals on their own. The approach would include maintaining a traditional linear-cable product while also bringing in a major streaming company that would serve as MLB's digital home. Through this, MLB officials say, blackouts would cease and some of the current-day fragmentation that has frustrated fans would dissolve. It's a plan some consider overly optimistic, packed with a lot of moving parts -- and it might work only if all 30 teams ultimately join."

"MLB currently holds the broadcasting and streaming rights for the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks, both of whom Diamond cut last year, as well as the Colorado Rockies, who lost their RSN deal when AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain ceased business operations in October. The Texas Rangers, Cleveland Guardians and Twins, who negotiated one-year deals with Diamond in February, could join them over the offseason."

Baseball exploring options a bit more faster than NBA or NHL.

Would MLB be able to force teams that own their own RSN to give up that control?

Not to put the cart before the horse, but I warn people about getting excited about the phrase, "no blackouts". They remove local blackouts, then it will likely cost a lot more than the current MLB package you can get on cable/satellite/mlb.tv

Edit: ESPECIALLY, if fans can no longer get games on their local RSNs. So if the Yankees were no longer available on YES, but only through a package? Easily $300 per year, maybe more.

 

[patnyrnyg]

I thought this was a younger generation thing, watching TV on their phones. I travelled with a business colleague recently and mentioned how crappy our TV stations selections were, he said he doesn't even turn on the TV. He has YouTube TV, I think, and watches on his cell phone. He is mid 40s. I guess I'm getting old. I have watched movies on my phone before but if it was any good ended up rerunning them once home on the big TV.

Someone who is mid 40s in 2024 is alot more tech savy than someone in their mid 40s in 2004. They had to learn about this stuff in HS and beyond.

 

[Kirk Van Houten]

Would MLB be able to force teams that own their own RSN to give up that control?

Not to put the cart before the horse, but I warn people about getting excited about the phrase, "no blackouts". They remove local blackouts, then it will likely cost a lot more than the current MLB package you can get on cable/satellite/mlb.tv

Probably yes but it's a first step towards getting something closer to what the MLS has with Apple TV

 

[Golden_Jet]

Someone who is mid 40s in 2024 is alot more tech savy than someone in their mid 40s in 2004. They had to learn about this stuff in HS and beyond.

lol, someone in their mid 40’s can figure out how to watch on a phone, like other poster, no idea why you would want to watch on a phone, when I can watch in 4K on a big screen.

 

[Kirk Van Houten]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1805244032337039454

Meanwhile Bally Sports adds a baseball show for all their RSN

 

[patnyrnyg]

lol, someone in their mid 40’s can figure out how to watch on a phone, like other poster, no idea why you would want to watch on a phone, when I can watch in 4K on a big screen.

That I could not tell you. I will watch occasionally on my phone, usually when I am watching something else on the tv simultaneously. But, if I had to guess maybe they do not have smart tv and do not want to buy a roku box or upgrade to a smart tv?

 

[Golden_Jet]

That I could not tell you. I will watch occasionally on my phone, usually when I am watching something else on the tv simultaneously. But, if I had to guess maybe they do not have smart tv and do not want to buy a roku box or upgrade to a smart tv?

not buying it.

 

[varsaku]

lol, someone in their mid 40’s can figure out how to watch on a phone, like other poster, no idea why you would want to watch on a phone, when I can watch in 4K on a big screen.

You can just chromecast it to your TV

 

[Golden_Jet]

You can just chromecast it to your TV

I prefer the 4K games I get now.

 

[patnyrnyg]

not buying it.

OK.

not sure how I am supposed to know why another person in their mid 40s would prefer to watch a game on a phone instead of a tv with a reason you will buy.

 

[Takuto Maruki]

Probably yes but it's a first step towards getting something closer to what the MLS has with Apple TV

The chances of Rogers giving up the plum agreement they have with the Jays where they own the entirety of the TV broadcasting, and a good chunk of the media reporting on the team, are effectively nil. So we can cut that down.

 

[Golden_Jet]

The chances of Rogers giving up the plum agreement they have with the Jays where they own the entirety of the TV broadcasting, and a good chunk of the media reporting on the team, are effectively nil. So we can cut that down.

Think was referring to the US,
and Roger’s own the Jays, so ya not likely they get outbid.

 

[Kirk Van Houten]

The chances of Rogers giving up the plum agreement they have with the Jays where they own the entirety of the TV broadcasting, and a good chunk of the media reporting on the team, are effectively nil. So we can cut that down.

Yeah in Canada is way more harder than in the US to change this