If you, like me, were searching for a live broadcast of last weekend’s Team USA/France game, it was not easy to find. NBC decided that one of the more popular sports in the Olympics was only good enough for their new streaming platform Peacock. Yeah, you could have streamed it through the NBC Olympic app, but it was early Sunday morning, who wants to mess with that?
I wanted to see it on my television set without having to hunt for the app. Call me old fashioned. Also, you better call me a technology expert, because I have seen the future of sports and it’s streaming, not beaming to your set.
I know, it’s been trending this way for a while and I’m not Nostradamus, but it really hit me last week. I have so many questions. How much is this going to cost, on top of what I’m already shelling out for cable? What does this mean for teams throughout all the major sports? Revenue? Lastly, what’s going to become of the Regional Sports Network? Some of them are heavily invested in or even owned by the teams themselves.
We all understand why NBC aired the basketball game on its new digital network. Money rules the day. Plus, they figured, if we can get people to pay the $4.99 upgrade just to watch this game, we can hook them in for the other features too. Or, maybe they thought, well this is the only sport we’re putting on the premium service, let’s see how it goes and perhaps we’ll get some new subscribers this way. So, let’s not kid ourselves into thinking this was some brilliant idea because they weren’t sure how good the Men’s Hoops Team would be, it’s about cash. And also, let’s be totally honest. Most of you that paid for the game through Peacock are going to cancel the subscription once the Olympics are over, right?
You could have watched the game through the Olympics App, simply by opening the app, then verifying your cable service and entering your user name and password for your service. There were a few hoops, no pun intended, to jump through, but this way, you aren’t paying more than you already are for cable. It seems like a lot of things are set up this way, possibly to gain information on how many users are actually streaming through third party apps.
Even after all of that, NBC decided to re-air the game on the network hours after it was completed. Hello NBC, maybe you didn’t get the memo that this is 2021 and there’s this thing called Twitter and other things called smart phones. Everybody that wanted to know the result already knew the final score. I feel like this is the majority of those watching the Olympics. It’s a waste of air-time. This is a story for perhaps another time.
I’m not sure why we routinely stream movies and TV shows and don’t think much of it at the time. Shelling out up to ten bucks a month for Netflix doesn’t seem as painful to me for some reason. For most of my life, sports were on free, over the air television. Yeah, it was a bit jarring when my teams moved to cable but we adapted. I just had to point my remote control to a different station, and there was my team in living color. Until recently this was the case for most of us. Especially since most of the RSN’s linked to professional teams are locked into long term contracts, there hasn’t been a reason to move with the times. Those of the younger generations have been the ones to see the shift to streaming, through an RSN’s app or cable app.
Now some of these agreements are expiring which means, teams and leagues are starting to explore the world of streaming. Some will have more streaming as of next year for mega bucks. Executives have realized that some of their viewers feel alienated. This, after “cutting the cord” with cable, giving them few alternatives to watch their favorite team.
It’s not a good time for RSN’s, who are basically the middleman between the teams and cable companies. There are instances where the network is actually owned by the team, like the Yankees’ YES and the Cubs’ Marquee Sports Network. The only advantage the RSN’s have now is they are where the fans go to see every local game. Changes to that thought process are in the works too which could leave the RSN out in the cold.
With streaming becoming such a popular way to catch a game or an event, some executives were caught off guard as to how fast this was taking place. It was time to adapt or die. In an effort to gain new “viewers” online platforms with sports are much more critical and important. NBC is abandoning its NBC Sports Network by the end of the year. With the NHL moving on to ESPN and Turner, some of the other properties like NASCAR and EPL will likely head to Peacock.
Major League Baseball has had success with MLB.tv, a way for fans that move away from their home area to view their hometown team. Inherent is the problem of blackouts, which in the not-too-distant future could change, creating a whole new ballgame for the league. Teams recently got the right to sell their own local streaming rights. Now they are still under the guidelines of honoring existing RSN streaming contracts. When those expire, they are free to move on.
The NFL is streaming too. Peacock will get exclusive national rights to stream six regular-season games, one per season, from 2023-2028. This is in addition to its ongoing streams of NBC’s regular weekly NFL broadcasts. Peacock will also launch a virtual NFL channel highlighting classic games and content from NFL Films. Paramount+ will stream CBS games to local customers on both their ad-supported and ad-free tiers. Then there’s Amazon Prime, which starts exclusive rights to Thursday Night Football next season.
The NHL’s new contract with ESPN and Turner allows for streaming rights too. The agreement between Turner Sports and the National Hockey League includes live streaming and digital rights across WarnerMedia including HBO Max.
Streaming services don’t require the use of an RSN. So, how will the RSN itself compete? Some have started to develop a “direct-to-consumer” model, which includes an app and streaming without a cable provider or the need for Hulu or YouTube TV. This would allow the cord cutter to continue to watch his/her favorite local team that’s currently carried on the RSN without having to subscribe to cable. It’s not clear yet how much this might cost.
In an article at Sportico.com from earlier this year, Sinclair President and CEO Chris Ripley addressed investors about the plan to go DTC. Ripley said the company is “currently developing a product to reach consumers on a direct basis, in an app, similar to the way consumers access over-the-top platforms.” Sinclair hopes to roll out the app sometime in the first half of 2022. Ripley added, the service is meant to complement the existing linear TV properties rather than replace them outright.
Ok, well that’s one way to keep yourself relevant in this ever-changing marketplace. Again, what will it cost? Nobody seems to know that information yet and it will be a huge determining factor in what consumers decide to do.
Here’s the biggest hurdle I see for the DTC approach. Will each RSN be able to handle itself and stay competitive in the streaming space? Probably not. It likely depends on which teams that particular network is providing coverage of and maybe how long the season is as well.
What do I mean? Let’s say for example you’re an Arizona Diamondbacks fan (no offense Dbacks fans, I know it’s been a tough year, but this furthers what I mean). The team has been on the losing end of the score more often than not. Fox Sports Arizona decides to offer you a streaming package so you can watch all 162 games. Are you really going to do that? Wouldn’t you be more inclined this year to say, “nope, I’m sitting this one out”.
Unless they’re going to offer fans a game-by-game package, it’s going to be a hard sell for the season. Obviously, you have no idea at the beginning of the year how the team will perform, but that’s when they’ll want your money. It’s a gamble for both you the viewer and the RSN, because the latter will come out the loser in this situation.
Nobody has a crystal ball to predict exactly how this will play out or when this scenario will even be a reality. Right now, there are many ways you can still watch your favorite sports whether you have cable, an HD Antenna or you’ve cut the cord. Things will be changing eventually. How many RSN’s will take the plunge into the arena of streaming on their own? That’s the multi-billion-dollar question.
Andy Masur is a columnist for BSM and works for WGN Radio as an anchor and play-by-play announcer. He also teaches broadcasting at the Illinois Media School. During his career he has called games for the Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres and Chicago White Sox. He can be found on Twitter @Andy_Masur1 or you can reach him by email at Andy@Andy-Masur.com.
