MLB.com’s Live Streaming Prowess Becomes Profit Center

mlbtech.gifEvery time a user logged in to watch NCAA March Madness on Demand, a logo that might have seemed out of place popped up with the video player: MLB.com. But MLBAM was right at home — in addition to being the only sports league with live streaming of all of its games, managing live streaming of other sports and entertainment for a roster of 25 clients is one of the ways MLBAM makes money.
The day March Madness began, in addition to managing the streaming of those 16 games for CBS, MLB.com also handled four spring-training games, the U.S.-Mexico World Baseball Classic match up, an NCAA volleyball tournament, two NCAA baseball games and the NCAA wrestling championships. Not bad for a company that started streaming games for itself in 2002. Ironically, though, it did something for the NCAA it contractually can’t do for itself — live streaming of post-season games.

The Journal goes deep on the subject with a page-one piece Monday, calling MLB.com’s transformation from licensee to vendor “one of the more unlikely stories of Internet-inspired business evolution. … MLB.com’s success isn’t just helping to transform the business of sports; it’s also transforming consumers’ expectations of what the Web can deliver.”
The Journal once again raises the idea of an MLB.com IPO, a notion that didn’t go anywhere the last time it was floated but you never know. The story also mentions MLBAM’s agreement to operate the webcasts and site of the World Championship Sports Network without including that it also holds about 10 percent of WCSN.
Some key details:

– The league’s investment in streaming technology runs about $7 million.

– MLB.com has about 800,000 subscribers paying $79.95 a year for streaming audio and video.

– Some 10,000 subscribers paid $4.95 to view 58 hours of the Track and Field World Championship on WCSN last year.

Related:

MLBAM Invests In International Sports Programmer WCSN; Will Manage Web Site

Oops: MLBAM Suspends Nationals.TV Offer

MLB.com To IPO In October?

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