MLB's television blackout rules have long been a source of frustration for baseball fans unfortunate enough to live on the fringe of a major market. Baseball fans living in Las Vegas, for example, are unable to watch the A's, Dodgers, Angels, Diamondbacks, Giants or Padres even if they subscribe to Extra Innings on cable. And if you live in Iowa, well, there's a good chance you'll be blacked out by the Brewers, Cubs, White Sox, Royals and Twins even if you purchase an MLB.tv subscription.
It makes absolutely no sense. There's no one in the world more greedy than a professional team owner -- these are the guys who invented the six dollar hot dog -- and yet they're turning down hoardes of loyal fans who'd like nothing more than to hand over hundreds of dollards just to watch their favorite team.
But wait! Baseball has seen the light! From MLB.com:
Baseball's current rules on territorial television blackouts were drawn up in the 1960s, long before the dawn of MLB.TV and the Extra Innings package.Well, this is progress, right? Perhaps, but don't get excited just yet. DuPuy was saying the same things back in May ... of 2007. Serious changes are long overdue, but you can give up getting any bonus coverage on Extra Innings or MLB.tv this year -- DuPuy said the earliest any change would be implemented was when the owners meet in November.
Those rules have become archaic, and Bob DuPuy, MLB's president and chief operating officer, presented a plan to MLB's executive council on Wednesday that would alter them considerably for the 2009 season.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
8-14-2008 @ 1:36PM
Steve said...
The blackout rules do nothing put upset a fan base. As a Cleveland Indians fan who lived in Pennsylvania last year (2.5 hours from Cleveland), the Indians were blacked out when scheduled for ESPN. However, where I lived neither the Indians television, cable, or radio networks offered coverage. I'm glad that I discovered that the Indians games would not be available on MLB Extra Innings before I wasted money on the package.
I understand wanting to protect local broadcasts, especially with team-owned RSNs. However, if the broadcast is not available through the "local" feed, the national one should be allowed through.
While it is unrealistic for me to drive 2.5 hours each way on a Tuesday to watch the Indians, I could easily take a weekend trip to take in a series. However, by preventing me from watching all season, my interest in the team is diminished, thereby making it much less likely that I would take such a weekend trip.
Sometimes it seems like MLB wants to turn fans off instead of building them.
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