Apple could buoy Apple TV+ with MLB Sunday Night Baseball streaming rights

AppleInsider

Sunday night baseball games may soon be available via Apple TV+, as the company is reportedly seeking to land additional MLB streaming rights.

Apple is reportedly in talks over MLB streaming rights.

Apple has reportedly emerged as the company most likely to acquire Major League Baseball streaming rights previously held by ESPN. The iPhone maker currently offers Friday Night Baseball via Apple TV+, which consists of two baseball games every Friday without interruptions or restrictions, but that could soon change.

According to a Sports Business Journal report on Monday, Apple is looking to land streaming rights for MLB content beyond the scope of its current arrangement. Legacy media outlets such as NBC are also said to be in talks with MLB over the same streaming rights, but Apple's offer is said to be noticeably higher.

For reference, Apple has had an arrangement with Major League Baseball since 2022, which sees the company paying $85 million per year. ESPN's previous streaming deal, meanwhile, was worth a much higher $550 million per season.

Depending on the outcome of its negotiations with MLB, Apple may be able to offer Sunday night baseball games to Apple TV+ users at some point in the future. Apple could continue offering the games as an included part of Apple TV+ or seek to break them out as a paid service like MLS.

There's a paid MLB.tv service that rakes in about $120 per year for access to every game including blackouts. After investing so much into baseball, Apple may not be able to recoup costs through increased Apple TV+ interest alone, hence the need for a potential MLB service addition.

A new MLB streaming deal also has the potential to provide additional revenue for Apple TV+. While Apple doesn't detail the revenue from any individual service or show, Apple TV+, as a whole, is costing Apple billions per year.

The company's supposed negotiations with MLB align with its recent push into sports-related content. In February 2024, the iPhone maker released a dedicated Apple Sports app, which displays real-time scores and statistics for MLS, NBA, and more.

Apple has also partnered with Major League Soccer to offer the so-called MLS Season Pass, which has been available since 2023. The Apple TV app is currently the official destination for all matches and MLS content.

Apart from MLB and MLS, the iPhone maker reportedly considered a $2B deal regarding Formula 1 streaming rights. Apple has also expressed interest in FIFA tournaments, and NFL content for Apple Vision Pro.

Ultimately, it remains to be seen whether or not the company will be able to acquire streaming rights to any additional MLB content, as negotiations are reportedly still ongoing and traditional broadcast companies are in the running.




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mustseeuhdtv

Please no. I always seem to miss games Apple TV+. Plus their broadcast crew is not that good. 

dgdmn

No!   This makes me think of the Abbott and Costello routine - Who’s on first, what’s on second!   Fragmenting sports to multiple streaming providers is a disservice to fans as they don’t know where that game is tonight!

spliff monkey

I'll start watching baseball again if this is the case. Why would MLB leave money on the table? The current distribution model for content is "go where the viewer is". The more content is spread out, the easier it is to watch without needing multiple subs. This would be a win for Apple. I already enjoy MLS enough that I picked up a season pass. Their commentators aren't that bad and if you think they are you haven't been watching much, because there are far worse out there, believe me. That said I thought for a while now a version of the game without the announcers would be amazing for VR. If AppleVision expands into this world with sports and live concerts etc, it'll be over the top and solidify AppleTv and Vision as solid wins for Apple.  

jmaille

I would expect complaints about the further fragmentation of the broadcast locations of games, the quality of the on-screen graphics and the broadcast teams -- which of course I will add to...

If you have a subscription to MLB.tv and your team's associated streaming package (if there is one) you would think you get all the available games -- but you don't because the various exclusives like this take away from what you get in those packages.  This attempted expansion of exclusives will just make that worse, so the value of those packages will decrease, your overall cost will go up and finding "your game" will become more difficult.

Apple's on screen graphics provide a nice "minimalist" look but they lack the data normally provided by others.  And frequently they aren't even there.  In short, they're terrible.

And as for their broadcast team... objectively they are bad.  If a team isn't a major east coast team (or "the Doyers") they know absolutely nothing about the team or any of its players.  Which results in them massively exacerbating the East Coast Bias baseball already has.  At a minimum you would think Apple could implement what MLB.tv has and give you a choice between the two teams broadcast teams and just add their team as a third choice.  Then they could see how many people actually listen to the Apple broadcasters and if no one does, save some money and get rid of them.

randominternetperson

JMaille said:

If you have a subscription to MLB.tv and your team's associated streaming package (if there is one) you would think you get all the available games -- but you don't because the various exclusives like this take away from what you get in those packages.  This attempted expansion of exclusives will just make that worse, so the value of those packages will decrease, your overall cost will go up and finding "your game" will become more difficult.

Right you are. I get MLB.tv for free as a T-Mobile customer, but otherwise it's $120/year (or about half that if you wait a month or so). Not surprisingly most baseball fans watch the games for "their" team almost exclusively. Teams play 162 games a year (plus playoff games), so $120/year isn't that outrageous. Except. Games aren't available on MLB.tv when they are one the Apple+ Friday Night games. Or the weekly ESPN games. Or when they are "in town" thanks to local sports networks. And, if I recall correctly, playoff games aren't part of the deal either since they are on one of the "cable" networks. It really is a mess. Fool that I am, I have ESPN, Apple TV+ and MLB.tv, so only when my team comes to town (or the neighboring town) am I unable to watch. If I were a fan of the local team, I would also have to subscribe to a regional plan.

jarnis

I actually like the AppleTV baseball broadcasts. We have MLB.tv and don't live near DFW, so we never miss a Rangers game we have time to watch, but we also subscribe to AppleTV anyway and enjoy many of the offerings there. So watching Friday Night Baseball is a break from our regular broadcasts with a different crew and presentation.

I think they do a great job overall. No, they aren't biased toward my team like the crew I usually watch, so I find it refreshing to get another perspective on my team's strengths, weaknesses and performance.

randominternetperson

jarnis said:

I actually like the AppleTV baseball broadcasts. We have MLB.tv and don't live near DFW, so we never miss a Rangers game we have time to watch, but we also subscribe to AppleTV anyway and enjoy many of the offerings there. So watching Friday Night Baseball is a break from our regular broadcasts with a different crew and presentation.

I think they do a great job overall. No, they aren't biased toward my team like the crew I usually watch, so I find it refreshing to get another perspective on my team's strengths, weaknesses and performance.

The first year they were pretty terrible. At least the games I watched had a 3-person booth (2 men and a woman), and they nattered nonstop about trivialities. I watched the game this past Friday and I thought they were fine.