
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred Pulls No Punches on State of RSN Market, Considers League's Direct-to-Consumer Future Why friction-less digital access to games is critical and where gambling entities fit in By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital
Monday, October 18, 2021 - 2:42 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
With ratings up and matchups living up to their billing (see the epic Dodgers-Giants NLDS series), Major League Baseball is enjoying a prosperous postseason so far. But, in a rapidly evolving media landscape, what does the future of America's Pastime look like?
At SportsBusiness Journal's World Congress of Sports, Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred discussed some of those topics, including where the sport stands on the regional-sports-network business, what he would like a direct-to-consumer MLB product to look like, and what production enhancements are making the game a more enjoyable watch?
On this MLB Postseason:
We were due for a little bit of good luck. The last couple of years have been a real challenge with the pandemic. We've been very fortunate this year with great teams and great rivalries early in the playoffs, which is important in terms of capturing people's interest. I think the east-west piece of it has been really good, too. Having Boston, Tampa, San Francisco, L.A. has made this really good for us.
On the future of regional sports networks:
The cord-cutting phenomenon has made the RSN business one that is declining, by definition. Fewer subs makes the business more difficult. I think that the negativity surrounding the RSNs has increased exponentially as a result of the situation with the Sinclair subsidiary, Diamond.
Part of their problem is cord-cutting. The other part of their problem is that there is excessive leverage on that business when you think about what they paid for it, how much debt they have on it. That leverage has produced headlines that are more negative. There are RSNs that may not be thriving or growing, but they are going to survive.
MLB's future as a result of the RSN decline:
I think the key for us is the development of direct-to-consumer products to increase our reach. The biggest problem for us on the RSN side is that, even within the cable bundle - particularly with the Diamond subsidiary - is that their reach, within the bundle, is not what it used to be. It's important for us to develop digital products that allow us to get to our fans in a friction-less way. That's really your future.
On whether MLB's future is with Sinclair:
Our view of digital rights is that they are our future and it's something that the league and the clubs should control. We do have a pretty good track record on the digital side. MLB.TV was one of the first over-the-top products and has continued to grow and at a really impressive rate. Who exactly the partners will be I'm not prepared to [discuss], but we see those digital rights as very valuable and crucial to our future.
On what a direct-to-consumer service looks like:
It has to be friction-less: easy for the consumer to get in and buy what they want. It also has to be flexible. I see that flexibility, in the context of baseball, as buying an out-of-market package, buying up into your local rights, buying just your local rights; the consumer gets to decide what he's buying.
On having an ownership stake in a future direct-to-consumer product:
I think ownership stake probably understates it. We believe those digital rights are crucial, and we want to own and control the platform on which they are delivered. We may have partners in that process. This idea that, late in the discussions, we somehow demanded an equity stake is just not accurate. We've told [Sinclair] that from day one.
On the remaining package of national games still available:
We re fortunate. We have multiple major entities that are interested in that package. That's great for creating competition from a financial standpoint. More important for us, we want that package to be forward-looking. What does the future look like? How are we going to deliver games digitally in a way that is friction-less. There are two big opportunities there: not only additional revenue but the opportunity to take a step forward in the way we're delivering games to fans.
On potentially selling those rights to a sports-gambling company:
Our thought, with respect to the gaming entities, is that there is a place for them in the media lineup for Major League Baseball. I think the important thing is that, whatever we do with a gaming company, we're always going to have that clean, family-friendly broadcast that isn't going to have a gambling overlay to it. We're going to have to find a gambling entity with the flexibility to adhere to that larger strategic thought.
I'm not saying you're never going to see odds on a national broadcast. I'm talking about a gambling-focused feed where it's not once or twice per game and it's every inning and every pitch where there's [betting] material. If we ever go that far, we're going to have a clean feed as well.
On production enhancements that can be expected in future MLB broadcasts:
I think you're going to see a continuation of some of the things that we've been doing. Microphones and in-game interviews are at the top of that list. We saw that at the All-Star Game, where you were having conversations with players in the field. Fans seemed to love that. We're going to do more and more of that. I think the opportunity for supplemental information as either a second-screen experience or integrates into the broadcast is really important to us. Statcast is the best example of that. It provides the fan the opportunity to understand the game in a way that they might not otherwise. We
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
05/08/2026
Thomson's Climate Crisis Toolkit for Media in Tanzania is being included in a new virtual library designed to ensure accurate and engaging storytelling arou...
05/08/2026
RSNs, teams, leagues, and streamers explore the present and future of local spor...
05/08/2026
As sports-production workflows generate larger volumes of unstructured data and ...
05/08/2026
Three aspiring broadcasters will contribute on-camera and inside the production ...
05/08/2026
Adam Meeks attends the premiere of his film Union County, an official selection of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. (Photo by Jemal Countess/Sundance Institut...
05/08/2026
Major discounts, updates & remakes of early VST plug-ins
Steinberg are currently celebrating two significant anniversaries, with this week marking the 30th ...
05/08/2026
Flagship monitor range gains wireless remote control
KRK's flagship studio monitor range has just been upgraded, with three new fifth-generation models ...
05/08/2026
Rohde & Schwarz launches next phase of Airways New Zealand Air Traffic Control s...
05/08/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents the R&S MP007, a man-portable tactical direction findin...
05/08/2026
Advertisers invested $53.6 million in the retirement sector in the last 12 month...
05/08/2026
Nielsen CMI and Ad Intel data reveals who's visiting IKEA, where else they s...
05/08/2026
Media buyers and sellers can now compare deduplicated campaign reach across computer, mobile, connected TV and linear TV across all measurable CTV publishers in...
05/08/2026
Stranger Things' Leads All Streaming Titles with 23.3 Billion Minutes in Fir...
05/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
05/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
05/08/2026
QuickLink, the leading provider of award-winning video production and remote guest integration solutions, announces the appointment of Kane Peterson to its Nort...
05/08/2026
XR research reveals marketers believe they have control over production costs, yet budget overruns, campaign delays and creative cutbacks remain commonplace
Se...
05/08/2026
Game On Live Studio Uses Blackmagic Design to Stream Tropical 7s
Brie Clayton August 4, 2026
0 Comments
Every match of world's largest youth rugby...
05/08/2026
Chris Fitzgerald to Head TDC's Experiential Growth
Brie Clayton August 4, 2026
0 Comments
Technical Direction Company promotes Chris Fitzgerald to...
05/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
05/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
05/08/2026
Profuz Digital is set to launch a powerful upgrade to its Profuz LAPIS digital media management platform at IBC this year at Stand 8.A88. France Galop, Canal+ F...
05/08/2026
KRK, a Gibson brand and leader in professional studio monitoring for nearly four decades, launches its new V Series Five Studio Monitors, the latest evolution o...
05/08/2026
Network expansion, continued customer growth and stable financial performance characterized Magyar Telekoms business results for the first half and second quart...
05/08/2026
Wednesday 5 August 2026
The Sky Foundation launches new bursary programme to su...
05/08/2026
Charlie Sheen Launches Mostly Sheenius in Partnership with Red Seat Ventures After Decades as One of the World's Most Recognizable and Interviewed Celebr...
04/08/2026
Live production in the cloud is a growing trend across the industry, and Major L...
04/08/2026
LAFC co-managing owner will succeed Don Garber on Jan. 1, 2027, as league prepar...
04/08/2026
In 2022, when the PGA TOUR was breaking ground on its new, state-of-the-art broa...
04/08/2026
Provided by POVORA, the new camera angle offers a dealer's-eye view of the c...
04/08/2026
Spiideo will provide the camera setup, with NEP handling broadcast integration and off-site video operations...
04/08/2026
Production team streamed more than 750 youth rugby matches using ATEM switchers,...
04/08/2026
Agreement gives KTC early access to NDI's Advanced SDK for integration across commercial displays, digital signage, and interactive panels...
04/08/2026
Twelve projects across four categories recognize collaborative work in productio...
04/08/2026
Multi-year agreement will introduce SkeleTRACK, semi-automated offside, automate...
04/08/2026
Three mc 56 consoles, dual A__UHD Core engines, RAVENNA networking, and HOME management supported live sound, monitoring, and international broadcast production...
04/08/2026
New contribution products support ultra-low-latency video transport across fixed, remote, and mobile production environments...
04/08/2026
Company will showcase updates across PRIME, Chyron LIVE, Paint, virtual production, newsroom workflows, and venue control...
04/08/2026
Exhibit will feature SilverBack, VersaBrix, VersaFrame, VF-9100, and FiberSaver-10G platforms...
04/08/2026
Platform updates target cloud-based production, high-density ST 2110 monitoring,...
04/08/2026
Live Media Group will take control of Gravity Media's U.S. mobile-unit fleet...
04/08/2026
Amp-modelling rigs get major upgrade
HeadRush have recently released a major firmware update that brings some powerful new features to their Prime, Core and...
04/08/2026
Generate a choir from a single voice track
Following years of development, Am I Audio have just officially launched their debut plug-in. Created in collabor...
04/08/2026
Official EMT-endorsed reverbs now available to all
Two more of Universal Audio's renowned UAD plug-ins have just gained new native versions that can be ...
04/08/2026
SBS helps Australians understand why every Census counts
Media releases
As Australia prepares for the 2026 Census on Tuesday 11 August, SBS is helping ensur...
04/08/2026
Canada invests in the future of HF communications with Rohde & Schwarz solutions After selection by the Canadian Department of National Defence (DND) as the p...
04/08/2026
Blendkit Expands Beyond Blender
Brie Clayton August 4, 2026
0 Comments
Popular 3D Asset Library Launches Alpha Plugins for Maya, Godot, and Rhino
Blend...