How baseball is changing the face of broadband

AnchorDesk

How baseball is changing the face of broadband

John Morris and Josh Taylor
Contributing Editors, AnchorDesk
Tuesday, May 7, 2002

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You know those people who say they can't watch baseball because it's too slow and boring? Yeah, well, we don't understand them either, and we certainly don't condone their inherent shallowness. But if making it beyond the seventh inning is a real stretch for you or a loved one, we may have found just the right technological solution.

Major League Baseball (MLB) has begun offering Condensed Baseball, which reduces the length of a given game to about 20 minutes. How, you may ask? By eliminating every pitch that doesn't result in a play. In other words, you'll see pitches that result in a hit, run, or out, along with wild pitches, pick-offs, passed balls, stolen bases, and the like. Basically it's baseball for those suffering from Attention Deficit Disorder.

NOW, THE TRADITIONALIST in each of us shudders at the thought of dumbing down baseball--sure, it can be boring, but that's also part of its charm. And if you only see pitches that result in plays, you of course are missing out on all, or at least most, of the strategy that makes baseball what it is. You'll also have to hope that your game of choice is one of the 35 that the MLB produces in condensed form each week.

That all said, Condensed Baseball is also one of the first pieces of programming we've seen that truly embraces broadband technology. Most Web sites and entertainment companies simply take existing content and post it online. There's certainly nothing wrong with that, but here, MLB is actually adding value, and in the process is hoping to make some money, too.

Of course, getting people to pay for anything online has been a challenge, though there are some signs that the times could be a' changing. More and more media and entertainment companies are jumping into the paid content arena (including our sister site, GameSpot, which recently announced the introduction of a paid service, GameSpot Complete). An MLB spokesman touted the fact that the league has already passed the 120,000 subscribers it had for all of last year, though the vast majority continue to subscribe only to game-day audio.

IN PRACTICE, the Condensed Baseball service works as advertised. Jumping from play to play is a bit jarring, and certainly takes a little getting used to. And like most Internet video, our images did get pretty jaggedy when we tried to view it in full-screen mode, though we've certainly seen much worse. Bottom line? If you don't have the time or patience for a full game, it fits the bill. Real has posted an April 15 Yankees-Red Sox game on its site, so you can check it out for yourself.

Given baseball's reputation for being a bit staid, it's a pleasant surprise that they've managed to be out in front here. After all, in recent years, while the NBA, NHL, and NFL were doing all sorts of experiments with broadcasts, baseball's most publicized walk on the wild side has been displaying computer-generated ads behind home plate on televised broadcasts.

Condensed Baseball is just one of the packages that MLB is offering online. In addition to the now-standard live audio broadcasts of every game, fans can receive personalized highlight reels of their favorite players and/or teams. For those of you who play fantasy baseball, imagine getting your very own Baseball Tonight that includes only highlights of players from your team.

THERE'S AN ASSORTMENT of pricing options. For $9.95 a month, you'll receive everything: live audio, condensed games, personalized highlights, plus access to the daily pre-game notes that are distributed in the press box. You also receive access to a video library of classic games, including Josh's favorite: game six of the 1986 World Series, when the Mets came back to beat the Red Sox. The site also promises to add some classic radio broadcasts.

Each of these services is also available individually for $4.95 a month. And if you're just looking to watch a single game from the Baseball's Best library, you can "rent" it for $2.95 for 48 hours. Subscribers to RealOne's $9.95-a-month SuperPass service also receive an assortment of premium sports content, including baseball game-day audio.

We've all been hearing for years about broadband on demand and how the Internet's going to change the way we seek entertainment, but we're as surprised as anyone that Major League Baseball seems to be leading the way. We're excited to see how this all plays out, and we have a feeling we're not going to be the only ones watching.

Do you pay for online content? Have we overlooked anyone doing as much or more for broadband content than MLB and RealNetworks? TalkBack to us!

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