MEDIA MAVEN - Publishing media news and opinion (with some sarcasm and humor) in the Pacific Northwest, covering Seattle TV talent and programming & even a litte beyond. Maybe even some sports. Retired longtime broadcast journalist and manager in multiple top markets, ex-writing prof at UW and PLU in WA St., wrote Season of the 76ers (2002) and a new horror novel, Blood Stained Papers. Kent State and American U Masters alum, Pittsburgh native. Copyright 2025-26 All Rights Reserved
Per the Seattle TImes the Mariners will be creating a linear Mariners TV channel replacing Root Sports, but viewers must still await deals with major providers (like Xfinity and Direct TV) to carry it along with the accompanying cost. Mariners.TV will be the streaming platform for $19.99 a month
Its good to hear that the Mariners have found a new home on television. I just hope that the new channel won't cost cable and satellite subscribers as much as the streaming platform will. $20 a month is a lot to swallow, especially if you're not a sports fan, or if the team's performance on the field takes a hit.
ReplyDeleteI miss Root. It will likely be 20 bucks on cable/sat, too, and that's onerous with prices high everywhere.
ReplyDeleteI just hope at that price, it is made to be a premium, add-on channel, like HBO, and not a standard channel. As much as people like the Mariners right now, a $20 a month increase in cable and satellite bills could quickly change that.
DeleteWhat the M's have set up is exactly the same the other teams working directly with MLB are doing. So what this will mean linear-wise is cable/satellite/streaming distributors will have to agree to carry the channel with MLB as it is a dedicated channel. This is where things will probably get sticky I expect especially with Comcast. Other teams though have as part of this allowed for limited OTA simulcasts so I'd expect this here as well.
ReplyDeleteI can't imagine Comcast/Xfinity will be a partner who wants to play ball. There will be a cost, right? And if they do truly end up on a channel like 627 again, maybe Red Zone like where it is dark unless there is a game, then what was really accomplished? Other than the baseball team laid off a lot of talented people and then hired them back as freelancers for less pay to do the same job.
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