Major League Baseball broadcast rights holders, meeting here yesterday to discuss the movement of games from free to cable TV, will seek the elimination of broadcasting restrictions on Wednesday and Sunday nights in ESPN’s four-year contract with baseball to begin in 1990.
John Serrao, chairman of the board for the Association of Independent Television Stations (INTV), and a group of over-the-air local baseball broadcasters met with Sen. Albert Gore (D-Tenn.), who pledged a congressional attempt to address the new ESPN baseball contract. As part of ESPN’s 175-game-a-season deal, over-the-air stations cannot show games Wednesday and Sunday nights.
“I don’t think this will ever come to legislation,” said Kevin O’Brien of KTVU-TV in Oakland, “but I believe Major League Baseball will see the fan benefit and public relations benefit to altering the restrictions.”
Even though baseball was the focal point of meetings yesterday, the talk of changing ESPN’s exclusivity clause could be the opening salvo in an attempt to affect all sports’ relationships with cable.
“Our most immediate concern is getting changes in the ESPN-Major League Baseball contract,” said INTV President Preston Padden. “I think that’s possible without legislation. The longer-term thing—keeping sports on free TV—is likely to need legislation.”
The broadcasters said they would request that Congress hold hearings “to investigate the alarming siphoning of sports from free, over-the-air television” and work with Gore and Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) to introduce measures.
“The idea that ESPN’s exclusivity provisions are against baseball fans in very much misplaced,” said Ed Durso, a senior Vice President and general counsel at ESPN who previously worked in the baseball commissioner’s office. “The ESPN contract is very much pro-fan and pro-consumer…. I think [INTV] well knows that contrary to their assertions, the ESPN contract will not take broadcasts away from local rights holders….”
Baseball and over-the-air broadcasters have been bickering since baseball negotiated its latest contract, which switches from NBC and ABC (and about 40 network games a season) to CBS (12 games a season) and ESPN. ESPN is available in 58 percent of U.S. homes that have televisions. Independent broadcasters say they are being restricted too much—with fans who do not have cable being hurt—and that games are slowly moving off free TV. Major League Baseball points to figures showing that the number of local games over-the-air stations carry has increased each of the last five seasons, from 1,536 in 1985 to 1,647 in 1989.
“It appears almost certain that will not be true in the future,” Padden said of the increase. “All you have to do is look at New York.” In the last several seasons, most Yankees games moved to pay cable, and beginning in 1991, all Yankees games will be the property of the Madison Square Garden cable network.
NBC Still ‘Game’
NBC, which lost “Game of the Week” rights to baseball beginning next season, will be back with the game anyway—outside of the United States.
NBC International yesterday signed an agreement with Major League Baseball for all non-North American telecast and promotional rights, along with Pascoe Nally International Ltd., a British sports marketing firm.
Major League Baseball hopes to tailor products in targeted markets in Europe, Latin America, and Japan.
— Norman Chad