LONDON (Brand Republic) - Major League Baseball is to start charging fans for internet broadcasts of its games, in an effort to find an alternative revenue stream as online advertising dries up.
Fans will pay $9.95 (£6.95) a season for the internet radio feeds, which have so far been free. The service is aimed at fans who live outside the range of their teams鈥 radio and TV stations.
The news follows Salon.com鈥檚 announcement last week that it would start charging for a subscription-based 鈥渁d-free鈥 premium service and speculation over whether MSN and other content providers would follow suit.
MLB also announced it has licensed its online broadcasts to RealNetworks, which makes the RealPlayer media player, in a $20m (£13.95m) deal lasting three years. RealNetworks will charge $4.95 (£3.45) a month for baseball broadcasts and $9.95 a month for a GoldPass subscription, which includes National Basketball Association games.
www.mlb.com
www.realnetworks.com