Chinese fans of baseball will be able to watch Major League games following a deal signed between the Major League Baseball's interactive arm, , and BroadWebAsia, the firm set up and chaired by MySpace founder Greenspan.
BroadWebAsia, which already operates half a dozen sites in China, will create and host a Major League Baseball-focused website targeting the Chinese market. The is being developed by BroadWebAsia's Shanghai-based subsidiary.
The launch of the site follows the success of exhibition games in China. The BroadWebAsia's MLB site will offer Chinese fans video highlights, scores, feature articles, photos, up-to-date and historical statistics and a number of live baseball games streamed directly to China via the site.
It will build on the growing popularity of Asian players in MLB such as New York Yankees' starting pitcher Chien-Ming Wang, Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners and Daisuke Matsuzaka of the Boston Red Sox who won the 2007 World Series.
In addition to having all of the content needed for baseball fans to follow the game, will have online chats and other fan forums, a special section teaching the China fan base the playing rules of baseball as well as promoting and selling Major League Baseball branded merchandise online.
Greenspan said: "We hope to use the large user base of the BroadWebAsia network in China to widen the appeal of baseball in this exciting market and to create significant new revenue opportunities for BroadWebAsia and MLBAM."
Alex Pigeon, vice president of international at MLB AM, said. "The fans in China will now have the ability to follow their favourite teams and players -- from Opening Day to the World Series to the World Baseball Classic -- on a technologically innovative platform and most importantly in their own language."
MLB AM was set up in June 2000 following a unanimous vote by the 30 Major League Baseball club owners to centralize all of baseball's internet operations.