Apple TV+ currently offers baseball fans Friday night games, but it sounds like Apple may soon be able to up its MLB offerings for subscribers.
The Athletic says MLB rights are down to either Apple or Peacock
Andrew Marchand writes at The Athletic:
Apple and NBC/Peacock appear to be the final contenders for the “Sunday Night Baseball” package and, presumably, [first-round] playoff games. Apple already pays $85 million annually for exclusive Friday doubleheaders. It is possible MLB could split Sunday night and the playoffs.
We reported last month that Apple had officially submitted a bid for MLB Sunday Night Baseball rights.
At the time though, it was unclear how likely the company was to land the rights—which formerly belonged to ESPN.
But today’s The Athletic report indicates Apple TV+ only has one serious competitor now: Peacock.
Peacock has consistently sought to distinguish itself as a destination for sports fans, thanks to streaming offerings like the NFL and the Olympics.
Apple, meanwhile, has been more selective with its sports offerings. It has a major deal with Major League Soccer, plus the current Friday Night Baseball offerings. The company is also widely expected to land the rights to stream Formula One races.
Adding Sunday Night Baseball and first-round playoff games to its roster would make a lot of sense, since Apple TV+ has already set up the infrastructure to stream MLB.
If Apple does win additional MLB games, it’s unclear whether those would get thrown into the current Apple TV+ subscription, or if Apple might spin off a separate sports add-on instead.
Do you watch Friday Night Baseball on Apple TV+? What do you think of Apple possibly landing more MLB games? Let us know in the comments.
Apple TV+ is available for $9.99 per month and features hit TV shows and movies like Ted Lasso, Severance, The Morning Show, Silo, and Shrinking.
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