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Oakland A’s fans vent about team trading radio broadcast for streaming

Y2kTheNewOldies

Y2kTheNewOldies

https://www.thereporter.com/2020/02...t-team-trading-radio-broadcast-for-streaming/

Not Shocking given that the MLB for some time has been on the hook to lower the median ages for their broadcasts. I can see other MLB Teams doing the same within this decade. I know in the past 2 years the MLB has been trying to get broadcasts deals on Amazon Prime and Facebook Live to get younger audiences to watch MLB Games on the TV side though.

When MTV launched in the early 1980s, the first song it aired was, “Video Killed the Radio Star.”

Now it appears that streaming technology, if not killing the baseball radio play-by-play announcer, at least is displacing him. The A’s on Tuesday announced they have ditched baseball on the radio. Instead, all games will be broadcast on A’s Cast, streamed via TuneIn.

If you’re of a certain age, you recall listening to baseball games over the radio. The medium was accessible. The announcers were trusted, unhurried storytellers. There was something about building images in your mind based on the radio by-play-by announcer’s account of the game that made the process almost interactive. That goes double for the giants who have manned the A’s broadcast booth — Monte Moore, Harry Caray, Bill King and Lon Simmons.

Good news: Your trusted unhurried storytellers Ken Korach and Vince Cotroneo will continue to the call the action.
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You assume younger audiences avoid baseball because it's on the radio. It has nothing to do with the medium. They avoid baseball because it's too long and boring. Shorten the games to just the home runs and the victory handshakes, and more younger people will listen. Also way too many games. One game a week will bring back audiences.
 
TheBigA said:
You assume younger audiences avoid baseball because it's on the radio. It has nothing to do with the medium. They avoid baseball because it's too long and boring. Shorten the games to just the home runs and the victory handshakes, and more younger people will listen. Also way too many games. One game a week will bring back audiences.
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True too given that baseball in general has a median age of 57 and NFL is at 50 as the median age demo though. I understand that NBA and MLS has the lowest median age out of all the major sports at 40-42 though.

https://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com...5/Research-and-Ratings/Viewership-trends.aspx
 
How much of this may be the league aiming for pay-to-play, i.e. no more free broadcasting? In my (admittedly uneducated) opinion, that sort of reduction in access to the sport might start killing off baseball, but then, when the average age of a fan is well above 50, the aging out problem is already fairly apparent.
 
boombox4 said:
How much of this may be the league aiming for pay-to-play, i.e. no more free broadcasting? In my (admittedly uneducated) opinion, that sort of reduction in access to the sport might start killing off baseball, but then, when the average age of a fan is well above 50, the aging out problem is already fairly apparent.
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I remember back in the 1980's -2000's approximately the MLB tried to expand such as get players from Japan and the Dominican Republic to join the league as a ploy to make the sport more diverse and lower the demos at the time. Also to get the league international attention. Maybe that was the case at the time or somehow the other leagues managed to give these players incentives play in their home countries at some point though.



https://theculturetrip.com/asia/jap...baseball-is-different-from-american-baseball/

http://mlb.mlb.com/dr/history.jsp


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nippon_Professional_Baseball

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominican_Professional_Baseball_League
 
boombox4 said:
How much of this may be the league aiming for pay-to-play, i.e. no more free broadcasting? In my (admittedly uneducated) opinion, that sort of reduction in access to the sport might start killing off baseball, but then, when the average age of a fan is well above 50, the aging out problem is already fairly apparent.
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TuneIn Plus is $8 per month, and allows streaming of all MLB, NFL, and many (most?) major college football and basketball games. No blackouts either, including in-market games.

Your internet devices are the new radio. They're the new cable/satellite TV as well. The main disadvantage is still that when in the car, a cellphone account is still required.
 
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