Baseball TV will launch in Canada if 2009 if on-going negotiations between Rogers Media and Major League Baseball can be finalized in time, industry analysts report.
Baseball TV will be a Canadian version of the U. S. channel MLB Network, which launched to an estimated 50 million homes on January 1, 2008. It is owned 70 per cent by Major League Baseball.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), in its Decision 2008-171 last August, approved Rogers’ application for a Category 2 specialty program undertaking, known as Baseball TV.
Ten per cent of Baseball TV’s schedule is to include live major-league baseball telecasts, but minor and amateur baseball coverage will be included, along with documentaries and movies.
Canadian content requirements start at 15 per cent in the first year and rise to 35 per cent by the third year.
As Major League Baseball’s first 24-hour channel, the network says it has big plans for its in-season and off-season programming. MLB Network is set to provide over 1,400 hours of live shows, led by MLB Tonight, airing six to seven hours per night during the baseball season.
In-season, the network will carry mostly live programming, covering stories across the entire league, while the off-season programming will focus more on archival programming. Its new Hot Stove show will air five nights a week to catch fans up on all the speculated trades, roster changes, managerial changes and off-season awards. 30 Clubs in 30 Days, a special series which will air during baseball’s spring training sessions, will feature a different MLB club during each of the thirty days, focusing on the up-coming season and the status of the team and its players.
Twenty-six regular season game telecasts are scheduled for showing during the baseball season on the Network.
In addition to its media, cable, telephone and Internet holdings, Rogers owns the Toronto Blue Jays Baseball team, and Rogers Centre, where the team plays and where the International Baseball Classic will be hosted this spring, in advance of the major league baseball season.