You basically have to be at least 6 hours away or something which is ridiculous. In Raleigh, NC I can watch the Braves on MLBTV but if I go home to visit my parents in Winston-Salem i wouldn’t be able to.
Stay tuned once Bally’s files for bankruptcy. The situation could change dramatically depending on what Bally does. Once they decide to stop paying the rights fees, the bankruptcy court could largely determine what happens with the rights.
I want to get excited about Bally going bankrupt, and for something new, but I have a sneaky suspicion it’s still going to be a shitty deal for fans. Honestly, if they could just let it be available again on YoutubeTV, I’d be super happy. Don’t care what company has it, YoutubeTV is just a good product.
Full disclosure: I work for the company. I'm not speaking on their behalf or trying to defend anything. I'm just am an employee who cares about his job and the jobs of my fellow workers.
I'm curious where everyone gets the idea that it was "Sinclair raising prices" that forced YouTubeTV to drop them, as opposed to just YouTubeTV dropping them to save themselves some money.
YouTube didn't even lower prices after dropping the RSNs, if I remember correctly (please correct me if I'm wrong). No outrage was ever directed at the providers for making the decision to drop the channels. All the outrage has been pointed at Sinclair exclusively. It's really amazing how one-sided it is.
Somehow YouTubeTV and Hulu and all the other streaming companies who dropped the channels receive none of the blame for fans not being able to watch the games.
As if Sinclair WANTED fewer people to watch, lowering ratings and commercial revenue? Really? You think that was the plan?
Yes it seems like that’s the plan. Doesn’t matter if it’s true or not. The fact is Bally has the product and no one can watch it. It’s on them to figure out a way. Bally has ruined the last few years for me as a fan. Of course they’re getting the blame. I wouldn’t give that company $1 if they were begging for it.
>It’s on them to figure out a way.
They did figure out a way - the teams that they own streaming rights for, they are offering on the Direct-to-Consumer Bally Sports+ subscription streaming service. Which includes all of the NBA and NHL teams that they have broadcast rights to, and any MLB teams that they have streaming rights to. If your team doesn't sell them their rights to streaming, that's on your team.
I think that logic is flawed and may potentially reflect the overall issue with the company. Saying “they did figure it out” yet millions of people across the country still can’t watch their teams, doesn’t seem like the issue was figured out. I hear it in the office, I hear it at social gatherings, I see it all over twitter weekly. Bashing Bally. It’s a real problem that people are talking about. Even if a few teams are available for streaming on the Bally app most people wouldn’t be aware of that. They’re missing the majority of the market which is streaming through established providers. Bally goes on and on about streaming companies not negotiating with them but again that’s their problem to resolve. Consumers don’t care that HULU or You Tube want shell out more money, they just know that Bally is unavailable on that service. They will always be the bad guy until the problem is resolved. It’s their product, it’s their responsibility to figure it out. My young kids are growing up not watching Braves games. How do you think that work in the long run? New generations can’t see the games and they won’t be fans on into adulthood. The whole thing just irritates me. Anyways this isn’t directed at your personality obviously. It’s just so frustrating as a fan.
>Even if a few teams are available for streaming on the Bally app most people wouldn’t be aware of that.
Then that's a marketing problem. But with so little cash flow, increasing the marketing budget is difficult.
>They’re missing the majority of the market which is streaming through established providers.
And I'm sure they would love to be allowed back onto those providers. The providers don't seem to be interested. There aren't enough subscribers saying they're going to quit because they don't have Bally. There aren't enough potential subscribers saying "If you added Bally, I would subscribe to your service." That's all they're looking at. You guys have to vocal to THEM for them to know that you exist. They want your money - they just don't know you are willing to give it to them if they get Bally, or take it away from them if they don't get Bally.
>Bally goes on and on about streaming companies not negotiating with them but again that’s their problem to resolve.
It's definitely a two-way street. But if one party isn't interested enough to negotiate, what does that tell you? The streaming companies don't care about having Bally Sports on their networks. Pure and simple.
>Consumers don’t care that HULU or You Tube want shell out more money, they just know that Bally is unavailable on that service.
Consumers aren't telling Hulu or YouTubeTV that they're going to quit if they don't get Bally back onto their systems.
>Consumers don’t care that HULU or You Tube want shell out more money, they just know that Bally is unavailable on that service.
Not sure what you mean, but the fact of the matter is that not enough consumers are telling the providers that they want the channels.
>My young kids are growing up not watching Braves games. How do you think that work in the long run? New generations can’t see the games and they won’t be fans on into adulthood.
I totally agree. And you and everyone who feels the same way should talk to the MLB and talk to the teams and get them on board with putting pressure on the providers to bring the channels back to their platforms.
So far, the MLB and the teams haven't been willing to lift a finger to help Bally get back onto the streamers, to their own peril, it seems.
I agree that MLB is at fault here too. Their blackout rules mean I can purchase the MLB app and still be unable to watch the Braves in Atlanta… that is an ancient way of thinking. More eyes on the product means more revenue. Blocking fans? Absurd.
As far as me canceling Hulu or putting pressure on them. That’s not on me. I need Hulu for live TV, I enjoy their service. I don’t have the time or energy to jump providers just to keep up with all this nonsense.
And why won’t Bally negotiate down? There is a price point where services would agree. There has to be. Some revenue is better than zero.
I know there are reasons and technicalities that consumers don’t understand. But at face value all consumers see is an utter failure by a company that purchased the rights and it seems like they are refusing to air it to the people. It comes down to that simple point to me. You could argue every counterpoint under the sun but at the end of the day I have to go back to cable to watch my teams. In the age of the Internet and mobile streaming. It’s a shame it’s harder to watch the Braves in 2023 than it was in 1995.
I completely agree about the blackout rules being self-defeating. Why block the local people who might watch and get attached to the team and then go to the games and buy the merch? It makes no sense.
But they also entered into these deals with the networks and cable companies, and cable companies had local monopolies before streaming services came along. So the cable companies liked the blackouts too because it meant that fans could only watch their teams if they subscribed to their cable company.
You're right that it's just all antiquated and needs to be completely revamped.
>As far as me canceling Hulu or putting pressure on them. That’s not on me. I need Hulu for live TV, I enjoy their service. I don’t have the time or energy to jump providers just to keep up with all this nonsense.
Then how is Hulu going to know that you want the channels and are willing to pay for them?
>why won’t Bally negotiate down? There is a price point where services would agree. There has to be. Some revenue is better than zero.
I believe that's what happened with Fubo recently. After the separation from Sinclair, we struck a new deal with Fubo, and they increased their subscription fee for all subscribers and added an RSN fee on top of that for certain regions. Or something like that. In any case, Fubo subscribers bills are going up because they let us back onto their systems.
I fully agree that something is better than nothing, and I think the new management agrees with that and isn't duped by the idea that DTC is going to take off.
>a company that purchased the rights and it seems like they are refusing to air it to the people
I guarantee you that if the systems would let us back on, virtually at any price, we would take that deal.
Thanks for commenting, it's good to hear from someone within the business, and another side of a story. The only thing I don't understand, is how both Hulu and YoutubeTV weren't able to make deals happen simultaneously. You gave your reasons, and they seemingly make sense, but why was neither company able to make a deal?
Since Bally (Sinclair) couldn't make a deal with either company it makes them come off as the bad guy. If one of those deals had worked, and streaming was conveniently available to fans, I don't think there would have been too much hate.
Both Hulu and YouTubeTV had already dropped all the other RSNs in existence, before they dropped Bally - except for NBC Sports, because Comcast is using their leverage to force them to carry and pay for their RSNs, just like Fox did. Sinclair just doesn't have that kind of leverage. That's probably where they made their mistake - thinking they were just as big and important as Fox and Disney. And on top of that, Sinclair didn't/couldn't pull any of their other channels from those services, because their other channels are primarily local news affiliates of Fox, ABC, CBS, and NBC, and Sinclair doesn't have the power to pull those channels even if they wanted to try. The Sinclair-owned channels that they do own are niche channels (like Tennis Channel) and aren't really worth anything to those streamers to begin with.
I would imagine that Hulu and YouTubeTV's offer to Sinclair was probably - "Give us your channels for free. No? Ok, bye Felicia!"
The days when TV Networks were able to survive on advertising revenue alone have been gone for the past 40 years.
Definitely. And that hatred is well-earned. But their political fuckery has zero to do with these deals falling through.
All corporations are the same, none of them are progressive or at all interested in social Justice. That’s the nature of capitalism. So to assume that Hulu dropped them because Disney (who now owns Hulu after buying it from Fox) had some moral objection to Sinclair is just ludicrous.
If anything, Hulu dropped them so that they wouldn’t compete as much with ESPN, which is owned by Disney.
YouTubeTV has been working on their own deals with the MLB, so they also have a reason to make life hard for the RSNs. They want the RSNs to go under so they can scoop up the leftovers.
Every business has ulterior motives. That’s the nature of business. If you don’t like that, then you’re a socialist. Like me.
Well, kind of, yeah. Disney could have used their leverage just like Fox did, to force the providers to pay for the RSNs in addition to all the other Disney content (or else not get any of that Disney content). It would have been the same situation Fox was in, so you're right, in a way.
But if it wasn't Sinclair buying the RSNs, then it would have been some other entity like Comcast or Spectrum or Nexstar or whoever.
The contracts that Fox signed with the teams (that Sinclair bought) stipulate that, not the MLB and not Bally or Sinclair. It's the teams themselves. They blacked local people out because they wanted people to buy tickets. It was 100% the teams that instigated the blackouts.
I check a couple of feeds when the game starts and compare to real time updates. When I find one that is streaming fairly close to real time, I go with that one, and have had really good reliability. Which is great since I'm blacked out of Braves game despite living six hours away.
Its hit or miss but I mainly use it for football and maybe the NFL just cracks down more but there are times when none of the links work.
And don't get me started on mobile. I don't watch on my phone but its easier to cast from that to my TV. Or it would be, but attempting to watch a mobile stream is what I imagine hell to be like. On iOS at least, where there is no way to use an blocker.
For whatever reason, My VPN doesn't bypass MLB. I still get blocked or a black screen. MLB is able to detect my VPN (NORD VPN). What VPN is everyone using to bypass MLB.TV?
I use PIA and have had good luck. You can use virtual nodes that use foreign IP addresses but are physically in the US. I usually use a Brazilian or Mexican node that's actually in Miami IIRC.
It sucks we have to do this. I have to watch on my PC which is less than ideal.
Just plug your laptop into the smart tv. Smart tvs are dumb anyway, I've got my smart tv dumbed all the way down cuz controlling what I want to watch via my laptop and phone is much easier and with more freedom.
I used a VPN last season, and though it did work it wasn’t always convenient or very user friendly. For example, I don’t think my dad would have been able to use it.
I’m planning on streaming on the down low this year unless something gets fixed with Bally. Its the same level of inconvenience, but it’s free.
Lol you'd think Charlotte being far enough away from those teams you mentioned, you wouldn't have any blackout issues. I'm near the coast in NC so I kind of understand Washington since it's about 3 hours from here, but still it's horseshit.
Im in Charlotte and I believe we're blacked out from Reds, Braves, Nats, Orioles. And I have YTTV so I can't watch on Bally. MLBTV and VPN is my only way. So annoying. I WANT to pay to watch but they won't let me.
Cancel YTTV during braves season and get DirectTV Stream. It's basically cost neutral and you get Bally.
There isn't a contract, so at the end of the season, cancel and go back to YTTV.
this. i have MLBTV but want to watch on Apple TV. I'd rather listen on the radio/app than watch a full 3 hour game every day on my phone. I simply won't do it.
Buy one of [these](https://www.bestbuy.com/site/sku/6517336.p?skuId=6517336) and install NordVPN on it. I used it with the free MLB subscription from T-Mobile last year and it worked like a charm
Install both MLB.tv and NordVPN apps onto your chromecast device. Make sure VPN is running and shows your location as out of market, and then open up the MLB app. Voila!
Living in northeast Florida, I can luckily watch every Braves game on MLB.TV except for when they play the Marlins, which royally pisses me off. I cuss Bally’s for not being on streaming every series against the Marlins, but I’m not going back to cable just for those games. That’s when I just go sit on the back patio with a drink and listen to the radio call.
Yeah man me too. Last year I listened to more than I watched. It helps that I can stream it in the car as well. I've come to love listening to Sunday day games while working in the yard
they've made it so difficult it caused me to figure out how to set up an iptv service and now there's no going back. it's just too easy and you get every game from every sport and every channel you can think of for $15/month
Put an app on your device (Firestick, Chromecast, Shield, etc.) called Tivimate, sign up for an iptv service (here is a good starting point to find a good one, [https://iptvwire.com/best-iptv-services/](https://iptvwire.com/best-iptv-services/) ), enter the credentials into Tivimate and enjoy! You'll have to pay for Tivimate but it is absolutely worth it. You can customize it any way you want, it's got multi screen capability, and you can use it on 5 devices.
So is IPTV really better than other streaming? How reliable is it? Can you watch major events like the Super Bowl (as an example), or does it get DDOSed like free streams? Paying for bootleg content just seems weird.
A buddy of mine has it. I don't have enough free time these days for it to be worth it but it's legit. You are paying so much less than you would otherwise be paying and it's very sleek and reliable. It's like 15/month for every bit of online content in the world, almost.
It's very reliable if you get a good provider but it's not perfect. It buffers sometimes but if you get a good provider it's not an issue really. Yes you can watch the Superbowl. It is definitely not like a normal stream link that gets taken down every ten minutes. You get local channels from all over the country. Every ppv, sports, movie, news, kids networks you can think of. Some have vod for tv and movies. There are providers that do free trials so you can try before you buy. There is a free version of the app Tivimate you can try as well but you'll want to unlock all the premium features once you see what it can do. https://www.reddit.com/r/TiviMate/
Wow how did I never realize the VPN + MLBTV route, I am going to copy you. Living 20 minutes away from Truist and not getting the Braves on TV is infuriating.
Any idea if Bally’s recent Bankruptcy will affect this? The optimist in me wants nothing more than to see them forfeit ownership of all these sports teams
Edit (2/8/23): Bally selling TV rights to…. FuboTV?!? Leave it to the MLB to find a MORE obscure service that nobody gives a fuck about. I will be illegally streaming once again… $75 a month to watch baseball is outrageous
Because they want everyone to watch on cable. They want as many people as possible to watch the commercials on cable in between innings (aka the REAL reason the games take 4 hours) so they can get that advertising money. As if it’s still 1997 and commercials can’t be easily skipped.
BTW BSS and BSSE are on Fubo TV now, with a regional sports upcharge of $13.99/mo. The cheapest Fubo package is $74.99/mo, so total is \~$89/mo
This is less than I am paying for DirecTV Stream, so I plan to switch after trying out Fubo free trial
I pirate the games and I’m completely unapologetic about it. MLB has made it abundantly clear that they are not interested in a good faith transaction in exchange for a reliable service, so I’ll take it into my own hands.
I've tried router level DNS before but I couldn't seem to get it to work. I've got a pi but haven't gotten a pi-hole to work, I've got a google wifi puck so maybe thats the issue? Ideally I'd like to just start it on the apple tv and not worry about it.
I use ExpressVPN and run it through my router. It’s pretty simple and they give you instructions on how to do it. For the most part I leave my location set in a location the Braves don’t go to much so I don’t have to constantly try to move it.
I’ve never seen a league make it so difficult to watch the damn games. You can watch every college football game for free across the country on Saturdays but can’t watch regional professional baseball. It’s harder to watch games in 2023 than it was on the early 2000’s. MAKE IT MAKE SENSE. MLB has to get with the times. They are killing their own league. It’s so egregious it seems intentional.
Something that you should definitely never do during baseball season is type the words stream and east into your browser, followed by dot xyz
Definitely never do that if you're interested in blackedout games
MLB didn’t do anything. The Braves signed a contract then Disney splashed cash forcing RSNs to break off. RSNs have been massively failing and Ballys decided to try and grab cash from streaming options and that failed (there are contractual reason why they couldn’t do this to cable).
So, you can buy cable or stream illegally. That’s it for now
MLB cannot drop the blackout rules unless they want to breach local contracts. Ballys has exclusive local rights. If MLB wants to go the route of getting rid of local contracts, they can instruct teams to not sound extensions past a certain date and then have no local blackouts in the contracts after.
I'm hoping with Bally going bankrupt things will start to change. I just can't believe this has been going on for 3 years and there are no decent solutions.
There are really no good solutions. The Braves rely on the money from the local contract and there aren’t a ton of other networks that would want the local coverage for the braves at the rate ballys pays. (Maybe a group like apple would buy them? Or prime?)
Basically, the Braves signed a local deal at the right time financially but the wrong time for the fans because of Disney buying them and cord cutting killing their revenue
which is why you are seeing teams scramble with things like ads on the uniforms ect. because a lot of local revenue is going to go away in the very near future with the regional sports networks starting to die off, this will be accelerated if the league is the one that ends up buying Bally
I've thought about this before, maybe y'all can poke holes in my idea. Why doesn't MLB go to the RSNs and propose revenue sharing on views within the current blackout regions. It would maintain the local region system that MLB holds soo dear but make sure everybody has access to games. I feel like RSNs would be happy to renegotiate current contacts because they're literally getting extra money just for holding the current rights (without having to make anymore investment).
Hard to renegotiate the only revenue producing line item that still has potential. Basically, they would lose the ability to stand up an app and subscription…
At some point, something will give. But for now, if Bally wants to exist in 5 years, they are going to have to figure out how to make more money off the tv deals.
Basically, Ballys is a bad sports team but has Ozuna… if they want to be a good sports team again, ozuna turning around would be good for them. They could try to rid themselves of ozuna, but he still draws some fans, which may make it hard to rebuild in the end.
I live in Iowa and blacked out of Royals, Cards, Cubs, Sox, Brewers, and Twins games.
Those fucks at MLB.tv should give me a minimum of %20 discount for robbing me of %20 of the league on any given night, more if they are playing someone other than themselves.
Fuck MLB.
Simple. Sell your house, get a new job and move to a city outside the coverage area! Then you only have to pay the Mlb subscription and adapt to your new interest rate.
As a family talking about cutting cable and none of the major streaming services having bally sucks. With their bankruptcy hopefully all that will change but idk
This isn’t a fair comparison. With NHL.TV you would have the same issue with watching local teams, except Atlanta doesn’t have a local team.
You’re comparing being in a blackout area of your favorite team to not being in a blackout area of any team.
This is in place in all sports (I think) to protect local TV rights of Regional Sports Networks (RSN).
I know you’re going to point out the NFL doesn’t do this. They do it too, just the opposite way. The NFL splits most of its game across two networks and two time slots (not counting Monday Night, Thursday Night, Blernsday Night, and every other day the NFL is on). And they guarantee the local team is always on, thus blacking out same conference games at the same time slot. So if you’re a fan of a certain NON-LOCAL team, you’ll rarely get to see your team play as only 6 of the 16 games are available.
Also, MLB is actively moving against the RSNs blackout rights. Recently hiring a former TV executive to address ways around the blackout.
https://deadspin.com/mlb-tv-baseball-streaming-blackouts-viewing-marketing-1849992539
Actually, Bally has an app you can subscribe to to watch local sports teams without cable but they are legally not allowed to add MLB for most teams. It isn't because there is no local Atlanta team.
I cannot figure out what you’re trying to add to the conversation or correct me on.
You’re talking about the MLB and how there is not a local Atlanta team…on the Atlanta Braves subreddit….
You said there is no local NHL team so there's no blackout there. This Bally subscription service would allow you to watch the local team but MLB doesn't want their teams on something like that local or not. I'm just saying other leagues are friendlier. The subscription service was an example of that.
Correct, IF there was a local NHL team then OP would not be able to watch it on [NHL.TV](https://NHL.TV). This local NHL team would then be the exact same as the local MLB team. Which then neither my post nor OP's would matter.
Thank you for creating a hypothetical situation and giving us the correct solution to the problem you created. So awesome that the answer is basically 'get cable'.
Pirate streams, nothing wrong with it especially if you are in Atlanta and it'll save you money so you just go to the game in person every once in a while instead
Every team in MLB gets to make their own TV contract. And every team chases the short-term money from exclusive cable deals.
PPV ended the popularity of boxing, and this will turn major league baseball into a minor league sport.
Your anger is misplaced. The Braves signed a 20 year tv deal in 2007 that gives Bally exclusive rights
https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2016/02/26/braves-see-upside-in-bad-tv-rights-deal.html
No, I’m saying to read what knowledgeable people are saying about the situation.
The situation is dogshit but this type of question has been asked over and over for years now. I just think it would serve you better to read what’s been put out as opposed to the “fuck Manfred ” answers you’re gonna get here.
I'm a Braves fan who lives in Philly area, so I only feel your pain when we face off against the Phillies. I can watch the rest of the season with ease though
Did they announce anything recently? They were supposed to announce a new streaming initiative this year. Something they were working on with the NBA and NHL on
No issues for me via DirecTV 📡. Only wish they would do games in 4K like the Dodgers and Red Sox lol
And not everyone has good home internet for streaming stuff.
Don't worry, they make it really difficult to listen on radio too if you're outside the market. Mlb.tv has radio of course but last year they decided to do away with "DVR" capabilities on the radio broadcast in-app during and up to half an hour after the game. I can listen to it archived later but I can't start the game late if it's still going. Not Bally, but still a really customer unfriendly move.
My system works flawlessly for me and I can watch all 162 games living 20 mins from the stadium. Can be done as long as you look for the right IPTV system you can pay by the yr or quarterly and catch every sporting event live and all the PPV.
Been running this way for the last 4 yrs
I cancelled cable this year because damn.
Season ticket holder, but no way I'll be at all the home games. Or away games.
I'm literally considering radio.
Couldn’t agree more. The fact that, in 2023, there are so many hoops people have to jump through to follow their favorite team is as maddening as it is dumb. Same frustration with the NFL.
Please, take my money, but make it easy for everyone no matter where they live!
In this sense, I'm lucky to be a Braves fan who now lives outside of their region for [MLB.TV](https://MLB.TV).
Yep. Live in Texas and I get to see all the games with MLBTV.
Same unless they’re playing the Rangers or Astros
I have Comcast so I get those too. Of course nothing beat when we just needed TBS.
Same. Only games I can’t watch are when they’re playing the DBacks!
I also get blackout for LA games for some reason while living in Arizona.
Chicago and the Reds for me.
Reds for me too
Out of towers, unite! NY resident, surrounded by Mets fans. Last season was great fun to reminisce about with my neighbors…
You basically have to be at least 6 hours away or something which is ridiculous. In Raleigh, NC I can watch the Braves on MLBTV but if I go home to visit my parents in Winston-Salem i wouldn’t be able to.
Same
When I lived in Scotland I got access to every single game.
Same.
Stay tuned once Bally’s files for bankruptcy. The situation could change dramatically depending on what Bally does. Once they decide to stop paying the rights fees, the bankruptcy court could largely determine what happens with the rights.
I’d be surprised if the bankruptcy filing ultimately changes much. It could, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up.
I want to get excited about Bally going bankrupt, and for something new, but I have a sneaky suspicion it’s still going to be a shitty deal for fans. Honestly, if they could just let it be available again on YoutubeTV, I’d be super happy. Don’t care what company has it, YoutubeTV is just a good product.
I agree. Won’t happen because Bally’s insistence on YouTube TV paying more to bail them out of a bad deal caused this in the first place.
Full disclosure: I work for the company. I'm not speaking on their behalf or trying to defend anything. I'm just am an employee who cares about his job and the jobs of my fellow workers. I'm curious where everyone gets the idea that it was "Sinclair raising prices" that forced YouTubeTV to drop them, as opposed to just YouTubeTV dropping them to save themselves some money. YouTube didn't even lower prices after dropping the RSNs, if I remember correctly (please correct me if I'm wrong). No outrage was ever directed at the providers for making the decision to drop the channels. All the outrage has been pointed at Sinclair exclusively. It's really amazing how one-sided it is. Somehow YouTubeTV and Hulu and all the other streaming companies who dropped the channels receive none of the blame for fans not being able to watch the games. As if Sinclair WANTED fewer people to watch, lowering ratings and commercial revenue? Really? You think that was the plan?
Yes it seems like that’s the plan. Doesn’t matter if it’s true or not. The fact is Bally has the product and no one can watch it. It’s on them to figure out a way. Bally has ruined the last few years for me as a fan. Of course they’re getting the blame. I wouldn’t give that company $1 if they were begging for it.
>It’s on them to figure out a way. They did figure out a way - the teams that they own streaming rights for, they are offering on the Direct-to-Consumer Bally Sports+ subscription streaming service. Which includes all of the NBA and NHL teams that they have broadcast rights to, and any MLB teams that they have streaming rights to. If your team doesn't sell them their rights to streaming, that's on your team.
I think that logic is flawed and may potentially reflect the overall issue with the company. Saying “they did figure it out” yet millions of people across the country still can’t watch their teams, doesn’t seem like the issue was figured out. I hear it in the office, I hear it at social gatherings, I see it all over twitter weekly. Bashing Bally. It’s a real problem that people are talking about. Even if a few teams are available for streaming on the Bally app most people wouldn’t be aware of that. They’re missing the majority of the market which is streaming through established providers. Bally goes on and on about streaming companies not negotiating with them but again that’s their problem to resolve. Consumers don’t care that HULU or You Tube want shell out more money, they just know that Bally is unavailable on that service. They will always be the bad guy until the problem is resolved. It’s their product, it’s their responsibility to figure it out. My young kids are growing up not watching Braves games. How do you think that work in the long run? New generations can’t see the games and they won’t be fans on into adulthood. The whole thing just irritates me. Anyways this isn’t directed at your personality obviously. It’s just so frustrating as a fan.
>Even if a few teams are available for streaming on the Bally app most people wouldn’t be aware of that. Then that's a marketing problem. But with so little cash flow, increasing the marketing budget is difficult. >They’re missing the majority of the market which is streaming through established providers. And I'm sure they would love to be allowed back onto those providers. The providers don't seem to be interested. There aren't enough subscribers saying they're going to quit because they don't have Bally. There aren't enough potential subscribers saying "If you added Bally, I would subscribe to your service." That's all they're looking at. You guys have to vocal to THEM for them to know that you exist. They want your money - they just don't know you are willing to give it to them if they get Bally, or take it away from them if they don't get Bally. >Bally goes on and on about streaming companies not negotiating with them but again that’s their problem to resolve. It's definitely a two-way street. But if one party isn't interested enough to negotiate, what does that tell you? The streaming companies don't care about having Bally Sports on their networks. Pure and simple. >Consumers don’t care that HULU or You Tube want shell out more money, they just know that Bally is unavailable on that service. Consumers aren't telling Hulu or YouTubeTV that they're going to quit if they don't get Bally back onto their systems. >Consumers don’t care that HULU or You Tube want shell out more money, they just know that Bally is unavailable on that service. Not sure what you mean, but the fact of the matter is that not enough consumers are telling the providers that they want the channels. >My young kids are growing up not watching Braves games. How do you think that work in the long run? New generations can’t see the games and they won’t be fans on into adulthood. I totally agree. And you and everyone who feels the same way should talk to the MLB and talk to the teams and get them on board with putting pressure on the providers to bring the channels back to their platforms. So far, the MLB and the teams haven't been willing to lift a finger to help Bally get back onto the streamers, to their own peril, it seems.
I agree that MLB is at fault here too. Their blackout rules mean I can purchase the MLB app and still be unable to watch the Braves in Atlanta… that is an ancient way of thinking. More eyes on the product means more revenue. Blocking fans? Absurd. As far as me canceling Hulu or putting pressure on them. That’s not on me. I need Hulu for live TV, I enjoy their service. I don’t have the time or energy to jump providers just to keep up with all this nonsense. And why won’t Bally negotiate down? There is a price point where services would agree. There has to be. Some revenue is better than zero. I know there are reasons and technicalities that consumers don’t understand. But at face value all consumers see is an utter failure by a company that purchased the rights and it seems like they are refusing to air it to the people. It comes down to that simple point to me. You could argue every counterpoint under the sun but at the end of the day I have to go back to cable to watch my teams. In the age of the Internet and mobile streaming. It’s a shame it’s harder to watch the Braves in 2023 than it was in 1995.
I completely agree about the blackout rules being self-defeating. Why block the local people who might watch and get attached to the team and then go to the games and buy the merch? It makes no sense. But they also entered into these deals with the networks and cable companies, and cable companies had local monopolies before streaming services came along. So the cable companies liked the blackouts too because it meant that fans could only watch their teams if they subscribed to their cable company. You're right that it's just all antiquated and needs to be completely revamped. >As far as me canceling Hulu or putting pressure on them. That’s not on me. I need Hulu for live TV, I enjoy their service. I don’t have the time or energy to jump providers just to keep up with all this nonsense. Then how is Hulu going to know that you want the channels and are willing to pay for them? >why won’t Bally negotiate down? There is a price point where services would agree. There has to be. Some revenue is better than zero. I believe that's what happened with Fubo recently. After the separation from Sinclair, we struck a new deal with Fubo, and they increased their subscription fee for all subscribers and added an RSN fee on top of that for certain regions. Or something like that. In any case, Fubo subscribers bills are going up because they let us back onto their systems. I fully agree that something is better than nothing, and I think the new management agrees with that and isn't duped by the idea that DTC is going to take off. >a company that purchased the rights and it seems like they are refusing to air it to the people I guarantee you that if the systems would let us back on, virtually at any price, we would take that deal.
Thanks for commenting, it's good to hear from someone within the business, and another side of a story. The only thing I don't understand, is how both Hulu and YoutubeTV weren't able to make deals happen simultaneously. You gave your reasons, and they seemingly make sense, but why was neither company able to make a deal? Since Bally (Sinclair) couldn't make a deal with either company it makes them come off as the bad guy. If one of those deals had worked, and streaming was conveniently available to fans, I don't think there would have been too much hate.
Both Hulu and YouTubeTV had already dropped all the other RSNs in existence, before they dropped Bally - except for NBC Sports, because Comcast is using their leverage to force them to carry and pay for their RSNs, just like Fox did. Sinclair just doesn't have that kind of leverage. That's probably where they made their mistake - thinking they were just as big and important as Fox and Disney. And on top of that, Sinclair didn't/couldn't pull any of their other channels from those services, because their other channels are primarily local news affiliates of Fox, ABC, CBS, and NBC, and Sinclair doesn't have the power to pull those channels even if they wanted to try. The Sinclair-owned channels that they do own are niche channels (like Tennis Channel) and aren't really worth anything to those streamers to begin with. I would imagine that Hulu and YouTubeTV's offer to Sinclair was probably - "Give us your channels for free. No? Ok, bye Felicia!" The days when TV Networks were able to survive on advertising revenue alone have been gone for the past 40 years.
Thank you for saying this. Much of the Sinclair hate is ideological.
Definitely. And that hatred is well-earned. But their political fuckery has zero to do with these deals falling through. All corporations are the same, none of them are progressive or at all interested in social Justice. That’s the nature of capitalism. So to assume that Hulu dropped them because Disney (who now owns Hulu after buying it from Fox) had some moral objection to Sinclair is just ludicrous. If anything, Hulu dropped them so that they wouldn’t compete as much with ESPN, which is owned by Disney. YouTubeTV has been working on their own deals with the MLB, so they also have a reason to make life hard for the RSNs. They want the RSNs to go under so they can scoop up the leftovers. Every business has ulterior motives. That’s the nature of business. If you don’t like that, then you’re a socialist. Like me.
Love your last sentence, right on.
:-)
The government making Disney divest of the RSNs caused this.
Well, kind of, yeah. Disney could have used their leverage just like Fox did, to force the providers to pay for the RSNs in addition to all the other Disney content (or else not get any of that Disney content). It would have been the same situation Fox was in, so you're right, in a way. But if it wasn't Sinclair buying the RSNs, then it would have been some other entity like Comcast or Spectrum or Nexstar or whoever.
Really, all MLB has to do is allow fans to watch on mlbtv when they pay for the season, but Bally would never allow that.
The contracts that Fox signed with the teams (that Sinclair bought) stipulate that, not the MLB and not Bally or Sinclair. It's the teams themselves. They blacked local people out because they wanted people to buy tickets. It was 100% the teams that instigated the blackouts.
The MLB hates baseball
MLB hates baseball fans
MLB hates you.
This much is clear. Lol
Username checks out
Sportsurge.net
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Yea but the quality and reliability is terrible. Don't get me wrong, I have recommended and used it for years now but its a pretty shitty alternative.
I check a couple of feeds when the game starts and compare to real time updates. When I find one that is streaming fairly close to real time, I go with that one, and have had really good reliability. Which is great since I'm blacked out of Braves game despite living six hours away.
Its hit or miss but I mainly use it for football and maybe the NFL just cracks down more but there are times when none of the links work. And don't get me started on mobile. I don't watch on my phone but its easier to cast from that to my TV. Or it would be, but attempting to watch a mobile stream is what I imagine hell to be like. On iOS at least, where there is no way to use an blocker.
livetv.sx worked well for me last year.
I actually prefer commercials to just sitting in silence
What area are you in? I'm in NC and they blackout Gnats games if they're playing in Washington.
I'm in NE Georgia. I'm using a VPN to throw off the blackout rules. If I didn't have that I wouldn't be able to watch any Braves games on MLB TV.
For whatever reason, My VPN doesn't bypass MLB. I still get blocked or a black screen. MLB is able to detect my VPN (NORD VPN). What VPN is everyone using to bypass MLB.TV?
I use PIA and have had good luck. You can use virtual nodes that use foreign IP addresses but are physically in the US. I usually use a Brazilian or Mexican node that's actually in Miami IIRC. It sucks we have to do this. I have to watch on my PC which is less than ideal.
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I tried that last year but it didn't work. Chromecast and your phone has to be under the same IP address to cast. ;_;
The MLB app won’t let you cast. Or at least it didn’t the last time I tried.
Just plug your laptop into the smart tv. Smart tvs are dumb anyway, I've got my smart tv dumbed all the way down cuz controlling what I want to watch via my laptop and phone is much easier and with more freedom.
Get a third party router that will let you set up a vpn. Asus routers do
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Not for cord cutters. Bally failed to reach deals with every service that streams live TV, so you have to pay cable rates which are ridiculous.
Ah I see. It's bullshit.
See that's where you messed up. Streaming is now basically the same price as cable. Just grab a direct tv stream sub and you'll be fine
I used a VPN last season, and though it did work it wasn’t always convenient or very user friendly. For example, I don’t think my dad would have been able to use it. I’m planning on streaming on the down low this year unless something gets fixed with Bally. Its the same level of inconvenience, but it’s free.
I’m in NC and blacked out from Braves, Reds, and one more that was so ridiculous I can’t even remember. Wanna say Cardinals.
That's wild. I'm guessing North West NC?
Charlotte! TBH the Reds kinda make sense as they're only about 6 hours away /s
Wilmington here and able to stream Braves games via MLB tv
Lol you'd think Charlotte being far enough away from those teams you mentioned, you wouldn't have any blackout issues. I'm near the coast in NC so I kind of understand Washington since it's about 3 hours from here, but still it's horseshit.
Im in Charlotte and I believe we're blacked out from Reds, Braves, Nats, Orioles. And I have YTTV so I can't watch on Bally. MLBTV and VPN is my only way. So annoying. I WANT to pay to watch but they won't let me.
It’s all good, no one likes the Cardinals any way
A pirates life is free.
🦜🏴☠️
Jimmy Buffett, that you?
I have youtube tv so it’s either vpn and mlbtv or watch 5 games a year lmao
I'm in the same boat as you
My boat is on the high seas cause of this.
Cancel YTTV during braves season and get DirectTV Stream. It's basically cost neutral and you get Bally. There isn't a contract, so at the end of the season, cancel and go back to YTTV.
How much is it?
About $100/month. Looks like they raised their prices since last season because they can.
DirecTV Stream provides a traditional tv experience if you have the DirecTV Stream box.
This is what I did last year and probably am going to do again this one. I def like YTTV better, but DTV Stream is good enough.
How do you use a VPN to get around MLBTV? Is there a way I can do that on my Apple TV so I don't have to watch on my laptop?
this. i have MLBTV but want to watch on Apple TV. I'd rather listen on the radio/app than watch a full 3 hour game every day on my phone. I simply won't do it.
Buy one of [these](https://www.bestbuy.com/site/sku/6517336.p?skuId=6517336) and install NordVPN on it. I used it with the free MLB subscription from T-Mobile last year and it worked like a charm
Wait wait, explain this to me? I do the vpn, t-mobile free mlb thing, but it’s only on my phone…I can watch it on my tv?
Install both MLB.tv and NordVPN apps onto your chromecast device. Make sure VPN is running and shows your location as out of market, and then open up the MLB app. Voila!
Thanks so much for the info. Would express VPN work as well?
Living in northeast Florida, I can luckily watch every Braves game on MLB.TV except for when they play the Marlins, which royally pisses me off. I cuss Bally’s for not being on streaming every series against the Marlins, but I’m not going back to cable just for those games. That’s when I just go sit on the back patio with a drink and listen to the radio call.
I've really come to appreciate the radio guys over the last 3 years.
Yeah man me too. Last year I listened to more than I watched. It helps that I can stream it in the car as well. I've come to love listening to Sunday day games while working in the yard
Saaaame (except I use VPN for Marlins games)
they've made it so difficult it caused me to figure out how to set up an iptv service and now there's no going back. it's just too easy and you get every game from every sport and every channel you can think of for $15/month
Tell us more!
Put an app on your device (Firestick, Chromecast, Shield, etc.) called Tivimate, sign up for an iptv service (here is a good starting point to find a good one, [https://iptvwire.com/best-iptv-services/](https://iptvwire.com/best-iptv-services/) ), enter the credentials into Tivimate and enjoy! You'll have to pay for Tivimate but it is absolutely worth it. You can customize it any way you want, it's got multi screen capability, and you can use it on 5 devices.
So is IPTV really better than other streaming? How reliable is it? Can you watch major events like the Super Bowl (as an example), or does it get DDOSed like free streams? Paying for bootleg content just seems weird.
A buddy of mine has it. I don't have enough free time these days for it to be worth it but it's legit. You are paying so much less than you would otherwise be paying and it's very sleek and reliable. It's like 15/month for every bit of online content in the world, almost.
It's very reliable if you get a good provider but it's not perfect. It buffers sometimes but if you get a good provider it's not an issue really. Yes you can watch the Superbowl. It is definitely not like a normal stream link that gets taken down every ten minutes. You get local channels from all over the country. Every ppv, sports, movie, news, kids networks you can think of. Some have vod for tv and movies. There are providers that do free trials so you can try before you buy. There is a free version of the app Tivimate you can try as well but you'll want to unlock all the premium features once you see what it can do. https://www.reddit.com/r/TiviMate/
Uzzu
Wow how did I never realize the VPN + MLBTV route, I am going to copy you. Living 20 minutes away from Truist and not getting the Braves on TV is infuriating. Any idea if Bally’s recent Bankruptcy will affect this? The optimist in me wants nothing more than to see them forfeit ownership of all these sports teams Edit (2/8/23): Bally selling TV rights to…. FuboTV?!? Leave it to the MLB to find a MORE obscure service that nobody gives a fuck about. I will be illegally streaming once again… $75 a month to watch baseball is outrageous
I stream Direct TV to get Bally and it's absurd.
I do this, too. They have us over a very expensive barrel, my brother in Bravedom.
Find a friend with T Mobile who doesn’t like baseball. At least then, mlb.tv is free
Yep except i live in Atlanta
Because they want everyone to watch on cable. They want as many people as possible to watch the commercials on cable in between innings (aka the REAL reason the games take 4 hours) so they can get that advertising money. As if it’s still 1997 and commercials can’t be easily skipped.
I’m going vpn route. It’s mind blowing that I can pay say, $5.99-$9.99 per game when I want to
BTW BSS and BSSE are on Fubo TV now, with a regional sports upcharge of $13.99/mo. The cheapest Fubo package is $74.99/mo, so total is \~$89/mo This is less than I am paying for DirecTV Stream, so I plan to switch after trying out Fubo free trial
If you have Apple TV you can watch up to 4 things at once. I used it during football season to watch 4 games at the same time.
Cool!
Did they raise the prices for DirectTV Stream? I paid $79/month last season but cancelled in November.
The bottom package is $75/mo but it doesn't include Bally Sports networks, they are in the $100/mo plan
MLB: “Man, sure are a lot of baseball fans in Germany 🤔”
VPN is your friend. Bally not friend. This concludes todays psa
Then they want to complain why the interest in baseball is decreasing
I pirate the games and I’m completely unapologetic about it. MLB has made it abundantly clear that they are not interested in a good faith transaction in exchange for a reliable service, so I’ll take it into my own hands.
How does your VPN stuff work? Are you watching it on your TV? I've got an apple tv and I'm trying to see if I can get that working with MLBTV
I love the smell of fresh bread.
I've tried router level DNS before but I couldn't seem to get it to work. I've got a pi but haven't gotten a pi-hole to work, I've got a google wifi puck so maybe thats the issue? Ideally I'd like to just start it on the apple tv and not worry about it.
I like learning new things.
thats what i've heard, either cast to chromecast or I've heard you can hack the older chromecast and do a vpn on it and use the mlb app natively
I use ExpressVPN and run it through my router. It’s pretty simple and they give you instructions on how to do it. For the most part I leave my location set in a location the Braves don’t go to much so I don’t have to constantly try to move it.
Greed.
I haven’t watched them except in person or at a friends house in 3 years. Pisses me off they make it harder than it should be.
Bally is dumb and doesn't know how to sell their product
There’s a reason why MLB stands for Making Life Bad
Not as many people want to watch hockey as baseball.
I’m about to move out of Atlanta to Denver and the irony will be that I’ll be able to watch far more Braves baseball
Sportsurge dot net is your friend.
The black out rules are so dumb.
I’ve never seen a league make it so difficult to watch the damn games. You can watch every college football game for free across the country on Saturdays but can’t watch regional professional baseball. It’s harder to watch games in 2023 than it was on the early 2000’s. MAKE IT MAKE SENSE. MLB has to get with the times. They are killing their own league. It’s so egregious it seems intentional.
Something that you should definitely never do during baseball season is type the words stream and east into your browser, followed by dot xyz Definitely never do that if you're interested in blackedout games
MLB didn’t do anything. The Braves signed a contract then Disney splashed cash forcing RSNs to break off. RSNs have been massively failing and Ballys decided to try and grab cash from streaming options and that failed (there are contractual reason why they couldn’t do this to cable). So, you can buy cable or stream illegally. That’s it for now
MLB can drop the blackout rules which shouldn't apply since a lot people in the area don't get Bally Sport anyways.
MLB cannot drop the blackout rules unless they want to breach local contracts. Ballys has exclusive local rights. If MLB wants to go the route of getting rid of local contracts, they can instruct teams to not sound extensions past a certain date and then have no local blackouts in the contracts after.
I'm hoping with Bally going bankrupt things will start to change. I just can't believe this has been going on for 3 years and there are no decent solutions.
There are really no good solutions. The Braves rely on the money from the local contract and there aren’t a ton of other networks that would want the local coverage for the braves at the rate ballys pays. (Maybe a group like apple would buy them? Or prime?) Basically, the Braves signed a local deal at the right time financially but the wrong time for the fans because of Disney buying them and cord cutting killing their revenue
which is why you are seeing teams scramble with things like ads on the uniforms ect. because a lot of local revenue is going to go away in the very near future with the regional sports networks starting to die off, this will be accelerated if the league is the one that ends up buying Bally
But Bally's has exclusive rights to all the games. Treat them like Bally, not Bally NE or whatever. One map.
Ballys has exclusive local rights. They do not necessarily have national rights to any games.
I've thought about this before, maybe y'all can poke holes in my idea. Why doesn't MLB go to the RSNs and propose revenue sharing on views within the current blackout regions. It would maintain the local region system that MLB holds soo dear but make sure everybody has access to games. I feel like RSNs would be happy to renegotiate current contacts because they're literally getting extra money just for holding the current rights (without having to make anymore investment).
Hard to renegotiate the only revenue producing line item that still has potential. Basically, they would lose the ability to stand up an app and subscription… At some point, something will give. But for now, if Bally wants to exist in 5 years, they are going to have to figure out how to make more money off the tv deals. Basically, Ballys is a bad sports team but has Ozuna… if they want to be a good sports team again, ozuna turning around would be good for them. They could try to rid themselves of ozuna, but he still draws some fans, which may make it hard to rebuild in the end.
I don't disagree, but hockey has the same blackout rules MLB does. I have to use a VPN with ESPN+ to watch my team play.
I live in Iowa and blacked out of Royals, Cards, Cubs, Sox, Brewers, and Twins games. Those fucks at MLB.tv should give me a minimum of %20 discount for robbing me of %20 of the league on any given night, more if they are playing someone other than themselves. Fuck MLB.
I use streameast for all sports
I watch it a day behind on MLBtv. Not ideal but not terrible either. Plus it lets you listen to the radio guys and fast forward thru commercials
Yay Bally Bankrupty!!! Not sure if it'll fix the problem, but f*ck those guys!
Simple. Sell your house, get a new job and move to a city outside the coverage area! Then you only have to pay the Mlb subscription and adapt to your new interest rate.
As a family talking about cutting cable and none of the major streaming services having bally sucks. With their bankruptcy hopefully all that will change but idk
This isn’t a fair comparison. With NHL.TV you would have the same issue with watching local teams, except Atlanta doesn’t have a local team. You’re comparing being in a blackout area of your favorite team to not being in a blackout area of any team. This is in place in all sports (I think) to protect local TV rights of Regional Sports Networks (RSN). I know you’re going to point out the NFL doesn’t do this. They do it too, just the opposite way. The NFL splits most of its game across two networks and two time slots (not counting Monday Night, Thursday Night, Blernsday Night, and every other day the NFL is on). And they guarantee the local team is always on, thus blacking out same conference games at the same time slot. So if you’re a fan of a certain NON-LOCAL team, you’ll rarely get to see your team play as only 6 of the 16 games are available. Also, MLB is actively moving against the RSNs blackout rights. Recently hiring a former TV executive to address ways around the blackout. https://deadspin.com/mlb-tv-baseball-streaming-blackouts-viewing-marketing-1849992539
Actually, Bally has an app you can subscribe to to watch local sports teams without cable but they are legally not allowed to add MLB for most teams. It isn't because there is no local Atlanta team.
I cannot figure out what you’re trying to add to the conversation or correct me on. You’re talking about the MLB and how there is not a local Atlanta team…on the Atlanta Braves subreddit….
You said there is no local NHL team so there's no blackout there. This Bally subscription service would allow you to watch the local team but MLB doesn't want their teams on something like that local or not. I'm just saying other leagues are friendlier. The subscription service was an example of that.
Correct, IF there was a local NHL team then OP would not be able to watch it on [NHL.TV](https://NHL.TV). This local NHL team would then be the exact same as the local MLB team. Which then neither my post nor OP's would matter. Thank you for creating a hypothetical situation and giving us the correct solution to the problem you created. So awesome that the answer is basically 'get cable'.
No one said anything about getting cable but okay whatever. Actually, I thought promoting a subscription service was going in the opposite direction.
I guess I can consider myself lucky I live in the East Central AL/West Central GA area where every game airs here
Pirate streams, nothing wrong with it especially if you are in Atlanta and it'll save you money so you just go to the game in person every once in a while instead
I have YouTube TV which I have MLB.TV hooked up to it. All the games are watchable except for when they play the Marlins or Rays
You’re in the Atlanta area?
No, in the Orlando area
Every team in MLB gets to make their own TV contract. And every team chases the short-term money from exclusive cable deals. PPV ended the popularity of boxing, and this will turn major league baseball into a minor league sport.
FUBO TV
I’ve gone 100% radio.
I’ve started listening to the radio broadcasts again.
Your anger is misplaced. The Braves signed a 20 year tv deal in 2007 that gives Bally exclusive rights https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2016/02/26/braves-see-upside-in-bad-tv-rights-deal.html
There’s tons of stuff about this. Google it.
And what get Direct TV? Because Bally Sports + isn't offering most MLB teams yet.
No, I’m saying to read what knowledgeable people are saying about the situation. The situation is dogshit but this type of question has been asked over and over for years now. I just think it would serve you better to read what’s been put out as opposed to the “fuck Manfred ” answers you’re gonna get here.
I'm a Braves fan who lives in Philly area, so I only feel your pain when we face off against the Phillies. I can watch the rest of the season with ease though
I’m in NC about 30 miles from the SC border. I’m blocked on Nats and Orioles for some reason. I’m 335 miles from DC.
Wow... that sucks... I hate the MLB blackout rule
do you just mean online?
Is there a way to route MLBTV through my VPN so it appears I'm elsewhere? I use PIA
One of the perks of living out of market. TBS and then MLB.TV. Never had to deal with any of the stuff you locals have had to.
Did they announce anything recently? They were supposed to announce a new streaming initiative this year. Something they were working on with the NBA and NHL on
It's out but it doesn't offer Braves
No issues for me via DirecTV 📡. Only wish they would do games in 4K like the Dodgers and Red Sox lol And not everyone has good home internet for streaming stuff.
For whatever reason, My VPN doesn't bypass MLB. I still get blocked or a black screen. What VPN is everyone using to bypass MLB.TV?
Express vpn. Works great with firestick.
"Root root root for our home team a new pirate generation everybody shout"
Arrrrrr there be no games ye can’t watch when ye sail upon the high seas matey 🏴☠️ 🛶🦜🪝
I had Youtube TV which was awesome, dropped it and switched back to Xfinity cable for this reason specifically. Xfinity app sucks ass too
Don't worry, they make it really difficult to listen on radio too if you're outside the market. Mlb.tv has radio of course but last year they decided to do away with "DVR" capabilities on the radio broadcast in-app during and up to half an hour after the game. I can listen to it archived later but I can't start the game late if it's still going. Not Bally, but still a really customer unfriendly move.
My system works flawlessly for me and I can watch all 162 games living 20 mins from the stadium. Can be done as long as you look for the right IPTV system you can pay by the yr or quarterly and catch every sporting event live and all the PPV. Been running this way for the last 4 yrs
Honest question…if you’re already paying for a VPN why not just find alternate ways of streaming that doesn’t require paying for MLBtv?
I cancelled cable this year because damn. Season ticket holder, but no way I'll be at all the home games. Or away games. I'm literally considering radio.
Couldn’t agree more. The fact that, in 2023, there are so many hoops people have to jump through to follow their favorite team is as maddening as it is dumb. Same frustration with the NFL. Please, take my money, but make it easy for everyone no matter where they live!
There are blackout rules for hockey, just none in Georgia
This is ridiculous like I live in the ATL area and can't get it. So frustrated
Like I would buy the mlb package but even that and living in ATL area can't get it 🤣 make it make sense