There’s nothing to say definitively that the two will partner up anytime soon (if at all), but when a well-placed source mentioned to me that a marriage between
Apple, for all its massive power in the mobile device and personal computer space, still isn’t a likely first company that comes to mind for set internet top devices for television. For consumers, Roku, Amazon Fire, or
Earlier this week, word surfaced that Apple will do something they’re not well known for: offering a service at a low rate. According to the Bloomberg, Apple is going to jump into the “skinny bundle” market offering up a limited slate of 25 channels through Apple TV for about $30 a month. They are reportedly in talks ABC,
So, Apple may shuffle the deck in that market with offerings that get smaller channel listings for lower prices and with it, the movement between traditional television with 500+ channels starts to blur with cord-cutters.
Like Apple’s move toward streaming audio with the next iteration of the iTunes library or the acquisition of Dre Beats, clearly the company is trying to gain traction in a product offering that they—for whatever reason—haven’t grabbed the consumers fancy. While phones and tablets come with price tags in the hundreds, the Apple TV set box is $69. Why haven't Apple TVs flown off the shelf?
This is where MLB Advanced Media comes in.
In front of everyone’s faces, MLBAM has been part of Apple’s landscape. Whether it was the recent unveiling of the Apple Watch or for iPhone or iPad, MLBAM’s “At Bat” product for watching and tracking baseball games, their products have been part of key Apple presentations.
But, beyond baseball where 5.7 million fans watch on At Bat, alone, MLBAM has become a key driver of the streaming media landscape as a turnkey solution. Whether it is ESPN, CBS March Madness, and more recently HBO Now, the service that will be exclusive to Apple products, MLB Advanced Media has been keenly snuggled up with Apple.
As we first reported (see The Biggest Media Company You’ve Never Heard Of), and later had confirmed by new MLB commissioner Rob Manfred, the league plans to keep baseball properties tightly connected to MLBAM, and at the same time, spin off the media company of the league into a new arm that would continue hosting. While sources at BAM would neither confirm or deny the possibility with Apple, only saying that they have many that wish to partner with the media company of Major League Baseball, you get the sense that it is a logical step and one that could easily move from rumor to reality.
Marrying MLBAM with Apple would allow them to supply the core infrastructure to host streaming for others in the same way that they swooped in and landed the HBO deal. That would allow partnerships to grow either a broadened package beyond 25 channels as Apple is reportedly ready to roll out, or targeted skinny bundles where consumers might be able to get more sports here, and more movies there.
As noted, it’s not a matter of if MLB Advanced Media is going to splinter into two companies, it’s simply a matter of when. The media company of Major League Baseball is looking to have revenues hit the $1 billion mark by 2016 after hitting the $800 million mark this last year. Growing at this rapid rate seems to point to a company based on strategic partnership (or partnerships) spinning off of MLBAM sooner rather than later.
As noted, no one from MLBAM or Apple will say what may be in the plans and remain tight-lipped. But if ever there was a case of a relationship out in the open that could turn into a huge player in the streaming media landscape, it would be those two companies.
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