The Oakland A’s are not the first, but they are the latest, and the first in the very traditional world of baseball, to go the audio streaming route vs having a local radio partner for the 2020 season. Oakland’s Dave Kaval explained the reasoning (they will have terrestrial radio in certain parts of the market just not in the Bay Area proper) as a way to find new fans and engage where they are best suited but for a sport like baseball…where the fan of today is an older demo, it is a tough short term choice.
Other teams like the New Jersey Devils have gone this way in recent years, and really one of the first teams to go the non broadcast window was George Mason University, who in 2011 decided they were getting bounced around the airwaves (coming off a staller run that saw the men’s basketball team reach the Final Four in 2006 and the Round of 32 in 2011 ) and wanted consistent control over where their fans could find their games. They have never gone back, and today hundreds of schools stream their games with live audio and video.
Why do this? While cost may be one issue, as well as full editorial control, the biggest is probably the changing listening habits of the consumer, combined with the growing ease of connectivity and a better overall consistent user experience than many are already used to with all areas of on demand audio. Cars are now more equipped than ever with the ability to stream or connect to a device that will bring in live audio, so the ability to literally tune in is not left to a signal that could fade in and out with terrestrial radio. Thousands of fans have already gotten used to grabbing listens from streaming services like SiriusXM or the the MLB app even out of market, so the adjustment to audio on a device…a device that is not a radio signal…is steadily coming around. The A’s being able to pouch content to fans through data collection also goes up with digital streaming, and the team will focus its marketing efforts even more robustly to their platform. 
Even with all that positivity there are still downsides today. One executive at this week’s SportsPro OTT Summit pointed out things like listings services, from online news sources to traditional newspapers, which do not yet take streaming into account, and the casual recognition for when the A’s are playing and where to listen may get lost. There is also a factor of out of house promotion that goes with radio partnerships, especially when stations are owned by a larger chain of stations, that may cost ancillary exposure. And maybe even more importantly are those fans, especially older ones, who may not have access to a streaming device or service in a car or even in home, so their ability to follow may be hindered. That last option, which probably used to be the biggest in recent years as a barrier to stream only, is probably the one that is shrinking fast as an older demo becomes more tech and app friendly, and streaming in places like cars becomes more ubiquitous. There is also a potential revenue loss and promotional channel loss when losing traditional radio partners, although teams have said those rights fees are already shrinking and the promotion can be made up with other forms of digital partnerships and targeted ads.
Is the shift to all streaming for pro sports teams going to happen overnight? No. The balance of both streaming and having a traditional radio partner, especially in major markets like New York and LA, is still the best for the foreseeable future. As mentioned the A’s still have other partners further out in the market as part of their network, and going back to finding a closer to home partner may even come back around as an add on to their offerings. However for now the A’s generated buzz and a look into the future with their announce this week.
We will be listening to see how it is received.
