4 ms·

> I'd love to have easy pay-per-view access, as easy as iTunes rentals, to various sports events (think the Olympics, world cup of X, that sort of thing) and fo

> I'd love to have easy pay-per-view access, as easy as iTunes rentals, to various sports events (think the Olympics, world cup of X, that sort of thing) and for some select sports a season pass (huge NHL fan here – go Rangers!) There's no legal way to get live access to sporting events, since those are held by TV channels that have a vested interest in you buying back into a bundle (especially for the Rangers -- their ownership structure includes the TV channel that airs their games). However, you can get delayed games. The out-of-market package puts up replays 48h after the game broadcast finishes, and various online shops have a curated selection of games each year[0]. Basically, the whole situation is a toxic mess that's built on a crumbling foundation. Teams are owned by cable operators that retain the exclusive live broadcasts for their sports networks (or sell the rights at a premium to national channels), and have no incentive to step outside the bundle. It's a bubble, through-and-through. [0] e.g.: https://itunes.apple.com/us/tv-season/nhl-games-of-the-year-2016-2017/id1168639083 https://itunes.apple.com/us/tv-season/nhl-games-of-the-year-...

mstade 10y ago
> Basically, the whole situation is a toxic mess that's built on a crumbling foundation. Yes, exactly. I'd love there to be an iTunes/Netflix for sports, but understand why there isn't. I've gotten by with some shady tricks, like buying access to NHL on the playstation because they don't geoblock access like they do on NHL.com or on the iOS apps, and only use whatever country a user listed as their origin. I've still paid for the access, and I'm happy to pay for it, but it's literally a situation of me not being able to access these things the way you probably should, simply for reasons. I always try to find a way to pay for access, and usually Viasat will have what I'm looking for. When all else fails I go for some shady live stream from Russia or something. It's certainly not ideal. (I stopped having a proper TV with a tuner about a decade ago, so just getting a cable package isn't an option.)
- ascagnel_ 10y ago
  The MLB added a "follow your team" feature for this year -- for $10/mo extra, you can watch your team through their paid streaming service. Except it's near-useless, since you need to authenticate through a cable provider.

mstade 10y ago

> Basically, the whole situation is a toxic mess that's built on a crumbling foundation. Yes, exactly. I'd love there to be an iTunes/Netflix for sports, but understand why there isn't. I've gotten by with some shady tricks, like buying access to NHL on the playstation because they don't geoblock access like they do on NHL.com or on the iOS apps, and only use whatever country a user listed as their origin. I've still paid for the access, and I'm happy to pay for it, but it's literally a situation of me not being able to access these things the way you probably should, simply for reasons. I always try to find a way to pay for access, and usually Viasat will have what I'm looking for. When all else fails I go for some shady live stream from Russia or something. It's certainly not ideal. (I stopped having a proper TV with a tuner about a decade ago, so just getting a cable package isn't an option.)

ascagnel_ 10y ago
The MLB added a "follow your team" feature for this year -- for $10/mo extra, you can watch your team through their paid streaming service. Except it's near-useless, since you need to authenticate through a cable provider.