Went on a bit of a tangent here...sorry. I hear this argument frequently. This is not a practical solution for those watching their favorite NHL/NBA teams 82+

Went on a bit of a tangent here...sorry. I hear this argument frequently. This is not a practical solution for those watching their favorite NHL/NBA teams 82+ games a year or MLB 162+ games a year. IIRC ESPN gets $6+ per subscriber-month and would greatly fear reprisal from cable providers if they offered a way to watch without a subscription. Due to the leagues' stranglehold over dissemination of their live events and major sports channels large budgets to pay them, there really is no end in sight for wannabe cord-cutters that want to watch their teams. There are three outcomes I foresee: 1. the status quo, 2. a company w/ deep pockets (Apple, Google, Netflix, etc) convinces a major sport to take their money, or 3. piracy of live sports streams becomes more reliable and easier to consume. #2 is possible but would still be a big gamble. I fervently believe the rise of bittorrent escalated alternative viewing options for non-live events, so I secretly am hoping for #3. All of the live pirated streams I have seen are horribly unreliable and seem to get shutdown with ease. I'm a software engineer, maybe I should make a live P2P streaming protocol! Can't put what I want on it due to living in the US and fear of prosecution, but maybe just the simplicity will help the industry.