MLB Advanced Media, who also runs the YES Network and New York’s SportsNet channel, will partner up with NHL’s cast of online playmakers, pending an official announcement tomorrow, August 4, 2015.
Per a source, MLB's Baseball Advanced Media will take over NHL's web ops, apps, streaming video, etc. in 2016. Announcement tomorrow.
— DJ Bean (@DJ_Bean) August 3, 2015
Baseball Advanced Media is a giant of sorts. Also does HBO Go, among other things. This is viewed as very good news for NHL.
— DJ Bean (@DJ_Bean) August 3, 2015
A move combining America’s favorite past-time with one of America’s least-viewed sports, the MLB-NHL partnership’s purpose is to bolster hockey’s popularity and availability to the public.
In addition to streaming online and becoming a virtual entity in consideration of highlight reels, MLB Advanced Media will also take control of the NHL Network.
With the Winter Classic and the Pittsburgh Penguins finding a home on the NBC family of networks, the league showed a resurgence in T.V. viewership with 1.73 million viewers through 12 games for the 2013-14 season (compared to 2010-11 figures of 1.65 million).
On the other hand, the NHL witnessed a rise in numbers during Opening Day, bringing in an average of 1.37 million viewers per game, up 48 percent from the previous year. During the same year, the World Series ringed in nearly 15 million viewers (2.4 percent more than the All-Star game).
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*Featured Photo (above) credit to USA TODAY Sports
