Fridays are for baseball?
Apple announced Tuesday that the company has garnered exclusive streaming rights to “Friday Night Baseball.” The weekly broadcast will be a doubleheader only on Apple TV+, a streaming service that costs $5 a month.
“Tune in on Friday nights for two games you can only see on Apple TV+,” CEO Tim Cook said during an event on Tuesday to announce the new iPhone SE model and other developments from the tech company.
The games will not be carried by the participating teams’ regional sports networks and will be produced by MLB.
The deal will begin this season — whenever (or if) it begins. MLB on Tuesday continued its nearly 100-day lockout. According to multiple reports, if the two sides can’t reach an agreement by Tuesday night, the possibility of a 162-game season will die and another week of games will be canceled.
“Apple is the ideal partner to bring ‘Friday Night Baseball’ to fans around the world,” MLB’s chief revenue officer Noah Garden said in an Apple press release.
“With national availability and international reach, MLB on Apple TV+ offers an exciting new platform to fans that allows a wider audience to connect with the game.”
The move by Apple is similar to other companies trying to bolster their streaming platforms. Most recently, NBCUniversal’s Peacock saw an increase in usage during the 2022 Winter Olympics. Streaming made up 4.5% of the total primetime audience for the Beijing Games.
• Jacob Calvin Meyer can be reached at jmeyer@washingtontimes.com.
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