MLB TV on the Internet? [merged threads]

[BravesWin!]

MLB.com says it will be offering live streaming of Major LEague Baseball this season, beginning with nine free webcasts...Does it seem like a good idea to you? Will you be watching? And, when the regular season rolls around, will you be willing to fork down 90 for the season package???

MLB.TV (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/mlb/news/mlb_news.jsp?ymd=20030311&content_id=216155&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp)

[Craig S.]

Definitely not something I'm interested in this point. Too many concerns about bandwidth and quality of the streaming video, plus I'd rather watch the games on a 40-inch TV than on a 17-inch monitor, especially considering it's only a $50 price difference. Might be cool if you were traveling, but how many people have the resources and/or time for this while traveling?

I think this might be the future, but I don't think it's yet ready to displace the present system.

[LeGrandOrange]

If it uses RealOne, they could give me 90 bucks and I wouldn't do it...

[Craig S.]

Originally posted by LeGrandOrange
If it uses RealOne, they could give me 90 bucks and I wouldn't do it...

:loud: :loud:

Having had some bad experiences with their software in the past, I couldn't agree more!

[Gosfgiants]

It is a good idea, but it is expensive. You also do not get games in your own market if they are available on TV, regardless if it's on cable or broadcast. So if I want to watch the Giants or A's at work I can forget it. I also do not like Real Networks player. I hate to say it, but Windows Media Player is a better application (I hate Microsoft :().

[Glyndwr]

I doubt if i'll be subscribing but I will be checking out some of the free preview games. There is a preview under the faq section, that shows one inning of a giants-dodgers game from early last year. The quality is not bad, but it gets very blocky if you try to watch it at a decent size on a big monitor (I have a broadband connection but only a pentium3 chip).

Nice idea, but still a year or two from 'prime-time' if they priced it like MLB audio I might try it.

[Ryan]

There had been a smattering of discussion on this, but now that the official announcement and free trial are out, I'm wondering what your opinions are?

I just tried it and found that:
- The quality of the video sucks. It's not smooth unless I watch it in a size about 1/4 of my screen
- It's expensive. 80 bucks for the season.. that's 3 or 4 more games in person at Wrigley.
- Even though I'm unlikely to purchase the package, my props go out to MLB for being out in front of other professional sports leagueson the internet.
- Will defintely get the radio package again

For those who have tried to sample video, was your experience with the video quality similar to mine? Or is it my crappy graphics card that's degrading the full-screen quality?

Starting to get excited for the season...

- Ryan

[SmedIndy]

Ryan - where ya been?

The main problem I have is that I don't have the time, energy, or wherewithal to have all the gizmos on my home computer, and I can't do much about my work hardware. I can't take advantage of it.

[rcartman28]

I have neither the 90 bucks to spend on it, nor the equipment to watch any games at home......

[UK_Halo]

Has anyone signed up for this service?

It promises 45 games per week for 80 bucks for the whole season. It looks like a godsend to us non-US fans with broadband connections.

[BravesWin!]

I signed up for it as well as the MLB Extra Innings Package...figure this way I can watch games when away from home....we'll see how it works out....

Andre

[BravesWin!]

After Two days of watching MLB.TV, I have to say that I have been pleasantly surprised with the product. The picture quality is definitely solid....the smaller you make the picture, the better it is. However, when I make it the full screen and back away, the picture quality appears to be just fine...Also, the audio is excellent....so I have to say I like the quality of the product...I like being able to surf the internet with a game in the background on the screen...and being able to switch back and forth while listening to the broadcast.....

Its still early, but I will give this a B+ on my scale....not bad especially considering I was expecting a D or C-.....

Has anyone else used this??

Thanks,

Andrew

[UK_Halo]

I have to say that this service is fantastic, I had a problem logging in on Sunday, but subsequently it's been OK, and the quality is exceptional.

I had thought that running more applications would make it rebuffer constanly, but not so.

The only problem is when I will ever get any sleep.

[Luis]

After using this for the last 2 weeks I find the picture very acceptable but have had problems keeping the video streaming.

Every once in a while (varying from a few minutes to an hour) the video slows and I have to go back and re-enter the game. It's impossible to contact the mlb customer support by either telephone or email so I do not know if the problem is widespread or limited to my own computer.

[Jim Rice]

I, too, have been pleasantly surprised. Yes, the video is best viewed in a pretty small (about 4' x 6') frame, but it's of very good quality at that size. And, as has been said, the audio is great - at least as good as the radio broadcasts. I've got a cable internet connection, which might be part of the success, but I haven't faced a streaming problem yet. For someone like me - 1500 miles removed from my favorite team - the $80 isn't that much.