Connect with us
Jim Cutler Demos

Sports Radio News

Dan Barreiro: Is Bally Sports+ Going To Be Worth It For Fans?

“When it’s isolated like that, [consumers think], ‘$20 for Bally Sports? Are you kidding me!? You’re out of your mind.”

Derek Futterman

Published

on

After much anticipation, Sinclair Broadcast Group has officially announced its plans to soft-launch its own direct-to-consumer streaming service called “Bally Sports+” by the start of the third quarter of 2022, priced at $19.99 monthly or $189.99 annually.

Earlier this week, Dan Barreiro reacted to the news that Bally Sports would be available to stream outside of the DirecTV Stream package after the regional sports networks had been previously dropped by other streaming services. During his show on KFAN in Minneapolis, he wondered if consumers would see the price as fair.

“They don’t view it the same way psychologically because it’s one of many channels they get for an overall price they are comfortable with,” Barreiro said, referring to Bally Sports’ presence within a larger subscription. “When it’s isolated like that, [consumers think], ‘$20 for Bally Sports? Are you kidding me!? You’re out of your mind.”

The show’s producer Justin Gaard believes the new service could serve as a gauge by which to measure overall interest in streaming sports. He is curious to see what happens if subscription prices rise, akin to Netflix raising its standard subscription price nearly 20% over the last calendar year.

“What’s the cost? What’s the limit?,” asked Gaard. “Am I willing to pay $20 or in three years when they go, ‘You know what? It’s $29.99 now.’ Or, ‘It’s $39.99.’ You know it’s going to go up at some point.”

There exists an overall feeling of disappointment towards sports teams in the Twin Cities, creating a feeling of disdain among sports fans. “I don’t want to be paying an additional $19.99 a month to watch teams get bounced in the first round of the playoffs,” commented a KFAN listener. While the NHL’s Minnesota Wild are currently competing in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves were recently eliminated in the first round – creating a dilemma Sinclair and other services like it will need to figure out.

Not all sports fans within the Twin Cities closely follow every team, meaning that they may wish to subscribe to Sinclair’s streaming service for part of the year. Barreiro wondered if that is going to be possible.

“There are some people that say, ‘Well, there are some sports I’m going to be interested in, so I’m going to go in and out of it,’” expressed Barreiro. “Will you have that opportunity, or will the Sinclair people say, ‘Not so fast, my friend. You’ve got a minimum commitment of a year.’ Otherwise, it’s going to be too easy for people to take advantage of the system.”

Sign up for the BSM 8@8

The Top 8 Sports Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox, every morning at 8am ET.

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Sports Radio News

Former 670 The Score Host ‘Big Papa’ Tommy Williams Has Died

Published

on

Photo of Tommy Williams
Courtesy: Lakeshore Public Media

Tommy Williams, who was known for a decade as ‘Big Papa’ Tommy Williams on 670 The Score, died on Wednesday at the age of 66.

Williams began his broadcasting career in his hometown of Gary, Indiana in 1982 at WLTH before moving on to The Score. In 2003, Williams became the PA Announcer for the Gary Southshore RailCats of the American Association where he had his signature call to get the attention of the fans, “People, People, People.”

A story in The Times of Northwest Indiana said, “The longtime RailCats public address announcer and Lakeshore Public Media sports journalist was known for broadcasting countless games, interviewing countless athletes and covering Region sports at all levels. The Gary native and co-host of “Prep Sports Report,” “Prep Football Report,” and “Lakeshore PBS Scoreboard” often signed off shows saying, “Gary, Indiana, you know I love you.”

“The cadence he had in his voice echoed across the Region in a way we may never see again. He was widely known and widely loved,” Tom Maloney, vice president of radio operations at Lakeshore Public Media told the paper.

“He’d want to be remembered as the voice of Lakeshore sports,” his Regionally Speaking co-host and producer Dee Dotson told The Times. “Most people will remember him for covering prep sports all the way up to semi-pros. He’ll be remembered for treating each of his subjects like they were world champions. His depth of knowledge of sports at all levels is commendable. He was a walking encyclopedia of stats.” 

Sign up for the BSM 8@8

The Top 8 Sports Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox, every morning at 8am ET.

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading

Sports Radio News

Compass Media Networks Promotes Three Members to Oversee Play-by-Play Sports Platform

“It is our pleasure to give these three talented executives their day in the sun, knowing that they will continue to work incredibly hard to carry on this tradition of excellence.”

Published

on

Logo for Compass Media Networks

Compass Media Networks has announced the promotions of three long-standing executives, Robert Blum, Tyler Brewer, and Chris Kleiber, who will collectively oversee the content creation, production, and distribution of the company’s play-by-play sports platform.

“For over 16 years, Compass Media Networks has set a standard of excellence for national play-by-play sports with Chris, Rob, and Tyler playing a vital part in our success,” said Peter Kosann, CEO/Founder of Compass Media Networks. “It is our pleasure to give these three talented executives their day in the sun, knowing that they will continue to work incredibly hard to carry on this tradition of excellence.”

Robet Blum has been appointed Vice President & General Manager of Sports and will also continue to serve as Vice President of Affiliate Sales for News-Talk and Sports. Tyler Brewer has been appointed Executive Producer – Sports Programming. And Chris Kleiber has been appointed Senior Producer – Sports Programming.

Compass Media Networks broadcasts annually over 100 play-by-play sporting events involving college men’s basketball and football (including the Big Ten Tournament and the Big Ten Championship Game), NFL 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Sunday Doubleheaders, and complete coverage of the Dallas Cowboys and Las Vegas Raiders. The broadcasts are distributed across hundreds of terrestrial sports, news-talk and music stations as well as digital distribution platforms such as SiriusXM, Verizon Mobile, and the Varsity App.

Sign up for the BSM 8@8

The Top 8 Sports Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox, every morning at 8am ET.

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading

Sports Radio News

Charley Steiner Injured; Tim Neverett to Handle Dodgers Radio Play-by-Play

“This will be the first Opening Day that I will have missed since 1976, when I wore a younger man’s clothes.”

Published

on

photo of Charley Steiner
Courtesy: Los Angeles Dodgers

As the Los Angeles Dodgers get set to take on the St. Louis Cardinals in their first home game on Thursday, team play-by-play voice Charley Steiner has revealed he will not be doing games at the beginning of the season due to a severe back injury.

Through the Dodgers, Steiner posted a statement which said, “Over the winter, I landed on the Injured List with three compound fractures in my back. (I don’t recommend it.) With the start of the baseball season upon us, the Dodgers are ready to go – but I’m not. This will be the first Opening Day that I will have missed since 1976, when I wore a younger man’s clothes. I look forward to returning to the mic later this season. In the meantime, go Dodgers!”

TrueBlueLA.com reports Tim Neverett will handle play-by-play duties while Steiner recovers. Neverett called the first two regular season games with Rick Monday as the Dodgers started the season in South Korea. Neverett and Monday did not travel with the team, however, they called those games in a studio back home.

Sign up for the BSM 8@8

The Top 8 Sports Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox, every morning at 8am ET.

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading
Advertisement

Advertisement

Upcoming Events

Barrett Media Writers

Copyright © 2024 Barrett Media.