Washington, D.C. (January 19, 2016) - Major League Baseball today settled a lawsuit over its blackout policy, and while the terms will benefit some pay TV subscribers, it will do little for people looking to drop their cable or satellite service.
The lawsuit was filed by fans upset they had to subscribe to the $129.99-a-year MLB.TV plan if they wanted to stream the games of their favorite team outside of its market. Shortly before trial was to begin today, the league and the fans decided to settle the case. 
The trial judge must still approve the agreement, but it's expected to be ready for the 2016 season.
Under the terms of the settlement, the league agreed to reduce the cost of MLB.TV from $129.99 to $109.99; the online package includes all out-of-market games. In addition, fans will be able to subscribe to a single team for just $84.99 rather than get the entire plan.
However, the settlement will still permit the league to blackout a subscriber's local team broadcast in the MLB.TV package, meaning fans will still need to get a subscription to a pay TV service that carries the regional sports channel that has the rights to that team's games.
The league agreed by the 2016 All-Star break to offer a feature called, 'Follow Your Team,' that will allow consumers to watch the away team's telecast of a subscriber's local team. But that feature, which will cost $10 more than the entire MLB.TV package, protects pay TV providers as well because you will still need a subscription to your regional sports channel, which is only available via a pay TV service.
Finally, Major League Baseball agreed in the settlement to lift online blackouts of in-market broadcasts by the start of the 2017 season, but they will only be available to subscribers of the 25 regional sports channels owned by DIRECTV, Comcast and Fox. And, again, you will need a pay TV subscription to subscribe to a regional sports channel.
Bottom line: The settlement will give pay TV subscribers greater flexibility in watching their favorite teams. And online fans will get a price break if they want to watch out-of-market teams. But fans of local teams will have to stay tied to their pay TV service if they want to watch their favorites at home.Phillip Swann/TVPredictions.com
The trial judge must still approve the agreement, but it's expected to be ready for the 2016 season.
Under the terms of the settlement, the league agreed to reduce the cost of MLB.TV from $129.99 to $109.99; the online package includes all out-of-market games. In addition, fans will be able to subscribe to a single team for just $84.99 rather than get the entire plan.
However, the settlement will still permit the league to blackout a subscriber's local team broadcast in the MLB.TV package, meaning fans will still need to get a subscription to a pay TV service that carries the regional sports channel that has the rights to that team's games.
The league agreed by the 2016 All-Star break to offer a feature called, 'Follow Your Team,' that will allow consumers to watch the away team's telecast of a subscriber's local team. But that feature, which will cost $10 more than the entire MLB.TV package, protects pay TV providers as well because you will still need a subscription to your regional sports channel, which is only available via a pay TV service.
Finally, Major League Baseball agreed in the settlement to lift online blackouts of in-market broadcasts by the start of the 2017 season, but they will only be available to subscribers of the 25 regional sports channels owned by DIRECTV, Comcast and Fox. And, again, you will need a pay TV subscription to subscribe to a regional sports channel.
Bottom line: The settlement will give pay TV subscribers greater flexibility in watching their favorite teams. And online fans will get a price break if they want to watch out-of-market teams. But fans of local teams will have to stay tied to their pay TV service if they want to watch their favorites at home.Phillip Swann/TVPredictions.com
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!
