/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25359971/2110565509.jpg "Hulu with Live TV adds MLB Network just as baseball season gets underway")
Hulu’s subscription TV service has added MLB Network to its core channel lineup in the nick of time for the league’s Opening Day 2024. This will provide customers with access to “over 100 MLB games nationally broadcast over the course of the season,” along with the network’s original programming and studio shows.
YouTube TV, one of Hulu with Live TV’s primary competitors, abruptly dropped MLB Network early last year after it was unable to reach a new carriage agreement with Major League Baseball. And with no announcement of a return ahead of today’s opening games, it appears that YTTV subscribers will go without it for another year.
Perhaps that shouldn’t be surprising after the company shelled out $2 billion for the rights to NFL Sunday Ticket; something had to be sacrificed for that deal, and football brings in far more viewers than baseball nowadays. But MLB Network continues to be offered by the majority of YouTube’s competitors, including the aforementioned Hulu with Live TV, Sling TV, and Fubo. The latter service also just added the YES Network so that subscribers can tune into New York Yankees and Brooklyn Nets games.
The outlook for live sports streaming could be much different by the time Opening Day 2025 rolls around. Earlier this year, ESPN, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery announced plans to form a sports streaming juggernaut that will fold in channels such as ESPN, TBS, TNT, ABC, FOX, and many others. (Disney owns both ESPN and Hulu.) That move has already drawn the attention of the Justice Department, which will reportedly review the proposal to see whether it will harm competition or leave consumers worse off. Fubo has strongly objected to the plan and has gone so far as to sue the companies involved to ensure that it isn’t left at a disadvantage.
Hulu with Live TV costs $76.99 per month for a bundle that also includes Disney Plus and ESPN Plus — all with ads — or $89.99 monthly if you want the ad-free experience of the other included services.
