Manage updates with the Download AppJune 1, 2007 4:00 AM PDT
MLB aims brushback pitch at Slingbox
- Related Stories
-
Slingbox gets new siblings
September 27, 2006 -
Major League Baseball takes swing at Sling Media
June 6, 2006 -
Supreme Court rules against file swapping
June 27, 2005 -
P2P group: We'll pay girl's RIAA bill
September 10, 2003
This week Major League Baseball lobbed its second brushback pitch at Slingbox, reiterating its stance that the young company is misusing its content. It's not the first time a content owner has expressed concerns over the legality of the trapezoid-shaped set-top box, yet no one has actually filed suit.
But if a content owner did actually follow through with a lawsuit, it could be a tough case to make in court, say industry observers.
"I think (MLB is) deploying that rhetoric to chill innovation in this segment. I don't think it's working, but I think it would be a big blow to the entertainment industry if they went to court and lost," said Fred von Lohmann, attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation. But von Lohmann says that doesn't mean MLB won't sue.
MLB Advanced Media (MLBAM), the division responsible for MLB.com and its MLB.tv package, says it hasn't ruled out that prospect. At a recent sports law symposium at Fordham University, The Hollywood Reporter, Esq. reported that MLBAM's General Counsel Michael Mellis called the popular set-top box's place-shifting feature illegal.
"Of course, what they are doing is not legal," said Mellis. "We and other leagues have formed a group to study the issue and plan our response. A lot depends on ongoing discussions. Plus, there's no guarantee that Slingbox will be around next year. It's a start-up."
In an interview with CNET News.com, Sling Media CEO Blake Krikorian said it was "a ridiculous statement" to say the Slingbox is illegal. Krikorian also questioned whether MLB has joined with other professional sports leagues to discuss the legal implications of the Slingbox. "Our relationships with the leagues, including MLB as I understand it, are very strong," he said.
MLB.com seems to take issue with allowing Slingbox owners' TV channels to be transmitted over the Internet. "Moving content from one form of transmission to another certainly invites that kind of analysis," said Bob Bowman, CEO of MLB.com, referring to Mellis' statement. For instance, if a TV signal was converted into a radio signal, it might raise the eyebrows of those broadcasters involved. The Slingbox, he added, "is not a place-shifting device, (it) is a delivery-shifting device."
Of all the American professional sports leagues, MLB has one of the richest online portals. Fans can purchase an MLB.tv package to watch any out-of-market game live on the Internet, with up to six simultaneous streams and interactive statistics. Packages range in price from $80 to $110 a year.
Neither the device nor its users appear to be breaking any laws by using it to watch baseball games, say legal experts. On the market for two years now, the Slingbox lets customers watch their own television channels from a remote location via a high-speed Internet connection. Sling says it has sold hundreds of thousands of the devices, available in three models ranging in price from $130 to $250.
Watching sports remotely is arguably one of the Slingbox's most compelling features. A Slingbox allows subscribers to watch the cable channels they have already paid for, but at a different location--the office or a hotel--via a laptop, remote PC or mobile phone.
The same goes for subscribers to MLB's Extra Innings television package, which allows cable and satellite subscribers to pay extra to watch out-of-market games on TV. Again, subscribers with a Slingbox can only tune in those cable or satellite channels they have already purchased.
On opposite teams?
Krikorian is quick to argue that the Slingbox and MLB.com's MLB.tv do not compete directly with each other.
"If I want to watch the (Los Angeles) Dodgers (from San Francisco), an MLB.tv subscription will provide out-of-market games. What the Slingbox does is (give) me access to my local in-market team, my San Francisco Giants, which is what MLB.tv does not provide me when I'm in San Francisco (due to local blackout rules)," said Krikorian. "It's the reason we created the Slingbox."
MLB.com is simply trying to protect its content, particularly its robust MLB.tv offering, said Josh Martin, analyst with The Yankee Group. "It's a burden they have to bear. They have a lot of money riding on it. They don't want to risk their MLB.tv service because people are not using it because they have a Slingbox," he said.
It's a thorny issue because a critic would say MLB wants customers to pay twice for content: once for the original cable feed, and again for MLB.tv to watch a home team when not watching from home.
See more CNET content tagged:
Slingbox, MLB, Sling Media, set-top box, set-top
29 comments
Join the conversation! Add your comment
The Slingbox is another way consumers are using the Internet to enjoy the content they paid for in a manner they find convenient to use it. This of course, hurts their subscriptions to MLB.tv, but instead of changing their business model to attract customers back, they decide to sue whoever they can to keep things they way they are.
Yawn.
The location of the consumer, verus geographic location or the time of the content's original broadcast, is becoming increasingly irrelevant, and will continue to do so regardless of what MLB and other outfits may want. Consumers want flexibility, they want choice, and they want low prices. They want, in short, whatever will allow them to do what they want, when they want, for as few bucks as possible. Trying to stand in the way of that demand will drive customers away from your store, not towards it, regardless of what business you're in.
my 2c.
What is next for MLB? Go after Tivo users? And then any you-tube users who clip a baseball goof or rant?
MLB- your attorneys have you looking very ignorant of modern media. This will alienate you from the coming generation of MLB fans, not smart. Meanwhile, your attorneys will reap big fees from you for this foolishness. Muzzle your mouthpieces and go back to the dugout with a little humility before you strike out.
I do hope it goes to court and MLB and others in the big boys media get shafted.
Here's one for the little guy.
The sad truth for this case is that slingbox users may not be using it to watch MLB programming. But the "idea" that they can seems to be justification enough.
If anyone should be first to file a lawsuit here, it should be Slingbox CEO Blake Krickorian. He should file a defamation suit against the MLB stiff that accused him and his company of marketing a "not legal" product.
and advertisers already payed for the advertisement on the tv if its local
if your sending a book through the mail then should you pay the author
no
not if he already got payed for it
the only thing your doing here is sending the content you or someone payed for you to a more convenient location
if mlb was smart they would have made their own setup with tivo or cable companys or struck a deal with the company to make a little side cash
instead of using a competitive service
no one is going to pay that much a month for one type of show sport or not
and I dont watch baseball so I couldnt care less about them wanting to sqaush a legal competitor
MLB makes millions on all their mediums, and they're worried about people switching their content they already paid for, well we better hide our dvr's and vhs's.
When I bought my Cingular Nokia 6682 some 2 1/2 years ago, it included a package whereby I could listen to major league games for a low fee. Also, Yankee games were TELEVISED through mobiTV! These services were canceled soon after I bought the phone because of MLB greediness and, at present, only Sprint subscribers (with the right handset) can see and here games. There is no reason for this! I have purchased a Gameday audio subscription, and MLB actively prevents me from listening via my phone, and actively prevents me from doing so by other means. Thank Goodness for Slingbox! If MLB sues, I'll never subscribe to there crappy, outdated internet service again.
"I-Chi-Ro" . . . "I-Chi-Ro"!
But I swear it's time to give MLB a quick smack to the back of it's
head and bring it back from it's long standing "Paris Hilton"
position of being too privilaged to be more important than
anything else.
Recently they sued "Fantasy Baseball Leagues" because they
contended that the MLB "Owned Players Stats"
Now they want to sue a company for allowing someone to watch
programing they have already paid for?
Here's some ideas:
Let's strip the MLB from it's exclusive "Antitrust Exemption"
No other proffesional sports organization has one.
Let's sue the MLB for their "Blackout" rules for home games.
Let's sue the MLB for "Price Gouging" since they are a "Monopoly"
$10.00 draft beers? . . . *** is that?
(Oh yeah . . . the tickets are too expesive also ;-) )
I say "Class Action Suit"!
Anyone else have any ideas?
And the MLB lost their suit on claiming the "Exclusive Rights" to use
the players stats
Aloha :-)
around in a couple of years. I doubt that they will be able to
raise another round from the VCs. The bottom line is the box
has too many requirements to gain mass acceptance. First, you
need broadband with good upload speeds. Second, you need a
router. Third, you need a wireless device to view the
programming. Fourth, you need a geek to set it up. Most people
don't have the technical savvy required to make this product
work.
They claim they have sold thousands, Big deal. Assume they go
on average for 200 bucks a pop. Let's say they sold 100
thousand units. That would give them 20M in sales so far, big
deal! They sell their units to the nerds and geeks and then where
do they go? This is no ipod, there will not be mass appeal for
this product and there isn't any itunes type of recurring
revenues.
One more thing, the lawsuits are probably inevitable as well.
Sling Media is going to have to use some of their powder
defending themselves in court.
These cats are doomed!!!
I run tivo and cable through my slingbox so I can watch the Twins, Wild and Gopher hockey while at school in Pennsylvania, as well as local news and local television. I subscribe to MLB.TV so I can watch Red Sox games and highlights when ESPN is covering the NFL and NBA 24/7/365. mlb.tv drives me nuts when it goes black during commercial breaks and comes back late, missing pitches and commentary. How else can I watch Gopher hockey and Minnesota news in Pennsylvania?
Also, it doesn't need to be an ipod to be a success, the mac has nothing on the pc in terms of sheer numbers, but it isn't disappearing anytime soon. I am not a mac guy, but some people are!
You should read slingbox's instruction sheet before you rip it, it took one tenth of the time it took me to set up my tivo.
Tivo+Slingbox+Router+Laptop=Pure viewing pleasure anytime, anywhere.
And the napster argument? Napster didn't require a password and product code to acquire music, the slingbox does. I cannot redistribute the video either, as recording is not possible. Also, the box works like a remote, giving the user complete control and domination over the attached device, so the number of users on it at any time is limited to the number of inputs it has. So, if you and 5 online friends wanted cable through the internet, you would need a coaxial input, a cable box with RCA outputs, a second cable box with an HD out, a third cable box with an S video output, etc, etc. Not a realistic option or comparison, as you would run out of inputs.
This just shows MLB's complete lack of competence. More fans equals more tickets, more ad revenue, more merch, etc. Why attack a product that increases your fanbase? Why not create a partnership with Sling Media and create a Slingbox Sports box, which would enhance sports playback, give users access to a unique website with increased sports highlights, replays and message boards with a small monthly fee or a small percent of the box sales going to each league... embrace the "wired" fan, don't hamper them!
Software
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.popsoftware.net/" target="_newWindow">http://www.popsoftware.net/</a>