Pro baseball still eyeing TV network

By Ben Klayman

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Major League Baseball is still studying the creation of its own television network, including recently discussing it with major cable and satellite companies, top league officials said on Thursday.

However, Commissioner Bud Selig said baseball has delayed moving ahead with the network in favor of its digital media properties, including its Internet site.

"We've talked about a baseball channel for almost two years now, maybe even longer than that. And we're still continuing to talk about it," he said at the Reuters Media Summit in New York.

"That's something we will not rule out," Selig added. "Whether or not a channel fits is something we'll have to determine."

Other major U.S. professional sports leagues have their own TV networks and have steadily added programming. The National Football League's three-year-old network already boasts 41 million subscribers, while the National Basketball Association's network, established in 1999, has 12 million.

Selig also said international markets are another great growth opportunity. He pointed to the 2009 version of the World Baseball Classic, which this year marked the first time players competed for their native countries, including the United States, Japan and the Dominican Republic.

"We're going to do a lot more worldwide," he said. "We've just scratched the surface."

International revenue makes up about 2 percent of the league's annual total of $5.2 billion.

Baseball has discussed playing a regular-season game in Europe in the next year or two, and Selig would love it to be in Rome. He also would like to do the same in China. Baseball has twice held regular-season games in Japan, in 2004 and 2000.

One of the reasons behind Major League Baseball's (MLB) delay on establishing a TV network, Selig said, is a focus on its digital media business, known as Major League Baseball Advanced Media (BAM), which was formed six years ago and accounts for more than 6 percent of annual revenue. All of the league's 30 teams share equally in that unit's profits.

Selig points to the growth of MLB.com, a Web site which officials said will have 2 billion visitors this year, up from 450 million five years ago. It also has paid-for content that generates more than $100 million in annual revenue.

Baseball explored an initial public offering for the digital media business two years ago, and bankers have said it might have fetched $3 billion or more. Selig said baseball is content with the league maintaining its ownership.

NBA Commissioner David Stern told Reuters this week his sport is exploring allowing a media company to take a stake in its digital assets, including its TV network and Web site.

Selig said baseball officials will continue to talk about creating a TV network with cable and satellite providers.

MLB President Bob DuPuy said such discussions occurred this and last year during new TV contract talks. The deals, with Walt Disney Co.'s (DIS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) ESPN, News Corp.'s NWSa.N Fox and Time Warner Inc.'s (TWX.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) TBS channels, total about $5.3 billion and expire in 2013.  Continued...