{"id":22811,"date":"2022-06-15T17:05:16","date_gmt":"2022-06-15T22:05:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/popculturenetwork.com\/wordpress\/?p=22811"},"modified":"2022-06-15T17:05:16","modified_gmt":"2022-06-15T22:05:16","slug":"mls-creates-roadblock-for-android-users-refuses-local-commentators-for-new-unpriced-apple-tv-app-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/popculturenetwork.com\/wordpress\/2022\/06\/15\/mls-creates-roadblock-for-android-users-refuses-local-commentators-for-new-unpriced-apple-tv-app-service\/","title":{"rendered":"MLS Creates Roadblock For Android Users – Refuses Local Commentators For New Unpriced Apple TV App Service"},"content":{"rendered":"
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One of the biggest questions hanging around Major League Soccer was how its media partnership would manifest in 2023 and beyond.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Answers arrived Tuesday, as MLS announced a\u00a010-year, first-of-its-kind partnership with Apple<\/a> that will allow fans to stream every single MLS match through the Apple TV app, without any local blackouts or restrictions. [for an as of yet undetermined price. -ed<\/em>]<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Perhaps it was fate that this was the final outcome.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cWhen we started out this process we had a logo on the whiteboard, and that logo was the Apple logo,\u201d MLS Commissioner Don Garber said in a virtual press conference, adding it’s “a historic day.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Global, streaming-focused deal<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
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The global partnership lasts through 2032 and contains every MLS and\u00a0Leagues Cup<\/a>\u00a0match, as well as select\u00a0MLS NEXT Pro<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0MLS NEXT<\/a> matches. There\u2019s no need for a traditional pay TV bundle, and fans can get every live MLS match by subscribing to a new MLS streaming service, available exclusively through the Apple TV app. [which doesn’t have a version for Android phones or tablets. -ed<\/em>]<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A broad selection of programming will be available at no additional cost to Apple TV+ subscribers, with a limited number of matches available for free. Season ticket holders will also get access to the new MLS streaming service with their full-season ticket packages. [but no word yet on the cost increase to season tickets. -ed<\/em>]<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Consider it a major step toward our increasingly streaming-centric way of consuming content, tapping into MLS\u2019s young, diverse and digitally-native audience that looks to watch games anywhere, anytime, anywhere around the world. [as long as they aren’t on Android, apparently? -ed<\/em>] All that\u2019s required is internet access; there are a variety of devices where the app can be found, spanning from smartphones [Apple only! -ed<\/em>] and computers to smart TVs and gaming consoles.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cWe’re thinking about what is happening with the transition of sports viewership and fan engagement, going from what has been a traditional cable model over to what has become more of a streaming model,\u201d Garber said. \u201cWhether it’s entertainment or sports, fans are accessing their games in ways that are different than perhaps they did two, five years ago. And that’s going to be even more dramatic in the years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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