Take Me Out to The Web Site!

摘要

There was a time, not so many decades ago, when Major League Baseball was so techno-phobic that one commentator feared broadcasting games on radio would leave the industry "shot to pieces." Later on, it was assumed, TV would douse any desire for fans to actually go to the ballparks. And as recently as 1996, as the Internet age dawned, MLB tried to stop online services from providing realtime updates on such basics as scores, home runs, and balls and strikes. The fear? Such information would dilute the excitement of a game in progress. Not anymore, The excitement around Major League Baseball these days is how technology-specifically the league's Internet portal, MLB.com-can reposition this stodgiest of sports into a pioneer in personalized video and wireless content delivery. The Web site's lineup? Searchable highlights on demand. Live Webcasts of out-of-town games. Minute-by-min-ute updates through a Web-enabled Palm device or AT&T cell phone, complete with a custom "Charge!" ring when your team begins to rally. As for this tech company's neatest trick-making money by charging monthly subscription fees for content, a revenue model that used to be considered blasphemous to the Web-well, that rally is underway, usage and revenue up dramatically. The numbers remain small compared with baseball's long-term expectations, but they're a good start. "To be successful economically, subscription services have to be the engine," says Bob bowman, who oversees MLB.com as CEO of Major League Basebal Advanced Media (MLBAM). "It's happening, and will continue to happen."