The Philadelphia Phillies have inked a long-term rights renewal with Comcast SportsNet.
Financial terms of the agreement with CSN Philadelphia were not disclosed, but the Philadelphia Inquirerreports that its value will reach into the billions over its term, which sources indicate will span 25 years. That locks in CSN's access to Phillies games and ancillary programming until almost 2040.
The RSN, whose contract was set to expire after the 2015 Major League Baseball season, currently pays the ballclub an annual fee of $35 million. As such, the rights for the sole MLB team in the nation’s fourth-largest TV market were vastly undervalued, especially compared to more recent deals struck by Los Angeles Dodgers and Angels and Texas Rangers. Sources familiar with the negotiations indicate that there were some preliminary third-party discussions with the club, but the talks did not progress given CSN Philadelphia’s incumbent position.
For the full story go to Multichannel.com.
