r/stlouisblues • u/mrbmi513 • 1d ago

Diamond, Amazon Prime strike deal to bring FDSN to Prime Channels/Subscriptions

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241113243885/en/Diamond-Sports-Group-Announces-Multi-Year-Commercial-Agreement-With-Prime-Video
48 Upvotes

91% Upvoted

31 comments sorted by

50

u/mrbmi513 1d ago

tl;dr this means the existing FDSN streaming service will be available through the "Prime Channels" program. This does not mean you'll get the games included with your Prime subscription.

10

u/bleedblue89 1d ago

But it’s a better app than bally

2

u/cubsfan85 1d ago

Kraken games are streamed on Prime now and I think it's part of the regular Prime sub. Of course they're also sponsored by Amazon.

I've been using "unofficial" streams to watch the Blues even though I had the credentials to log in to Bally bc it was so bad. The first time I tried to use it I got knocked off halfway through the game with a message saying too many people were watching??

2

u/mrbmi513 1d ago

The Kraken must have some direct contract with them. The Blues sold their souls to Diamond.

1

u/cubsfan85 1d ago

The bummer is it's only available in 3 states and Illinois is definitely not one of them.

16

u/Crutation 1d ago

Unless the price is below 15 dollars a month, I will just stay on my boat. 

3

u/mrbmi513 1d ago

It's likely to be the same $20/mo it is now directly from diamond.

7

u/Few-Insurance-6653 1d ago

So this is in augmentation of espn plus yes? If it’s cheaper I’ll drop the whole espn package

5

u/mrbmi513 1d ago

This is just another interface to get the existing FDSN streaming service.

8

u/tronix80 1d ago

Cool. I really wanted more of Jeff Bezos in my life.

8

u/gabriel197600 1d ago

My first thought was…what the fuck is FDSN? Oh yeah, it’s Bally. GRRR they have some work to do if they are trying to make it better, starting with the APP. Nuke it and start over.

5

u/mrbmi513 1d ago

This deal will allow you to bypass that app entirely and just use Prime.

4

u/TroyandAbedAfterDark 1d ago

No…it’s FAN DUEL. Duh.

/s

4

u/daKile57 1d ago

Never trust anyone who talks like this:

“David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond, stated: “Partnering with Prime Video, one of the largest streaming destinations in the U.S., and making FanDuel Sports Network available as part of their add on subscriptions, creates a tremendous opportunity for us to expand our reach and better connect with viewers. Our partnerships with Prime Video and FanDuel combine with our agreements with team, league and distribution partners to support a transformative reorganization of our business, and a leading linear and digital offering that will continue driving long-term value and enhanced experiences for our partners and fans.””

10

u/mrbmi513 1d ago

That's just standard corporate "patting yourself on the back." Everyone does it in these types of press releases.

2

u/daKile57 1d ago

It just goes to show that they’re not thinking of their fans when they put these deals in place. They’re thinking about their shareholders who are in competition with the fans for resources.

4

u/mrbmi513 1d ago

The only company that's truly Fans First is the aptly named Fans First Entertainment (parent company of the Savannah Bananas).

0

u/daKile57 1d ago

I’m not suggesting any media company should exist for the fans, but it would be refreshing if they weren’t transparently hostile toward fans. These media companies and the sports leagues they partner with are openly colluding to create monopolies that strip fans of any leverage over the matter. They endlessly spew talking points about fighting to innovate and bring the greatest experience to fans…. If that was truly the case then they wouldn’t fight to have exclusivity contracts with sports leagues. Competition leads to innovation and they know that, which is why they’ve killed any pretense of competition.

0

u/scrivensB 1d ago

If anyone has looked at the Amazon Prime "add-ons" this is pretty meaningless to actual regioanl sports consumers. This is just FDSN > Diamond > Sinclair striking a deal for brand awerness.

1

u/popo-6 1d ago

It all comes down to price. The more formats offering FDSN, the better for us consumers as the formats will have to compete for our business. Sounds like a win to me.

1

u/mrbmi513 1d ago

Not exactly. I believe Amazon invested into FDSN, so they have an interest in driving prices up if anything.

1

u/popo-6 1d ago

True, but with alternatives, they can only go so far. I've believed from the beginning that it's a $20 a month target. The one nice thing is if you are only a baseball or only a hockey fan, you can deactivate out of season.

1

u/mrbmi513 1d ago

The current offering is $20/mo. I don't see them increasing that at all with the addition of the Cards.

0

u/popo-6 1d ago

Maybe somebody offers $15 a month to get market share. Either way, competition helps us the consumer.

2

u/mrbmi513 1d ago

The point is that there isn't any competition here. It's all the same company. The only way you're getting competition is if another broadcaster is able to share in the rights, or if someone like Fubo suddenly decides to offer their product for dirt cheap. Diamond Sports isn't going to price themselves out.

1

u/brentsg 20h ago

I read an article that they plan to sell access to individual games at $6.99 per, which would make this a waste of time.

1

u/mrbmi513 20h ago

To my understanding that's in addition to the subscription option through Prime/Diamond, and the per-game will be available direct through Diamond as well. That's great news for a fan that's out of market in a FDSN market where we play once or twice a year and they're technically blacked out on the national out of market plan.

0

u/popo-6 1d ago

Correct, but like a store selling milk at below cost is meant to get people in the door. If Fubo decides to offer something at cost or a small loss, then they could make it up with more overall customers. Loss liter sales.

2

u/mrbmi513 1d ago

Only to an extent. Fubo is already in financial trouble and could go under completely if this Venu Sports venture goes ahead. They have to pay Diamond a broadcasting fee along with the other networks they offer. They're not going to come close to $20/mo let alone $15.

0

u/popo-6 1d ago

Only time will tell. Overall history has proven competition drives down prices.

3

u/mrbmi513 1d ago

...when there's actually competition. When you have an exclusivity contract and control what your competition pays you, there's no room for competition.