PlayStation 3 owners can now do more than just play virtual baseball on their systems. They can get every real Major League Baseball game via their PS3.
Sony and MLB have announced a deal to bring the Internet subscription service MLB.TV to the PS3. Those who already subscribe to the online service (www.mlb.tv) can now link that to their PS3 for free by downloading a free MLB.TV app in the PlayStation Store. Other PS3 owners need to first subscribe to the service, priced at $99.95 annually for the basic service and $119.95 for the premium service.
Each level of service offers high definition quality broadcasts and archived games; the premium service includes the choice of home and away broadcasts for games, DVR-like controls for pausing and rewinding, as well as split-screen and multi-game viewing.
"I can't wait for this because I will be able to check out every Met game all year long," says Peter Dille, senior vice president of marketing and PlayStation Network. "Let's say I was away from my PlayStation for a while, the games can be archived so I can go back and watch last week's games. There's a menu interface, a scrollable line score they call it, and you can go right to the part of the game that you want to see. It's a pretty slick service. ... You can watch MLB games now on your 12-inch computer monitor, but I would much rather put it on my Sony Bravia in my living room."
The service is well-priced considering a comparable service like MLB Extra Innings on DIRECTV is $211.96 for the entire season. As with that service, some games including local broadcasts, may be blocked out.
Adding MLB.TV to the PS3 and the PlayStation Network continues Sony's strategy to expand the system's entertainment offerings beyond just games, Dille says. The network just wrapped its first reality series The Tester and, like the Microsoft Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii, has streaming films from Netflix.
"Gaming will always be at the heart of what PlayStation is about, but part of the story that we have been telling since last fall when we repositioned the product is really about everything that the PlayStation 3 can do," Dille says. "It means 20,000 movies and TV shows you can download for rent or for sell-through, HD or streaming versions, Netflix, and Home, which is a different kind of community experience. Now it means MLB, just this terrific total situation for your living room."
