Baseball Broadcasting

A document explaining the broadcasting activity that delivers baseball games in real time through various media such as radio, TV, the internet, and OTT, as well as its industrial and technological st

Baseball Broadcasting

Overview

Baseball broadcasting is the act of delivering the progress of baseball games and players' plays in real time to viewers and listeners. Starting from radio, the media has expanded to terrestrial TV, cable and satellite, internet streaming, and OTT platforms; today, beyond simple game transmission, it has established itself as a comprehensive sports media product combining data, graphics, and short-form content. Because baseball has long game times and breaks in flow by inning, it is a sport in which commentary and data carry great weight, and the quality of broadcasting is evaluated as directly linked to the league's popularity.

Main Content

Changes in Media

Early baseball broadcasting was centered on radio. In Korea, terrestrial TV began full-scale professional baseball broadcasting after the 1980s and led popularization; in the 1990s, cable and satellite specialty channels (MBC Sports Plus (MBC스포츠플러스), KBSN Sports, SBS Sports, etc.) appeared, greatly increasing the number of game broadcasts. From the late 2000s, internet portals and telecommunications companies' IPTV secured broadcasting rights, and in the 2020s OTT platforms emerged as the main distribution channel. As media increased, broadcasting rights became a core revenue source for leagues and clubs.

Components of Broadcasting

Broadcasting generally uses a three-person setup consisting of a play-by-play announcer (caster), color commentator, and field reporter. Added to this are broadcast cameras (booth camera, first-base and third-base side cameras, outfield camera, foul-line camera), replay systems, scoreboard graphics, pitch-tracking data such as velocity, pitch type, and spin rate, and augmented reality graphics visualizing defensive shifts and batted-ball direction. Recently, graphics showing the results of the Automated Ball-Strike System (ABS; 자동 투구 판정 시스템) in real time have become standard, and productions displaying sabermetric indicators such as win probability and expected runs on screen have also become common.

Broadcasting Rights and Industrial Structure

Broadcasting rights are generally sold as a league-level package. The KBO League (KBO 리그) shifted in 2024 to a structure in which it contracts wired and wireless broadcasting rights with OTT operators, while terrestrial and cable channels air some games under separate contracts. Overseas, MLB sells regional and national broadcasting rights separately and operates its own league subscription service such as MLB.TV. Broadcasting rights fees are directly tied to club finances, and the balance between free broadcasting and paid subscription is a point where the two values of fan accessibility and profitability conflict.

Overseas Cases

In the U.S., MLB divides game broadcasts among national broadcasters such as ESPN and FOX, regional sports networks (RSNs), and streaming operators such as Apple TV+. In Japan, NPB is broadcast in parallel by terrestrial and satellite channels and internet platforms such as DAZN, and in places such as Taiwan and China, broadcasting markets centered on domestic leagues have formed. In all countries, broadcasting products centered on mobile and short-form content are being developed in response to changes in young people's viewing habits.

Technological Evolution

Technological experiments continue, including 5G broadcasting, ultra-high-speed cameras, multiview (simultaneously selecting multiple camera angles), AI-based automatic highlight generation, and voice-synthesized casters. Pitch-tracking and batted-ball-tracking data are reprocessed not only into broadcast graphics but also into club analysis and fan-facing content.

Latest Trends

In 2024, as the KBO League surpassed 10 million cumulative regular-season spectators for the first time in history, the baseball broadcasting market also expanded rapidly. As OTT platforms secured league broadcasting rights, mobile viewing surged, and a structure in which real-time clips and short-form highlights during games are distributed through YouTube and social media took hold. In 2025, negotiations continue among leagues, broadcasters, and platforms over the boundary between the scope of free broadcasting and the paid subscription model, and new formats such as AI automatic editing, data-driven commentary, and vertical mobile broadcast screens are being tested. In addition, amid rising broadcasting rights fees, contradictory trends are appearing together: reduced terrestrial programming and expanded regional broadcast coverage.