The announcement this week that three telecasts of Blues games in the home stretch of their season will be moved from cable to over-the-air stations was termed an experiment by the club and the two Gray Media outlets that will be carrying them.
When KMOV (Channel 4) and Matrix Media (Channel 32) show the club’s contest on Feb. 22, it will mark the first time since the 2008-09 season that a Blues locally produced telecast will air on so-called free TV.
The goal is to see how those contests, which are being switched from FanDuel ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Network, will fare in the ratings on “free TV†after cable has lost viewers en masse in recent years amid much of the audience’s shift to streaming. Adding to the decline is that FanDuel is not carried by multiple programming distributors because of financial disputes, leading to the team being on pace for its worst-rated season in records that date to 1990. That’s after having its worst ratings performance last year since 2009-10.
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“We need to test things, to understand better what the impact of this potential reach is,†Blues Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer Steve Chapman said. “... Until you do it, you don’t know.â€
JD Sosnoff, general manager of both local Gray stations, echoed that.
“The first priority is to get Blues games on (free) TV for fans to have easy access,†he said. “... It’s good for the Blues, and it’s good for us.â€
Sosnoff said he’d “certainly be interested†if the Cardinals decide to put some of their local telecasts on over-the-air TV.
Cardinals Senior Vice President of Business Operations Anuk Karunaratne didn’t rule out the possibility of a return to broadcast television. But he didn’t indicate that it will happen, either, saying this week that the club is exploring its options.
Executives of three other over-the-air stations in the market — KTVI (Channel 2), KPLR (Channel 11) and KSDK (Channel 5) — also have expressed interest in adding Cardinals telecasts if any become available.
That club hasn’t had over-the-air TV as part of its local broadcasting business since 2010, when it placed some games on KSDK (Channel 5) before shifting all those contests to what now is FanDuel ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Network.
Like the Blues, Cardinals ratings have take a hit.
The Redbirds drew a record-low figure last season on FDSN predecessor Bally ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Midwest, the second year in a row of bottoming out. Their ratings have plunged a massive 47% over those two seasons.
In today’s 10 a.m. “Ten Hochman†sports video — brought to you by — Ben Hochman discusses the ranking of Cardinals closer Ryan Helsley. Also, a happy birthday shoutout to Drew Brown of OneRepublic! And as always, Hochman picks a random St. Louis Cards card!
