Sports fans who use the Bally Sports App and Bally Sports+ to stream their favorite teams now have a new way to get their games — directly through their [Samsung Smart TV]. On Thursday, Diamond Sports Group announced the launch of the Bally Sports app across Samsung’s fleet of Smart TVs, which viewers can use with either their TV Everywhere and Bally Sports+ credentials.
The two Bally Sports platforms provide customers with in-market access to live games and programming found on the Bally Sports regional sports networks (RSNs).
“Partnering with a top brand like Samsung is an important milestone in the evolution of our offering,” Bally Sports+ COO and GM Michael Schneider said. “Samsung has a reputation for providing consumers with an exceptional user experience and we are excited to offer fans yet another way to watch their favorite teams.”
Bally Sports+ has had a long, tumultuous development period, but has found its footing in recent months and has delivered a quality product to sports fans in its regional broadcast areas. Last week, Chris Ripley — the CEO of Diamond Sports’ parent company Sinclair Media Group — reported that the company was pleased by the 70% retention of customers who went through the streaming service's seven-day free trial.
Company executives have also noted that the time spent viewing games via Bally Sports+ was “significant,” and provided examples, including that Minnesota Wild and Timberwolves games have already combined for over 23 million minutes streamed this season via Bally Sports North.
However, spurred on by the continue difficult to add more Major League Baseball streaming rights, Diamond Sports Group’s board voted this week to block Sinclair from interfering in the company's day-to-day operations. This latest offering may indicate that DSG is ready to step out as an independent entity and put its streaming platform in as many homes as possible.
The Bally Sports app is available now on all 2016 and newer Samsung Smart TV model years.
Bally Sports+
Bally Sports+ is a direct-to-consumer streaming service that offers live games for those who want access to your local Bally Sports RSN without subscribing to a cable or satellite package.