Penguins fans outside the Pittsburgh area will be getting a break when it comes to following the team for the next few seasons.
According to recent report by Reuters’ Jonathan Stempel, the National Hockey League will allow fans to purchase an out-of-town live streaming package for their favorite team.
Until now, if fans wanted to purchase the league’s live-streaming service, dubbed NHL Game Center Live, they were forced to purchase all league games. The new package, containing just the games for one team, will be discounted 20% from the full-price package. Fans paid $159 for a Game Center Live subscription for the 2014-15 season.
The change in policy was brought about by a class-action anti-trust lawsuit filed against the league and several teams, including the Penguins. The proposed settlement, which includes the policy change, would be enforced for a five-year period if approved by U.S. District Justice Shira Scheindlin.
The league’s blackout policy, which restricts the availability of games in the team’s home market, will remain in effect, so this plan won’t be an option for cord-cutting Pittsburghers.
The proposed change would affect only the Game Center Live streaming video package and not the Center Ice television package offered through cable and satellite television providers.
The NHL and the other defendants have not commented on the case or its proposed settlement.
The Penguins, which are broadcast locally on Root Sports Pittsburgh, are one of the most-watched teams in the NHL. According to Sports Business Journal, Root Sports averaged a 6.55 rating for their Penguins broadcasts in 2014-15, which was the best figure in the league by a wide margin (St. Louis was second with a 4.92 rating).
Photo credit: Gene Puskar/AP Photo
