We heard two weeks ago that the Dodgers were “50-50" about whether to keep their television broadcasts on Fox Sports or move them to Time Warner Cable starting in 2014, but it appears they are moving closer to a decision.
While FOX Sports was once considered the heavy favorite, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times hears that the Dodgers are now leaning toward accepting a deal with Time Warner Cable. No final decision has been made, as the club hasn’t reached an agreement with MLB on how the structure of a deal will impact their contribution to revenue sharing.
It’s believed that the Dodgers will sign the largest television contract in baseball history, perhaps as much as $7 billion. The team discussed a new deal with Fox in the fall which was rumored to be worth at least $6 billion over 25 years, but Time Warner jumped in after Fox’s exclusive negotiating window expired.
At issue right now is whether the Dodgers will contribute closer to $1 billion or $2 billion to revenue sharing. Dodgers chairman Mark Walter and MLB executive vice president Rob Manfred discussed the situation at the owners’ meetings in Arizona last week, but it’s not clear whether any progress was made.
