Infinity Webcasting ban

[hmglaz@webtv.net (Howard Glazer)]

A couple of nagging questions: How can MLB and the NHL work out an
exception to the Infinity Webcasting ban while the NFL cannot? Is it a
mere coincidence that CBS has TV rights to the NFL but not to the other
two? I wonder whether baseball would have a "Thou Must Webcast"
commandment written into its radio deals if CBS held a portion of its
television rights, or whether that provision would withstand a challenge
from CBS if that were the case and CBS still refused to allow streaming.

I hate to play devil's advocate, but I can see CBS' point here. Those
ears in Boston tuned to, say, an Eagles game on a streamed signal from
Philadelphia probably belong to people who aren't watching CBS' Boston
TV offering. They're also not in any position to buy any of the products
being sold by the Philly advertisers, so the Philly station can't charge
more for reaching a global audience. I keep reading here that Mel
Karmazin won't Webcast until it adds to CBS' revenue. Is there any way
for Webcasting to do that, or is the sole motivation to Webcast good
will toward out-of-market listeners at the station's expense?

Howard