Yahoo has given its sports app a refresh with a focus on livestreaming. In collaboration with Major League Baseball, Yahoo Sports will now list which games are being broadcast live online. With one tap, you’ll be able to watch it either through Yahoo’s app or another third-party provider such as FOX Sports GO.
Available on iOS and Android, Yahoo Sports has moved beyond being just about statistics, box scores, and news headlines. When using the app, a “watch” button will appear next to scheduled baseball games that are being livestreamed. One tap will take you into details about that game, including streaming options. Because of its partnership with the MLB, some games that will be broadcast live right on Yahoo Sports, such as the company’s “MLB Free Game of the Day.”
Only those games that are available to you will be shown, as Yahoo said it manages “the complex rights and blackout restrictions.” This capability is limited to baseball currently, but it’s not far-fetched to think that the company would try to broker a deal in the future with the National Basketball Association (NBA), National Hockey League (NHL), or National Football League (NFL), an organization that previously worked with Yahoo and hasn’t been shy about online streaming.
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Videos are obviously a big part of Yahoo’s strategy, with chief executive Marissa Mayer’s “Mavens” focus. The livestreaming guide jibes with the company’s history of being a directory, as the app is guiding people to the information they want. It’s similar to Yahoo’s Video Guide app, which launched in December as a TV Guide for video-streaming services.
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