MLB.com to stream live baseball games via iPhone

Major League Baseball's official website MLB.com [1]announced it will add live game coverage to its popular At Bat mobile application [2] in conjunction with today's release of Apple's iPhone 3.0 operating system. iPhone and iPod touch users who download the $9.99 At Bat app will initially enjoy two live major league contests each day, selected by MLB.com--coverage begins with Wednesday's 2:20 pm interleague tilt pitting the Chicago Cubs against their south-side rivals the Chicago White Sox, followed at 8:15 pm by the Detroit Tigers/St. Louis Cardinals game. Like traditional television broadcasts, the At Bat games are subject to local blackout.

At Bat's streaming content is optimized for both WiFi and 3G networks--MLB.com tells The New York Times that its servers will detect the strength of the device's connection and adapt the quality of the video accordingly. The app also boasts DVR features. MLB.com adds that it will roll out the entire slate of major league games as the season unfolds, at some point introducing premium fees to view some contests--a price has not yet been determined, however.

For more on the enhanced At Bat app:
- read this New York Times article [3]
- check out this slideshow [1] of the app

Related articles:
ESPN inks multi-platform deal with MLB [4]
MLB [5] slides into iTunes
Qualcomm steps to the plate for MLB [6] deal