SAN DIEGO – Cincinnati Reds games, at least for the foreseeable future, will continue to be televised on Bally Sports Ohio.
Diamond Sports Group, the parent company of Bally Sports Ohio, made a rights fee payment to the Reds in its 15-day grace period this week after previously missing an April 17 deadline. Major League Baseball was expected to obtain the rights to air Reds games if Diamond did not make the late payment.
“We’re pleased Diamond is complying with our contractual agreement,” said Karen Forgus, the Reds’ vice president of business operations.
It’s unclear how much money the Reds received from Diamond’s recent payment and the club didn’t comment on when the next payment is due, though it's believed to be quarterly payments. The Reds extended their TV contract for 15 years, running through the 2032 season, in October 2016. Their previous deal guaranteed $30 million annually from 2007-16, and the extension involved a significant increase with an equity stake in the regional sports network.
Diamond filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in mid-March and already missed rights fee payments to the Cleveland Guardians, Minnesota Twins, Texas Rangers and Arizona Diamondbacks. The Reds were considered a special case because the team holds equity in Bally Sports Ohio.
For now, Diamond will maintain the rights for Reds games while moving forward with bankruptcy proceedings for the TV rights for the other clubs. MLB is attempting to secure full payments or the TV rights through bankruptcy court.
If Diamond didn’t make a payment to the Reds during the grace period, the Sports Business Journal reported MLB had handshake agreements with distributors like DirecTV and Spectrum Cable to televise Reds games on a different channel than Bally Sports Ohio.
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