Sports teams build in-house media operations as RSN model fractures

The shift toward in-house production marks a fundamental change in how local sports rights are monetized and distributed. By moving away from third-party regional networks, franchises like the Rangers and Kraken gain total control over their streaming data and sponsorship inventory, which were previously siloed by broadcasters. This trend forces a technical evolution, as seen with NC State’s move to SMPTE ST 2110, requiring teams to become sophisticated media tech organizations rather than just content providers. Watch for whether these team-led models can match the reach of legacy cable bundles as they transition to direct-to-consumer streaming platforms.

The collapse of Diamond Sports Group has accelerated the migration of local sports rights from RSNs to team-controlled platforms. In March 2025, the NHL announced a multi-year agreement with ESPN to distribute out-of-market games after the Diamond bankruptcy left a void in regional coverage, while individual franchises moved faster. The Seattle Kraken launched Kraken+ as a direct-to-consumer streaming service for the 2024-25 season, and the Texas Rangers partnered with Victory+ to distribute games outside their traditional cable footprint. Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which operates the Washington Wizards and Capitals, confirmed in early 2025 that it would produce and distribute all local broadcasts in-house through its Monumental Sports Network, eliminating its prior RSN dependency entirely. These moves signal that the infrastructure investments teams are making in production facilities and IP-based workflows are no longer optional but existential for revenue control. On the business side, the financial stakes of the RSN model fractures are quantifiable. Diamond Sports Group's Chapter 11 reorganization plan, confirmed by a federal bankruptcy court in late 2024, reduced the company's debt by approximately $8 billion and severed carriage agreements with multiple cable operators, leaving teams to renegotiate distribution from scratch. The Atlanta Braves' decision to launch a direct-to-consumer streaming product through their own platform reflects a broader pattern where franchises calculate that owning the subscriber relationship yields higher lifetime value than per-subscriber fees from a distressed RSN. Chicago Sports Network, which replaced NBC Sports Chicago in 2024, signed distribution deals with Comcast and other MVPDs but also introduced a standalone streaming tier priced at $19.99 per month, illustrating the hybrid approach some new entrants are taking to bridge the gap between legacy carriage and direct access. The technical backbone supporting these in-house operations increasingly relies on SMPTE ST 2110 IP transport standards. NC State University completed a phased migration from baseband SDI to a full SMPTE ST 2110 infrastructure in its production facility during 2025, enabling remote production workflows and reducing on-site crew requirements by roughly 40 percent, according to the school's broadcast engineering team. At the professional level, the Los Angeles Angels' in-house production facility uses an IP-based architecture that supports simultaneous multi-platform output for linear, streaming, and social channels. ESPN's own production operations have increasingly adopted ST 2110 for its Bristol and Charlotte campuses, with the company confirming in 2025 that new studio builds would be IP-native from day one, setting a technical benchmark that team-owned facilities are now matching as they assume full production responsibility.