• Multichannel News, Tuesday, March 24, 2009 9:30 AM

Many of Comcast's regional owned-and-operated sports networks are now offering on-demand daily sports news, local sports interview shows and repeats of live sports games. Several CSN channels began experimenting with on-demand content last season.

With baseball season around the corner, for instance, Comcast SportsNet services in Chicago and the San Francisco Bay Area will offer Cubs, White Sox, Giants and Athletics baseball games on an on-demand basis this season.

Regional sports networks in the past have been reluctant to offer game replay content on demand for fear that it would siphon off viewers who watch such replays on traditional television. Regionals sell advertising packages based on combined audiences for live telecasts and replays. But Comcast officials say the VOD audience is still too small to affect network ratings. Instead, the on-demand replays are regarded as a value added option for fans and local cable operators.

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