The networks that broadcast Blue Jays games as of last Friday had "been pulled from Bell Canada’s mobile TV app," according to James Bradshaw of the GLOBE & MAIL. Bell wireless subscribers last week received alerts that the City and Sportsnet networks -- both of which are "owned by rival Rogers Communications Inc. -- 'will no longer be available on Mobile TV.'" Rogers also owns the Blue Jays. Bradshaw reported the contract that "allowed the networks to be offered as mobile TV has run out." Bell's Mobile TV app as of early this year had "attracted 1.5 million subscribers" (GLOBE & MAIL, 8/15).
BIRD WATCHING: Last Friday's Yankees-Blue Jays game was the most-watched program in Sportsnet's history with an average of 2.03 million viewers. The net's previous all-time most-watched program was the '14-15 NHL season opener between the Canadiens and Maple Leafs, which delivered an average of 2.01 million viewers. The three-game Yankees-Blue Jays series drew an average of 1.53 million viewers on Sportsnet, with average audiences of 1.23 million tuning in Saturday and 1.27 million watching Sunday. The weekend set was the most-watched Blue Jays series in Sportsnet's history, surpassing a Blue Jays-Yankees series earlier this month that averaged 1.29 million viewers (Sportsnet). Meanwhile, YES Network VP/Communications Eric Handler tweeted that Saturday's Yankees-Blue Jays game was the "highest-rated/most-viewed weekend afternoon game on YES" in more than a year, averaging 318,000 viewers (TWITTER.com, 8/16).
