The Chicago Cubs Major League Baseball franchise is set to decide against renewing a long-running partnership with local broadcast rights-holder WGN-TV, according to the Chicago Tribune newspaper.
The Cubs’ current deal with cable-television broadcaster WGN-TV, which is owned by the newspaper’s parent company, the Tribune Company media group, will expire at the end of the 2014 season.
Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts said: “Obviously local media rights have been increasing in value. Hopefully at some point we will be able to get more value for our media rights. It’s just something that’s playing out over time.”
The newspaper said that the franchise has explored the possibility of launching its own television channel, but Ricketts said: “We’re still in the early stages and don’t have all the options laid out.”
WGN-TV has broadcast Cubs games under the channel’s various names since its inception in 1948.