DIRECTV, Comcast, FuboTV and Altice’s Optimum have all confirmed they will offer next week’s 2020 World Series in 4K.
The games will also be available on the Fox Sports app on supported devices such as 4K-enabled Roku, Fire TV and Apple TV; you can access the 4K broadcast with the user name and password from your pay TV service.
(Dish and Verizon may also provide baseball’s Fall Classic in the format, but they have not responded to inquiries from The TV Answer Man. We will update this article if we get more information.)
Update: Dish is showing the World Series’ opening game on Tuesday in 4K on its on-screen guide. Verizon has also confirmed its FiOS TV service will show the Series in 4K.
The 116th World Series will begin Tuesday night, October 20, with the winner of the Astros-Rays ALCS facing the winner of the Dodgers-Braves NLCS. The Braves now lead the Dodgers 2 games to one while the Rays are up 3-1.
The World Series will take place at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, rather than the home parks of the teams, due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Fox, which will simulcast the series in HD on the regular Fox affiliate channels, will produce it in 1080p and ‘upscale’ it to a 4K broadcast as opposed to shooting the event in 4K and transmitting in the same format. Upscaling is the process when one video format is converted to another. In this case, Fox will take the 1080p signal and convert it to a 4K format.
Upscaling 4K is not as good as what’s called, native 4K, which means the original event was produced in 4K, and broadcast or streamed in 4K as well. Still, the 4K broadcast should be an improvement over 1080i or 1080p HD.
DIRECTV will offer the game in 4K on either its channel 105 or 106, the two channels it devotes to live 4K events. Comcast’s 4K coverage of the game will be on its On Demand service. You can see the listing by saying ‘4K’ in your Xfinity voice remote on the day of the broadcast. (Note: You will need a Xfinity 4K-enabled set-top.)
With FuboTV, you will need a 4K-enabled streaming device that has the FuboTV app, or a TV that’s 4K-enabled and carries the FuboTV app. However, the live streaming service, which costs $65 a month, does not carry all Fox affiliates. If FuboTV does not carry the Fox affiliate in your market, you will not be able to see the 4K or HD broadcast of the games on FuboTV. Here is a list of the Fox affiliates that are available on Fubo.
Optimum, which is available in parts of New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, will show the Series in 4K on its channel 200.
Have a question about new TV technologies? Send it to The TV Answer Man at swann@tvpredictions.com. Please include your first name and hometown in your message.
— Phillip Swann
I continue to watch the playoffs of both Direct and Spectrum providers. The 4K signal of Fox is slightly brighter and slightly better color. (That am be due to the brightness improvement) I’m grateful for Fox making the effort but wonder why when 4K cameras aren’t being used to do the games that Fox sends an upcast 1080p?? The two set I’m watching on I sinc so almost exact pictures (time wise) on both sets. The Sony 75 Z9d is actually on a kitchen wall and the LG is in my family room (77cx) It’s not a complaint to Fox necessarily as others are doing the same thing re:Norte Dame on NBC. That Spectrum delivery is on the much maligned coaxial Cable but has proven to be very competitive (picture quality) with Frontier Fiber. Many of youn reading this will consider my comment crazy but it’s real to 5000 homes in Palm Desert. I too would not have believed it had I not been a part of it.
Bottom line I will say again…THX Direct for you efforts with all this and I will wait for better things to happen and turn the game on today in “4K”
Why again won’t Fox produce their games in 4k instead of 1080P? Do other providers actually produce their pictures in real 4k?
I’m an 83 year old guy with an electronics habit gone bad. I have Direct due only for the best selection of 4K broadcasts dating back more than a year ago. As I mentioned, previously, last years first ever Super Bowl game was in 4K. It was a disaster and shortly thereafter I learned from a Fox middle management guy that the Super Bowl was in fact recorded using no less than 50 4K cameras. When I asked why the mediocre broadcast in upscale 1080P his knowledge was a bit limited and he responded “I guess it’s the ability to serve more carriers with an easier to transmit signal.” Take that for what it’s worth but I guess you and I and those enthusiasts interested in 4K sports will have to remain patient….and keep on asking.
THX for the interest. I watched Augusta last year as well and it was only marginally better than regular HD and that was on “quick-view” with Direct ??? Maybe some techy reading all this could provide us our answer